Today, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, made the following remarks, as prepared for delivery, ahead of a joint hearing with the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Emerging Threats and Capabilities titled "Resiliency of Military Installations to Emerging Threats."
"Thank you Chairman Langevin, Chairman Garamendi, and Rep. Stefanik for scheduling this joint subcommittee hearing on such an important topic. Installation resilience has always been important to our national defense but given the dynamic and evolving nature of the threats we face, it is becoming even more critical.
"Most of our installations rely at least in part on power generated in nearby communities. At the same time, the armed forces have invested significantly in renewable energy. I am very interested to hear from our witnesses today regarding their efforts to improve energy resilience and efficiency on our military installations, as well as protect it from capable and cunning adversaries.
"Having recently visited all four bases damaged by storms and earthquakes that we are addressing in our FY20 National Defense Authorization Act, I am also concerned about getting our work done quickly to fund the $5 billion necessary for reconstruction. Without this funding, the critical missions will continue to be negatively impacted, including:
The Air Sovereignty and F22 training missions at Tyndall Air Force Base;
One of kind Navy research testing missions at China Lake;
Runway operations, tanker simulator, and critical missions of the 55th Wing at Offutt Air Force Base; and
The Marines at Camp Lejeune, New River and Cherry Point continuing to operate after approximately 800 buildings were compromised with 500 severely damaged.
"We also owe it to our military families to ensure that the privatized military family housing is fully restored. The damage in North Carolina and Florida continues to create a burden for these families.
"I look forward to hearing from our witnesses about how they are ensuring that we plan effectively, build to appropriate building codes, incorporate lessons learned from recent disasters, and inspect work on new construction to ensure it met specifications.
"Thank you for your testimony today. I yield back."
