Terrorism Subcommittee Chairman Adam Smith Opening Statement Full Committee Mark-Up of FY10 NDAA (H.R. 2647)

Statement

Terrorism Subcommittee Chairman Adam Smith Opening Statement Full Committee Mark-Up of FY10 NDAA (H.R. 2647)

"I am pleased to meet with the full committee to consider all portions of the Fiscal Year 2010 National Defense Authorization Act today. This is a critically important bill, which ensures our brave young men and women in harm's way have the resources they need.

"For our portion of the legislation, the Terrorism, Unconventional Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee focused on some of the Defense Department's most important challenges: the fight against violent extremists, their allies and their ideology; development and deployment of innovation technology in new battlefields; and defending the homeland from catastrophic unconventional attacks.

"Recognizing the leading role that our Special Operations Forces (SOF) play in the fight against violent extremists and like-minded groups around the world, the subcommittee's mark seeks to enhance manpower management and improve overall readiness of special operations forces. The subcommittee's mark also seeks to improve interagency cooperation as they pertain to counterterrorism and counterinsurgency matters. The mark authorizes SOF with the equipment and support necessary to effectively conduct their missions. Specifically, we provide $8.7 billion for Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and related initiatives, and $308.4 million to fully fund SOCOM's unfunded priorities.

"In addition to providing our SOF personnel the tools they need to fight extremist groups, this subcommittee's mark prioritizes ‘irregular warfare,' including counterinsurgency, stability operations, and strategic communications. It also directs the Secretary of Defense to submit a report on the assessment of the Department's strategic communications workforce and on use of military public diplomacy.

"Our subcommittee also focused on enhancing DoD's use of technology and included language and funding to help protect the United States from unconventional attacks. The mark funds vital science and technology research, encourages the Department to invest in developing and demonstrating technologies for hybrid air vehicles, and establishes a pilot demonstration for an alternative process for acquiring new information technology capabilities.

"Our portion of the NDAA also prioritizes cyber security by directing the Secretary of Defense to have the military departments and defense agencies establish a process for addressing hardware or software vulnerabilities to defense information technology systems, and by establishing a joint program office for cyber operations capabilities to improve the development of leap-ahead capabilities for the Department.

"The subcommittee has also authorized an additional $5 million over the President's Budget Request for K-12 and undergraduate educational outreach programs for the Services to enhance the pipeline of trained technical personnel to man cyber offensive and defensive missions.

"Finally, the committee fully funds the Chemical Biological Defense and Chemical Demilitarization programs. These provisions ensure our military remains up-to-date and ready to prevent and respond to major attacks on the homeland.

"I look forward to discussing our subcommittee's portion of the larger NDAA, and I commend Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO), the House Armed Services Committee staff and all members of the House Armed Services Committee for their work in constructing this essential legislation."

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