OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

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Floor Speech

Date: Dec. 7, 2021
Location: Washington, DC

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Mrs. HARTZLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022.

I want to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their work in developing this comprehensive bill that will ensure our men and women in uniform have the resources they need to keep our country safe.

The bill before us today does not include a provision requiring women to register for the Selective Service. This bill does not include any red-flag gun provisions that would infringe on the Second Amendment rights of our servicemembers. And this bill does not establish an office of extremism.

I want to thank Ranking Member Rogers for his advocacy in removing these provisions from the final bill.

This bill does protect servicemembers who choose not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine by prohibiting the DOD from issuing dishonorable discharges. It also requires the DOD to establish uniform standards for COVID-19 vaccine exemptions and requires the Pentagon to consider the effects of natural immunity.

As ranking member of the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee, I am pleased with the continued investments this bill makes for our air and land capabilities.

Under the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee's jurisdiction, this bill continues critical oversight of the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps' strike fighter force structure and inventory management, setting better conditions for ensuring the right mix of fourth- and fifth-generation fighters and managing operational risk.

Specifically, this legislation authorizes funding for 12 F/A-18 Super Hornets, 85 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, and 17 F-15EX aircraft.

The legislation also provides much-needed funding increases within the Army's small and medium caliber ammunition accounts as well as to support operational and safety improvements to the Nation's ammunition industrial base. I am proud of this legislation, and I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the final passage of the NDAA.

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