Hartzler Supports Temporary Lifting of Defense Sequester

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler this morning supported H.R. 1892, the Bipartisan Budget Act, legislation to temporarily end the harmful funding restrictions mandated by the 2011 defense sequester. This legislation also funds the government through March 23, allowing the necessary time to finalize a comprehensive budget.

“Since President Obama signed the Budget Control Act into law in 2011, America’s military has suffered devastating budget cuts while at the same time being asked to defend our homeland and fight terrorism overseas,” said Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler, Chairwoman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee on the House Armed Services Committee. “These past years, we have seen our armed forces operate in increasingly hostile environments while being asked to do more with less. Funding shortfalls and political disagreements have led to a series of continuing resolutions which have led to government shutdowns, more budget uncertainty for our military and threats to our readiness. This is inexcusable,” added Hartzler.

“Today’s passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act temporarily lifts the harmful defense sequester which has hampered our military for years and puts in place a budgetary framework which will allow for a stable, adequate defense budget. This two-year agreement also funds the government through March 23, allowing the necessary time to finalize a comprehensive spending package in other areas of the government. Additionally, it is supported by the National Right to Life for its repeal of the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), a group of 15 unelected bureaucrats empowered through Obamacare to decide what healthcare options seniors have access to.”

Hartzler, who represents Missouri’s Whiteman Air Force Base and Fort Leonard Wood, mentioned that this bipartisan agreement is far from perfect, adding that Congress and the White House must soon turn their focus to curbing mandatory spending, which is the primary driver of our debt. She suggested that “ravaging our military” is not the answer. “We have the smallest army since the pre-WWII era, the smallest Navy since the pre-WWI era, and the smallest Air Force ever,” Hartzler said. “Accident rates are higher than they should be in all the Services. In 2017, there were 80 deaths related to readiness accidents.”

While testifying before Congress, Defense Secretary Mattis said he was “shocked” by the state of readiness when he returned to the Pentagon and that, “No enemy in the field has done more to harm the combat readiness of our military than sequestration.” The below list tells why:

Our State of Readiness

• The United States does not have enough missile defense interceptors to defend against the North Korean threat.
• We are running out of bombs. Budget cuts and increased operations have depleted America’s supply of precision munitions. As Heather Wilson, Secretary of the Air Force, put it, “when it comes to munitions, we are stretched.”

The State of the Air Force

• The Air Force is smaller than it has ever been. In 1991 we had 8,600 aircraft, now we have 5,500. In 1991 we had 134 squadrons, now we have 55.
• The average age of Air Force aircraft is 27 years old, and more than half of the inventory would qualify for antique license plates in the state of Virginia.
• Only 50% of the Air Force’s combat forces are sufficiently ready for a highly contested fight against a peer adversary.
• The Air Force’s pilot shortage has grown from 1,500 earlier this year to 2,000.
• The Air Force is flying fewer hours and fewer sorties than in the 1970s, when the force was considered ‘hollow.’

The State of the Army

• Over the past 8 years we have reduced the size of the Army, Guard, and Reserve by as much as 120,000 Soldiers and eliminated 15 brigade combat teams.
• Only 5 of the 58 Brigade Combat Teams are “Ready to Fight Tonight.”
• Funding for future readiness against competitors like Russia and China has been cut over 70 percent during the last 10 years.

The State of the Navy

• Serious readiness shortfalls, to include insufficient time or resources to train sailors or maintain ships, contributed to the fatal accidents aboard the USS Fitzgerald and USS McCain this summer.
• In some cases, Sailors are working over 100 hours a week to keep up with training requirements and current operations.
• Less than half the Navy’s aircraft can fly due to maintenance and spare parts issues. Sixty-two percent of Navy fighters cannot fly and fifty-three percent of all Navy aviation is grounded.

The State of the Marines

• Fatal aviation accidents are increasing. Over the past decade, the rate of accidents resulting in the loss of life or aircraft for the Marine Corps has averaged 2.15 per 100,000 flight hours. By July of 2017, it had already more than doubled to 4.47.
• Marines are significantly short of ready aircraft for wartime requirements. Approximately 80 percent of Marine Corps aviation units lack the minimum number of ready basic aircraft.
• 74 percent of Marine F-18 Hornets are not ready for combat.

The Bipartisan Budget Act passed the House by a vote of 240-186 and will now be sent to the president and signed into law.

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Interested members of the media may contact Anna Swick at anna.swick@mail.house.gov