House Moves To Exempt Pentagon |
Posted by FoM on May 02, 2002 at 09:42:03 PT By Jennifer Loven, Associated Press Writer Source: Associated Press A House committee agreed Wednesday to exempt the Pentagon from major environmental laws it said are affecting military readiness. Defense officials have said that training exercises are hampered because of steps required by the laws to avoid hurting animals on military installations. Democrats on the House Armed Services Committee, which is considering legislation authorizing military spending by the Defense and Energy departments for the budget year that begins Oct. 1, failed by a voice vote to remove the exemptions from the bill. The measure would exempt habitats on military installations from Endangered Species Act protections if a separate natural resources management plan was in place. Also, it would allow the Pentagon to kill migratory birds by accident during operations. "There is a huge hole that has opened in the environmental laws of this country by this proposal," said Rep. James Maloney, D-Conn. But Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., said: "We are trying to take care of a very important endangered species, and that's the American fighting man or woman. Our ability to train people well is in jeopardy." Similar relief from laws protecting marine mammals, clean air and hazardous-waste cleanup went unheeded. Approval of the overall bill was expected late Wednesday, Earlier Wednesday, lawmakers also supported more military base closings in 2005, voting 38-19 against a measure to cancel the new round Congress approved last year. Some committee members said shuttering more facilities would hurt the war on terrorism and the economic recovery. The Pentagon has said it needs the savings from more base closings to meet other essential military activities. The previous four rounds of base closures -- in 1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995 -- led to the shutdown or realignment of 451 installations. A General Accounting Office report estimated those closures have saved the military about $16.7 billion through last September, including the costs of environmental cleanup. "We have to cut the waste out of the federal budget and that means closing some facilities," Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa., said. The committee also voted to limit American troop levels in Colombia to no more than 500 at one time, with certain exceptions. The defense secretary could waive that cap if demands by national interests. The total amount of spending expected to be endorsed would roughly match President Bush's $396 billion defense spending proposal, the largest increase in two decades, minus a $10 billion reserve fund for unspecified future war needs that the White House proposed. The committee was planning to put off final consideration of separate legislation authorizing that money. The House version pushes spending above Bush's requests in several areas: an extra $3.2 billion for buying weapons; $1 billion more for military construction; and about a 1 percent increase to the 1.4 million active-duty troops across the four services. The bill also would: * begin allowing military retirees to collect disability benefits on top of retirement pay. * accelerate development of pilotless planes for surveillance and attack. * provide billions more for a new generation of stealth jet fighters. * set aside $27 billion for fighting terrorism. * increased military pay by at least 4.1 percent. Congressional appropriators must write separate appropriations legislation before the money can be spent. On the Net: House Armed Services Committee: http://www.house.gov/hasc/ Source: Associated Press Related Articles & Web Site: Colombia Drug War News U.S. Certifies Colombian 'Progress' on Rights Official: No Combat Role in Colombia Witness: Drug War Spraying Colombia To Death Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
Comment #1 posted by BGreen on May 02, 2002 at 15:22:22 PT |
Why don't they stock the training grounds and military installations with innocent, unarmed men, women, and children so the soldier puppets can practice killing the real target? [ Post Comment ] |
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