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U.S.
Senator Ken Salazar
Member: Agriculture, Energy, Veterans' Affairs, Ethics and Aging Committees
2300 15th
Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO
80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C.
20510
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Sen. Salazar Wins Funds to Support Nation’s Troops and Colorado’s Military
Installations and Supports Funding New Team to Target al Qaeda
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – Later today, the Senate will pass the Defense Appropriations
Act for FY2007, and with it several provisions introduced by United
States Senator Ken Salazar to provide crucial funding to support US
troops and military operations. The Defense spending bill will also
include an amendment to provide funds to create a new team focused on
the capture of Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda leaders – Senator Salazar
was an original co-sponsor of that amendment.
“To ensure strong
homeland security, we must ensure our Nation’s defense and military
operations have the funding they need to get the job done,” said Senator
Salazar. “I am proud to have fought for these funds to improve our Nation’s
defense programs. I will continue to work with my Senate and House colleagues
to ensure these funds stay in Colorado throughout the appropriations
process.”
Various press sources have
reported that the CIA’s Osama bin Laden unit and the bin Laden Issue
Team at the Counter Terrorism Center have both been deactivated. In
response to those reports, the Defense spending bill includes an amendment
from Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Kent Conrad (D-ND) which would
provide $200 million to constitute a new team dedicated to bring bin
Laden and other top al Qaeda leaders to justice. It also requires classified
reporting to Congress on national strategy and ongoing efforts to bring
to justice the top leadership of al Qaeda.
It has now been over 1800
days since President Bush said “this act will not stand; we will find
those who did it; we will smoke them out of their holes; we will get
them running and we’ll bring them to justice.”
“We must hold Osama
bin Laden and al Qaeda accountable for the attack on this country,”
added Senator Salazar. “For the Administration to suggest deactivating
the task force focused on bringing those responsible for the 9/11 attacks
to justice weakens our National Security. I am proud to help sponsor
this amendment to ensure our attention is not diverted as we hunt the
terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks.”
The FY 2007 Defense Appropriations
Bill (H.R. 5631), will include the following provisions requested by
and fought for by Senator Salazar:
- $10 million to purchase
communications packages capable of linking more than 1,000 first responders
during an emergency for the United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM).
Each of these packages includes a mobile cellular base station that
supports voice, video and data. Each package also includes cellular
handsets, broadband-enable laptops, and air cards for additional computer
devices. Satellite phones are included to provide telephone coverage
outside of cellular coverage zones.
- $19 million in full funding
for the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC). The center’s
mission is to serve active duty military, their dependents and veterans
with traumatic brain injury (TBI) through state-of-the-art medical
care, innovative clinical research initiatives, and educational programs.
The Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center requested $19 million
for the coming year, citing the growing number of patients, the cost
of long-term care, current staffing requirements, and the need for
research to improve treatment and prevention. The appropriations had
been cut to only $7 million, but Senator Salazar cosponsored an amendment
providing funding at the level requested by the center.
- $216 million for the
Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (ACWA) program. The money
will be utilitized for Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation
of the ACWA program and will be shared between the Pueblo Chemical
Depot and Bluegrass, Kentucky sites.
- $57 million ($7 million
above the President’s budget request) for NORAD and STRATCOM for development
of the Single Integrated Space Picture.
$2 million for the Air Force’s Advanced Power Technology Office (APTO)
for the research and development of high-performance, low-cost modular
energy systems for hybrid and electric vehicles.
- $3 million for the development
of a Respiratory Biodefense Initiative at the National Jewish Medical
and Research Center in Denver, CO.
- $4 million dollars to
upgrade utilities at Fort Carson that will provide utility infrastructure
in support of new installation construction through FY2010.
- $3.2 million for Schriever
Air Force Base to replace their ground space electronic security system.
- $800 thousand for the
United States Air Force Academy to rehabilitate and upgrade its aging
static aircraft displays across the campus.
- $4 million nationally
for the Civil Air Patrol, which had been hurt by proposed cuts to
its overall budget.
Senator Salazar is also proud to support language directing the United
States Air Force to come up with a master plan for infrastructure
restoration at the United States Air Force Academy.
- $11 million for the Minuteman
III Propulsion Replacement Program, to be carried out by Northrop-Grumman.
This replaces the aging propellant in Minuteman III rocket motors
in order to keep the current fleet operational. Wyoming’s F.E. Warren
Air Force Base has some of these missiles.
- $2 million for the development
of copper, lightweight induction motors for the military to be carried
out by Vforge in Lakewood, CO. Copper rotors result in more efficient
motors, meaning they can be smaller and lighter than traditional motors.
- $2 million for the Deployable
Structures Experiment, to be carried out by Microsat in Littleton,
CO. The experiment seeks to reduce the design time, cost, and size
of satellites in order to allow tactical satellite launches for battlespace
management.
- $2.5 million for Special
Operations Command to develop an air-dropped sensor needed for clandestine
missions. This is to be carried out by ADA Technologies in Littleton,
CO.
- $1 million for the Medical
Image Database Holographic Archiving Library System (MIDHALS), which
seeks to store, distribute, and retrieve medical documents for the
administration of timely medical care for soldiers. Companies to receive
funding for this program include Sun Microsystems in Louisville, CO
and InPhase Technologies in Longmont, CO.
- $2 million for Combat
Support Hospital tents, to be produced by Alaska Structures in Delta,
CO, which provide state-of-the-art field medical hospitals.
- $2 million for Polyimide
Macro-electromechanical Systems (PMEMS), to be carried out by Ball
Aerospace in Boulder and Jefferson Counties, which seeks to save the
government money by dramatically reducing the cost of phased arrays
for multiple applications and frequency bands. The phased array systems
are estimated to save the Navy $88 million dollars for every ship
they are used on.
After passage, the FY07
Defense Appropriations Bill (H.R. 5631) will then go to Conference Committee.
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