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Contact: Kristen Hainen 202.225.4422 |
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Lamborn Supports Necessary Funding for National Defense
During the markup of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009, Congressman Lamborn voted in favor of crucial provisions for our national defense Washington, May 15, 2008 - Early this morning, after more than fifteen hours of debating and amending the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2009, the House Armed Services Committee favorably reported the bill to the full House. Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) made the following statement following the markup of the FY09 NDAA. "As the U. S. Representative for the Fifth District of Colorado and member of the House Armed Services Committee, following the markup of the FY09 National Defense Authorization Act, I am happy to see necessary funding for our national defense and military approved by the Committee , but I am disappointed by the lack of funds allocated to some of the essential aspects of our military budget. Specifically, seeing funds slashed from the European-based missile defense system and the Army’s Future Combat System is especially disheartening considering 2009 is a critical year for military funding. "Despite these unfortunate failures, key funding was allocated including: $531.4 billion in budget authority for the Department of Defense (DoD) and the national security programs of the Department of Energy and $70 billion in additional supplemental funding to support the Global War on Terrorism’s operational costs, personnel expenses and procurement of new equipment. The well deserved pay raise of 3.9% for all armed service members and the increase of 7,000 Army and 5,000 Marine Corps active duty personnel will help sustain our required missions. "These provisions, along with the entirety of the National Defense Authorization Act, are especially relevant to the constituency of the Fifth District of Colorado, which houses a sizable and thriving military community. Providing our service men and women with the appropriate training, equipment, and compensation is at the top of my priority list. Ultimately, it is my hope that we will be able to restore funding of critical programs in a bipartisan manner when the NDAA comes to the House floor next week. This will provide the monetary support required to continue to ensure we have the best military force in the world."--Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) |
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