Washington, DC—The U.S. House of Representatives today approved the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (NDAA), which includes three amendments filed by Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi, addressing public safety in Puerto Rico, equality for the territory’s soldiers and veterans, and the island municipalities of Vieques and Culebra.Pierluisi’s first amendment, which was approved by voice vote, requires the Department of Defense (DOD), within 450 days, to conduct a review of all DOD records and prepare a public report that describes the historical use of military munitions and military training on Vieques and Culebra and its surrounding waters. The review must identify the type of munitions, the quantity of munitions, and the location where such munitions may have potentially been used or may be remaining on Vieques and Culebra. The review must also determine and describe the type of various military training exercises that occurred on each island. “A decade after the Navy stopped using Vieques as a training range and nearly 20 years after the Navy stopped using Culebra as a training range, there remain many unanswered questions and gaps in information about the exact types and amounts of ordnance that was used on both islands. This amendment—which is unprecedented—would require DOD to conduct the necessary research and to collect this information in a single document that would be available to the public. This report will help address the serious concerns that have been raised about the link between the past military exercises and the present threats to public safety, public health and the environment on Vieques and Culebra,” said Pierluisi, who offered the amendment with the support of Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL).The Resident Commissioner’s second successful amendment, offered with House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX), relates to the Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS) program, which is designed to interdict unlawful drugs entering this country. Since August 2011, when the radar in the Lajas, Puerto Rico aerostat was destroyed in strong weather conditions, Pierluisi has been working tirelessly to have that radar replaced. In January 2013, the problem was compounded when DOD—the current manager of the TARS program—expressed its intention to terminate the entire TARS program, with operations at the eight TARS sites to cease by March 2013. In response, Pierluisi and McCaul wrote a letter, joined by 14 other Members of Congress, to the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget, urging that DOD transfer the program to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This effort was successful, and DOD and DHS agreed that DOD would continue to fund the program for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2013 and DHS would begin to administer the program starting in Fiscal Year 2014. The Pierluisi-McCaul amendment ensures that the two agencies have the legal authority they need to effectuate this transfer. Importantly, the NDAA also urges DOD and DHS “to facilitate a smooth transition of the TARS program, with the goal of preventing any gaps in service or capability in the eight locations.” The bill “acknowledges the gaps in maintenance of several of the aerostats” and encourages both DOD and DHS “to mitigate these maintenance issues and ensure all eight aerostats are fully functional.” In other words, Congress is clearly stating that the Lajas radar should be replaced.“I want to thank Chairman McCaul for working with me to save the TARS program from elimination, through this amendment and through our prior work together on this issue. I also want to thank my colleagues in Congress for echoing my view that the Lajas radar should be replaced by either DOD or DHS. It makes absolutely no sense to have six TARS sites along the Southwest Border, one TARS sites in the Florida Keys, and no TARS site in the Caribbean, given the fact that Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands—home to nearly four million American citizens—have the highest level of drug-related violence in the nation, and approximately 80 percent of the drugs that enter Puerto Rico are subsequently transported to the U.S. mainland, where they destroy communities represented by my colleagues,” said Pierluisi.The Resident Commissioner’s third amendment, co-authored with Rep. Grayson, addressed a flaw in the base bill. The NDAA establishes a commission called the ‘‘Commission on Service to the Nation’’ to study the effects of warfare—focusing on recent conflicts—on members of the armed forces, their families, and communities, especially the transition that soldiers make from military to civilian life. The Commission, to be composed of 15 members appointed by Congress, is required to prepare a report on its findings. To prepare this report, the Commission will hold hearings during which it can receive testimony from members of the armed forces, veterans and their families. The original bill required the Commission to hold at least one hearing in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, and authorized—but did not require—the Commission to hold a hearing in Puerto Rico and the other territories. The Pierluisi-Grayson amendment modified the language to require that at least one hearing be held in Puerto Rico and the other territories.“I want to thank Rep. Grayson for working with me on the amendment, and I want to thank my colleagues in the House for accepting it. Puerto Rico has a rich tradition of military service, going back to World War I. Well over 20,000 men and women from Puerto Rico have deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Many have died, been physically wounded, or carry the emotional scars of their service. Their families and loved ones, too, have made great sacrifices. Clearly, any Commission created by Congress to study the effects of warfare on soldiers and their families should treat the American citizens from Puerto Rico exactly the same as their fellow citizens in the states,” said Pierluisi.
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