IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 834 

Regarding the readiness decline of the Army, Marine Corps, National Guard, 

and Reserves, and the implications for national security. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 15, 2007 

Mr. ORTIZ (for himself and Mr. ABERCROMBIE) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

RESOLUTION 

Regarding the readiness decline of the Army, Marine Corps, 

National Guard, and Reserves, and the implications for 

national security. 

Whereas non-deployed Army and Marine Corps units currently in the United States are reporting lower levels of 

readiness; 

Whereas in order to meet ongoing operational demands, 

members of the Army and Marine Corps face multiple deployments, extended combat tours, and a limited time at 

home, which create stress and strain on the service members and their families; 

Whereas faced with these demands, the Army and Marine 

Corps are experiencing retention and recruiting challenges while trying to meet operational demands and 

‘‘Grow the Force’’ initiatives; 


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Whereas to address personnel shortfalls, the Army offers inflated bonuses as incentives, and has lowered service 

standards, to create a higher number of eligible personnel; 

Whereas the inability to offset personnel shortfalls continues 

to increase the demands and hardship experienced by active-duty military members and members of the Reserve 

Forces; 

Whereas the high operational tempo of combat operations 

overseas has decreased the useful life of ground and aviation equipment; 

Whereas the destruction or damage of equipment in battle results in equipment inventory depletion; 

Whereas in order to address equipment shortages, the Army 

and Marine Corps have drawn from prepositioned war 

stocks of equipment that are needed to rapidly deploy 

military units worldwide and are strategically stationed 

around the world, and plans to restock the equipment 

drawn are not near-term, thereby hindering the capability 

of the Army and Marine Corps to rapidly respond to any 

emerging crisis; 

Whereas equipment is often left behind in theater to support 

the incoming unit, resulting in severe equipment shortages in the United States for non-deployed units; 

Whereas due to time constraints, many Army units are skipping vital pre-deployment training; 

Whereas due to equipment shortages, Army and Marine 

Corps units do not train as they fight, instead receiving 

the necessary force protection and other essential equipment just prior to their deployment or when they arrive 

in theater; 


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Whereas shortened dwell time has negatively impacted the 

ability of the Army and Marine Corps to provide soldiers 

and marines with full-spectrum training, possibly limiting 

the ability of the ground forces to respond to all types 

of conflict; 

Whereas these training shortfalls increase the personal risk 

associated with serving in the Army and Marine Corps 

and limit the ability of service men and women to perform their assigned duties; 

Whereas the National Guard and Reserves have mobilized 

into an operational backstop to meet Army and Marine 

Corps active-duty shortfalls and thus are experiencing declining readiness shortfalls in personnel, equipment, and 

training; 

Whereas the Army Reserve is experiencing a fundamental 

personnel shortfall in battlefield leaders and is now deploying training brigades because all deployable brigadelevel units have been deployed in support of operations in 

Iraq and Afghanistan; 

Whereas the Nation is accepting an unacceptable amount of 

risk because the National Guard equipment inventories in 

the United States are depleted and the Department of 

Defense has not measured or tracked the National 

Guard’s readiness for domestic missions, with the result 

that the National Guard may not be prepared to respond 

effectively to unexpected terrorist incidents or large-scale 

natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina; 

Whereas all Army National Guard Brigade Combat Team 

units have been deployed in support of ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and as the Army switches from deploying individual units to whole brigades, atVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:54 Nov 16, 2007 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR834.IH HR834

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home time is decreasing, leaving Guardsmen facing multiple deployments that negatively impact families and 

communities throughout the United States; 

Whereas the Army and Marine Corps are reporting personnel 

shortfalls; 

Whereas the Army and Marine Corps are reporting equipment shortages; 

Whereas the Army and Marine Corps are reporting training 

deficiencies; 

Whereas the National Guard and Reserve are experiencing 

declines in the readiness of personnel, equipment, and 

training; 

Whereas the readiness of the military is critical to the national security interest of the United States, its citizens, 

and the integrity of the entire military force; 

Whereas the readiness shortfalls within the Army and Marine 

Corps pose an immediate risk to the integrity of the military force and the national security of the United States; 

and 

Whereas section 8, article 1, of the Constitution empowers 

the Congress ‘‘To raise and support Armies’’ and ‘‘To 

make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the 

land and naval Forces’’: Now, therefore, be it; 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that because serious readiness shortfalls exist 

3 within the Army, Marine Corps, National Guard, and Re4 serves, severely limiting the ability of the ground forces 

5 to respond effectively to any contingency or threat, at 

6 home or abroad and thus creating a potentially dangerous 


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1 level of risk to the national security of the United States, 

2 Congress should restore and maintain the ground forces 

3 at the highest levels of readiness in the interest of national 

4 security and to ensure the integrity of the entire military 

5 force. 

Æ 


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