IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 995 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Nation now 

faces a more complex and grave set of threats than at any time since 

the end of World War II, and that the lack of full, on-time funding 

related to defense activities puts servicemen and servicewomen at risk, 

harms national security, and aids the adversaries of the United States. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 16, 2018 

Ms. CHENEY (for herself, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. 

GALLAGHER, Mr. WITTMAN, Mrs. HARTZLER, Mr. ABRAHAM, Mr. 

BYRNE, and Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

the Nation now faces a more complex and grave set 

of threats than at any time since the end of World 

War II, and that the lack of full, on-time funding related 

to defense activities puts servicemen and servicewomen 

at risk, harms national security, and aids the adversaries 

of the United States. 

Whereas the United States now faces a more complex set of 

threats than at any time since the end of World War II; 

Whereas the National Defense Strategy released on January 

19, 2018, highlights these threats and acknowledges a return to great power competition; 


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•HRES 995 IH 

Whereas countries like Russia and China are heavily investing in military modernization and developing capabilities 

that the United States may not be able to defend against 

while also expanding their influence across the globe; 

Whereas North Korea’s nuclear program continues to be a 

serious threat; 

Whereas the National Defense Strategy states that ‘‘Iran 

continues to sow violence and remains the most significant challenge to Middle East stability’’; 

Whereas the National Defense Strategy states that ‘‘terrorist 

groups with long reach continue to murder the innocent 

and threaten peace more broadly’’; 

Whereas the United States continues to fight a war against 

terrorism and has troops deployed in hostile regions 

throughout the globe; 

Whereas, on January 19, 2018, Secretary of Defense James 

Mattis stated, ‘‘As hard as the last 16 years have been 

on our military, no enemy in the field has done more to 

harm the readiness of the U.S. military than the combined impact of the Budget Control Act’s defense spending cuts, worsened by us operating, 9 of the last 10 

years, under continuing resolutions, wasting copious 

amounts of precious taxpayer dollars’’; 

Whereas fiscal year 2009 was the last fiscal year the Department of Defense received on-time funding; 

Whereas the House of Representatives has passed an annual 

appropriation bill for the Department of Defense before 

the start of the next fiscal year in each of those fiscal 

years; 

Whereas article I, section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the responsibility to ‘‘provide for the common 


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•HRES 995 IH 

Defence and general Welfare of the United States’’ and 

calls on Congress to ‘‘raise and support Armies’’ and 

‘‘provide and maintain a Navy’’; and 

Whereas Secretaries of Defense appointed by Presidents of 

both parties have warned about the damage funding uncertainty has on the readiness of our Armed Forces: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) failing to provide our military with full, sta4 ble, and on-time funding allows our adversaries to 

5 close critical military capability gaps, putting our 

6 servicemembers at increased risk, and severely 

7 harms our military’s ability to prepare for, deter, 

8 and, if needed, defend against these capabilities, 

9 putting United States national security at greater 

10 risk; 

11 (2) providing full, stable, and on-time funding 

12 for the Department of Defense is critically necessary 

13 to preventing these increased risks; and 

14 (3) the House of Representatives is committed 

15 to ending the funding uncertainty for the Depart16 ment of Defense and providing the resources United 

17 States servicemembers need to defend the Nation, 

18 and that the Senate should join the House of Rep19 resentatives in these efforts. 

Æ 


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