II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 756 

To authorize appropriations for the Department of Defense to address the 

equipment reset and other equipment needs of the National Guard, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 5, 2007 

Mr. DODD introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to 

the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To authorize appropriations for the Department of Defense 

to address the equipment reset and other equipment 

needs of the National Guard, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. FUNDING FOR EQUIPMENT RESET AND OTHER 

4 EQUIPMENT NEEDS OF THE NATIONAL 

5 GUARD. 

6 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find7 ings: 

8 (1) In his testimony before the Commission on 

9 the National Guard and Reserves, the Chief of the 


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1 National Guard Bureau, Lieutenant General Blum, 

2 warned about equipment shortfalls for the Army Na3 tional Guard and Air National Guard stating that 

4 ‘‘88 percent of the forces that are back here in the 

5 United States are very poorly equipped today in the 

6 Army National Guard. And in the Air National 

7 Guard for the last three decades, they have never 

8 had a unit below C2 in equipment readiness’’. 

9 (2) In the March 1, 2007, report of the Com10 mission on the National Guard and Reserves, the 

11 Commission observes that— 

12 (A) while the operational tempo of the re13 serve components of the Armed Forces has in14 creased substantially, resourcing has not kept 

15 pace; 

16 (B) the lack of sufficient and ready equip17 ment is a problem common to both the active 

18 and reserve components of the Armed Forces; 

19 (C) the equipment readiness of the Army 

20 National Guard is unacceptable and has re21 duced the capability of the United States to re22 spond to current and additional major contin23 gencies, whether foreign and domestic; and 

24 (D) while the budget of the President for 

25 fiscal year 2008 includes large increases in 


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1 funds for equipment for the National Guard, 

2 historical practice in the Department of De3 fense indicates that Army plans for projected 

4 funding increases for equipment for the Army 

5 National Guard are not reliably carried 

6 through. 

7 (3) According to the Commission on the Na8 tional Guard and Reserves, procurement for the 

9 Army National Guard during the period from 1999 

10 through 2005 has been reduced significantly from 

11 amounts proposed for such procurement before that 

12 period. The budget for fiscal year 2001 indicated 

13 that the Army planned to expend $1,346,000,000 in 

14 fiscal year 2004 for procurement for the Army Na15 tional Guard, but the budget for fiscal year 2006 re16 vealed that the Army expended only $578,400,000 

17 for procurement for the Army National Guard in fis18 cal year 2004. Similarly, the budget for fiscal year 

19 2001 indicated that the Army planned to expend 

20 $1,625,000,000 in fiscal year 2005 for procurement 

21 for the Army National Guard, but the budget for fis22 cal year 2006 revealed that the Army planned to ex23 pend only $660,900,000 for procurement for the 

24 Army National Guard in fiscal year 2005. 


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1 (4) According to the Commission on the Na2 tional Guard and Reserves, the difference between 

3 the amounts proposed for procurement for the Army 

4 National Guard for fiscal years 2003 through 2005 

5 and the amounts actually expended for such procure6 ment in such fiscal years was atypical and extreme. 

7 (5) According to a January 2007 report of the 

8 Government Accountability Office, inventories of 

9 equipment for the National Guard in the United 

10 States have decreased because of overseas oper11 ations, particularly inventories of the Army National 

12 Guard. The Comptroller General found that State 

13 officials expressed concerns about having enough 

14 equipment to respond to large scale natural or man 

15 made disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. 

16 (6) The Comptroller General found that before 

17 current overseas operations began, the majority of 

18 the combat forces of the Army National Guard were 

19 supplied with approximately 65 to 79 percent of 

20 their required equipment. As of November 2006, 

21 nondeployed Army National Guard forces nationwide 

22 still had approximately 64 percent of the total 

23 amount of authorized dual-use equipment, including 

24 authorized substitute items, based on their 


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1 warfighting missions even as overseas and domestic 

2 missions have expanded. 

3 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby authorized 

5 to be appropriated for the Department of Defense 

6 for the Army National Guard and the Air National 

7 Guard for equipment reset requirements of the 

8 Army National Guard and the Air National Guard, 

9 and to otherwise remedy other equipment shortfalls 

10 of the Army National Guard and the Air National 

11 Guard, in order to bring the Army National Guard 

12 and the Air National Guard to full equipment readi13 ness, amounts as follows: 

14 (A) For fiscal year 2008: 

15 (i) For procurement of National 

16 Guard and Reserve Equipment, 

17 $2,100,000,000, with such amount to be 

18 available for the Army National Guard. 

19 (ii) For Operation and Maintenance, 

20 Army National Guard, $1,300,000,000. 

21 (iii) For other equipment procurement 

22 and reset, $4,360,000,000, of which— 

23 (I) $2,600,000,000 shall be avail24 able for the Army National Guard; 

25 and 


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1 (II) $1,760,000,000 shall be 

2 available for the Air National Guard. 

3 (iv) For National Guard Personnel, 

4 Air Force, $280,000,000. 

5 (v) For Operation and Maintenance, 

6 Air National Guard, $720,000,000. 

7 (B) For each of fiscal years 2009 through 

8 2013: 

9 (i) For procurement of National 

10 Guard and Reserve Equipment, 

11 $575,000,000, with such amount to be 

12 available for the Army National Guard. 

13 (ii) For Operation and Maintenance, 

14 Army National Guard, $1,300,000,000. 

15 (iii) For other equipment procurement 

16 and reset, $4,360,000,000, of which— 

17 (I) $2,600,000,000 shall be avail18 able for the Army National Guard; 

19 and 

20 (II) $1,760,000,000 shall be 

21 available for the Air National Guard. 

22 (iv) For National Guard Personnel, 

23 Air Force, $280,000,000. 

24 (v) For Operation and Maintenance, 

25 Air National Guard, $720,000,000. 


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1 (2) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—The 

2 amounts authorized to be appropriated by paragraph 

3 (1) for a fiscal year and account specified in that 

4 paragraph is in addition to any other amounts au5 thorized to be appropriated for the Department of 

6 Defense for such fiscal year for such account. 

7 (c) REPORT ON DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

10 of Defense shall submit to Congress a report assess11 ing the capability, during the 5-year period begin12 ning on October 1, 2007, of the defense industrial 

13 base of the United States to produce the equipment 

14 to be procured using amounts applicable amounts 

15 authorized to be appropriated by subsection (b). 

16 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS.—If the assessment in 

17 the report under paragraph (1) includes a deter18 mination that the defense industrial base does not 

19 have the capability to produce equipment as de20 scribed in that paragraph, the report shall also in21 clude such recommendations as the Secretary con22 siders appropriate for actions, including investments, 

23 necessary to develop that capability. 

Æ 


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