May 17, 2016

U.S. House of Representatives

Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Representative,

You will soon begin voting on H.R. 4909, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (NDAA).  On behalf of the more than one million members and supporters of the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW), I urge you to support the following amendments:

Rep. Paul Gosar’s (R-Ariz.) amendment to cut the number of Littoral Combat ships from three to two, as requested by the Department of the Navy.  The amendment prohibits any budget authorization for the procurement of a third Littoral Combat ship by the Overseas Contingency Operations budget.

Rep. Mick Mulvaney’s (R-S.C.) amendment to codify criteria established by the Office of Management and Budget that clarifies when military spending should be designated as contingency operations and properly be part of the Overseas Contingency Operations budget.

Rep. Mark Sanford’s (R-S.C.) amendment, supported by the Department of Defense, that would strike Section 808 and ensure that the armed forces provide a cash allowance to enlisted service members for the purchase of athletic shoes, without restricting them to a single brand of shoe.

Rep. Michael Burgess’s (R-Texas) amendment that requires the Department of Defense to issue a report ranking the military and defense agencies in the order in which they have advanced in achieving auditable financial statements that are required by law.

Rep. John Fleming’s (R-La.) amendment that would prohibit funds from being used to carry out Executive Orders 13653 and 13693 requiring the Department of Defense to meet green energy mandates in their operations, acquisition, and planning.

I also urge you to oppose the following amendments:

Rep. Ryan Zinke’s (R-Mont.) amendment that forces sole-sourcing for the UH-1N (Huey) helicopter replacement.  While replacements for the aging Hueys are needed, sole-sourcing will cost the taxpayers an unnecessary premium for acquisition, especially since the military has been long aware of the need for replacement.

Rep. Suzan DelBene’s (D-Wash.) amendment that would require all anchor and mooring chains (four inches in diameter or less) used by the Army Corps of Engineers to be made in the United States.  This amendment is anti-competitive and prevents the Department of Defense from purchasing the most cost-effective product.

All votes on H.R. 4909 will be among those considered in CCAGW’s 2016 Congressional Ratings.

Sincerely,

Tom Schatz
President, CCAGW