Washington, D.C. – Today, House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-WA) made the following statement about the need for timely testimony by the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in advance of the Committee commencing its work on the FY 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA):

“There is an enormous amount of information that the House of Representatives needs to take into account as it marks up the FY 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). That information must include, as a matter of common sense and necessity, testimony from the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on their military needs for 2018.

“This year, we are required to consider the NDAA on a highly accelerated schedule because of delays in the release of the President’s budget request. For this reason, Secretary Mattis and Chairman Dunford must testify before the Committee at the earliest possible date after the release of the budget. It is extremely important to the process that our Members receive their views in a timely fashion.

“It is also important to underscore the fact that Members of the House Armed Services Committee have yet to receive a public hearing with Secretary Mattis, and it is imperative that they hear from him as the administration requests money and legislative changes for the Department of Defense.”

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