WASHINGTON, D.C. – Led by Chairman John Garamendi and Ranking Member Doug Lamborn (R-CO), the Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness today released their proposals for the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Subcommittee will meet at 3:00pm ET on Tuesday, June 23 in Rayburn 2118.  The markup will be live streamed on the committee’s website. The Subcommittee's mark is available here. 
 
Specifically, this year's proposal:
 
Makes Investments in key Readiness Accounts and Military Infrastructure to Support the Training, Sustainment, and Quality of Life for Military Personnel and Their Families:

• Authorizes appropriations for military construction, family housing, and BRAC cleanup activities.

• Authorizes appropriations for operation & maintenance accounts that support military operations, training, and weapon system sustainment.

Continues Efforts to Address Contamination Associated with Per- and Polyfluorinated Compounds Around Military Installations:

• Requires the Department of Defense to notify the congressional defense committees when there has been an uncontrolled release of PFAS-containing firefighting agent.

• Establishes a prize that can be awarded by the Secretary of Defense for innovative research that results in a viable replacement agent for firefighting foam that does not contain PFAS.

• Requires the Department of Defense to survey and report on non-firefighting agent technologies, such as hangar flooring and firefighting equipment, that will help facilitate the phase-out of PFAS containing firefighting agents.

• Makes technical corrections to the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act to ensure that all National Guard installations are eligible for funding under the Defense Environmental Restoration Account for PFAS remediation.

Continues Efforts to Address Vulnerabilities to Utilities and Fuel That Threaten the Resiliency of Military Facilities and Operations:

• Requires a report on efforts taken to ensure fuel consumption, distribution, and logistics are being considered across the Department and that steps are being taken to reduce consumption of fossil fuels by 30 percent in 25 years to reduce the number of resupply convoys and oilers required in a contested environment.

• Strengthens an existing preference for the purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles for official business on military installations.

• Requires the Department of Defense to institute energy metering on critical military facilities to assess the energy requirements and plan to ensure resilient power sources for these facilities.

• Establishes a pilot program to develop microgrids on military installations that integrate emergency diesel generators to demonstrate how microgrid emergency diesel generator backup power could create efficiencies and resiliency while reducing costs and emissions.

• Directs the Department to assess water security at its installations and implement plans to implement xeriscaping at arid installations and other appropriate landscaping at other installations.

• Requires a report on the implementation of provisions from the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act related to installation master planning, updates to the Unified Facilities Criteria (building codes), sea-level rise modeling, and climate assessment tools.

 
Builds on the Committee’s Previous Legislative and Oversight Activities to Ensure that Military Personnel and Their Families Live in Quality Housing and that the Department and Private Housing Partners are Responsive to Resident Concerns:

• Requires a report on the oversight of known environmental hazards in government-owned family housing, including overseas housing.

• Requires the Department of Defense to report on the feasibility of standardizing privatized housing performance metrics to better allow the Department to track trends across the housing enterprise.

• For future and renegotiated privatized housing agreements, requires that funding for housing maintenance and recapitalization be prioritized ahead of housing management and other fees in the payment structure.

 
Supports the Department of Defense Civilian Workforce by Strengthening the Pay and Benefits they Receive for Their Service:

• Authorizes the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security to provide travel allowances and accompaniment services to family members in connection with the transfer of Department of Defense or Coast Guard civilians who die while performing official duties overseas.

• Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to provide competitive pay and benefits, outside of the General Schedule, for civilian faculty at the Defense Security Cooperation University and the Institute for Security Governance, consistent with authorities provided to other Department of Defense academic institutions.

• Extends authority to provide premium pay and grant allowances, benefits, and gratuities to certain groups of Department of Defense civilians.

 
Requires the Department of Defense to Place an Emphasis on the Sustainment, Logistics, and the Infrastructure Enterprise to Enable Military Readiness and Operations:

• Requires the Department to conduct a comprehensive examination and submit a report on the sustainment and logistics requirements, gaps, and mitigations necessary to support the force structure, force modernization, infrastructure, and other elements of the national defense strategy.

• Expands and codifies an annual report on the infrastructure requirements and investments at enduring and contingency bases maintained overseas. In addition, requires a one-time report on the infrastructure masterplan for all infrastructure requirements, and a breakdown of U.S. and Australia funded projects, needed to support the Marine Rotational Force and others that may operate from Darwin, Australia.

• Requires the Secretary of the Navy to provide a report on the current and projected bulk fuel management strategies in the Indo-Pacific and prepare a bulk fuel strategy that optimally supports bulk fuel management in the Indo-Pacific.

• Requires the Secretary of the Navy to provide a briefing every six months on the implementation of the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Plan (SIOP) and authorizes a dedicated funding line for SIOP activities to support more transparency and oversight of the program. 

• Extends the sunset of the minimum business guarantee provision relating to the Civil Reserve Air Fleet to December 31, 2025.

 
Reports and Other Matters Related to Military Communities, Safety, and Congressional Oversight of Military Readiness:

• Codifies the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) and clarifies its role in coordinating with and providing support to defense communities. The mark also supports the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP) and grants authority to proceed with a public infrastructure project on Guam intended to provide a public health laboratory that can support biosecurity testing and analysis to monitor and detect a range of health threats.

• Requires a report on the reporting, tracking, accuracy, and sharing of information related to ground vehicle training mishaps.

• Requires an independent review of critical points of failure in the munitions enterprise, requires a report on mishaps and safety waivers in the munitions enterprise, and clarifies the role and authority of the Chairman of the Department of Defense Explosive Safety Board.

• Includes a number of reporting requirements for the Government Accountability Office to assist the committee with oversight on topics that include F-35 operations and sustainment, Air Force use of contract air support services, aviation and ship maintenance, Dynamic Force Employment, and Coast Guard Reimbursement for Defense Activities.