Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA), Chair of the Readiness Subcommittee, departed on a congressional delegation to observe the damage to military bases caused by Hurricane Florence. The trip will offer Chairman Garamendi the opportunity to personally inspect the damage sustained by Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point. The delegation will also observe housing units at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma in the wake of the privatized military housing crisis.
Garamendi is joined by Congressman Doug Lamborn (R-CO), Ranking Member of the Readiness Subcommittee, and Maj. Gen. Vincent Coglianese, Marine Corps Installations Command.
“This trip will provide crucial insight into the support and resources we must provide to help these installations recover,” Garamendi said. “We must ensure the Department of Defense is adequately prepared to respond to the global climate crisis and develops a plan to increase resiliency and build installations out of harm’s way. The estimated cost to repair Camp Lejeune alone is over $3.6 billion, so it is incumbent upon us as elected officials to use the information we gather on this trip to enact policies that will minimize the risk and damage in future events.”
“Our delegation will also observe privatized housing units following numerous reports of substandard living conditions for servicemembers and their families in privatized military housing across the country,” Garamendi continued. “I led a hearing on this matter last week on the Readiness Subcommittee, and now I want to observe the issue firsthand. I want to ensure military families have access to the best possible living conditions and that the Department of Defense is taking appropriate measures to address these issues. Those in charge of housing our servicemembers and their families must be held to the highest possible standard.”
“Thank you to Ranking Member Lamborn and Maj. Gen. Vincent Coglianese for joining me on this important delegation,” Garamendi concluded.