An honor to support troops, their families

I consider myself blessed to serve as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, which from my perspective is the best committee in Congress. The committee’s 62 members come from every corner of the country and reflect diverse political philosophies, but together we find common purpose in our efforts to do our very best to provide the necessary resources to keep Americans safe and protect U.S. national security interests.

Each year, the House Armed Services Committee plays its Constitutional role by preparing a defense authorization bill. While many people may immediately think of the major weapon systems and military hardware authorized in this bill, I am particularly proud of what this legislation does to make life better for our troops and their families. Taking the best possible care of our troops and their families is a critical part of meeting our national security responsibilities. We could have the finest equipment and technology in the world, but we would be lost without the outstanding military personnel whose professionalism, commitment, and patriotism make our military forces the best the world has ever known.

As approved by the House, this year’s defense authorization bill reflects our strong support for U.S. service members. In order to improve the quality of life for our forces and their families, the bill provides a 3.4 percent pay raise for all service members, continuing our efforts to reduce the pay raise gap between the uniformed services and the private sector. The bill extends the authority for the Defense Department to offer bonuses and incentive pay, expands TRICARE health coverage to reserve component members and their families for 180 days prior to mobilization, and also provides $1.95 billion for family housing programs to support and expand the quality housing our military families deserve.

Recognizing the strain that almost eight years of continuous combat has put on our forces, the bill increases the size of the military, which will allow troops to spend more time at home and more time to get the training they need to be ready. While Congress has authorized increasing the size of the military for several consecutive years, I’m pleased that Defense Secretary Gates also supports this effort and recently announced steps to increase the size of the Army by 22,000 troops. Recognizing the sacrifices of our wounded warriors, the bill improves travel and transportation benefits so that three designated persons, including non-family members, may visit hospitalized service members. The bill also enables seriously injured service members to use a non-medical attendant for help with daily living or during travel for medical treatment.

To meet the changing needs of today’s service members and their families, the bill establishes an internship pilot program for military spouses in order to offer federal government career opportunities that are portable when the time comes to relocate. The bill also authorizes Impact Aid funding to make sure that schools with large enrollments of military children provide the quality education our children need and our nation expects.

Each year, members of the House Armed Services Committee work very hard to make this the best bill possible for our military and for our nation. As Congress moves toward completing a defense authorization bill that the president can sign into law, we must always keep in mind the provisions of this bill that are so important to military service members and their families. Taking care of our troops and the 2 million military families that support them is a solemn duty, and I’m proud that the House Armed Services Committee leads the effort to demonstrate our nation’s gratitude for the sacrifices they make to keep our country free.

Skelton chairs the House Armed Services Committee.