Accession to the 1982 UNCLOS would enhance the United States' strategic interests and national security in several ways.

Secretary Panetta, since the U.S. Government has signaled its intent to delink tangible progress on the construction of a replacement facility for Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Futenma on Okinawa from other actions to relocate marines from bases in the southern part of Okinawa, what is DOD's plan for the future of the MCAS Futenma?

this budget requests a precipitous and dangerous drop in military end strength which I believe puts our Nation's security at risk.

General Dempsey, how do you envision achieving these cuts using the manpower management tools available to shape the force with incentives and early retirements?

Secretary Panetta and General Dempsey, last week, Admiral Locklear, the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) commander nominee, recognized Alaska's strategic location, calling the State and its installations critical and significant to his mission.

The costs of a potential BRAC round will not be known until after DOD has developed its recommendations.

The request for BRAC appears to be preemptive and driven by budget constraints, not by national security needs.

We currently leverage a variety of forces and capabilities stationed in Alaska to support PACOM assigned missions, and will continue to do so as we rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region.

Secretary Panetta and General Dempsey, the Sea-Based X-Band (SBX) radar is critical to GMD system performance and warfighter confidence in the system.

I strongly support the United States' accession to the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

I remain committed to working with our allies to ensure the strength of the NATO alliance and collective European defense.

Secretary Panetta, given the remote locations of two aforementioned hazing cases, what systems are in place to protect a victim of hazing when their chain of command is either the perpetrator of the hazing or implicit to the acts of hazing?

General Dempsey, how do you envision Army leaders will accomplish this without demoralizing the force and breaking faith with soldiers who have sacrificed greatly?

would it not make more sense to plan for a 10-year, conditions-based plan or one that adheres to the original plan to reduce end strength by 49,000 soldiers?

Asking for a 2013 round is aggressive; but given the magnitude of the cuts we are making in force structure, we cannot afford to wait.

Secretary Panetta, BRAC 2005 cost DOD $35 billion to implement.