Ellen Tauscher: “Mr. Speaker, I am honored to offer H.R. 3159, a bipartisan bill to mandate minimum periods of rest, training and…”

“Mr. Speaker, I am honored to offer H.R. 3159, a bipartisan bill to mandate minimum periods of rest, training and recuperation for units and members of the regular and Reserve components of our Armed Forces between deployment. Fixing our troops' unpredictable rest and retraining policy is long overdue. In an interview last Monday, Marine Corps Commander General James Conway highlighted repeated deployments and short periods of time between them to rest as factors contributing to increased mental stress and burdens on families of service men and women. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I am intimately acquainted with how this war has damaged our national security, our diplomatic standing and the readiness of our military; and, as a Californian, I am well aware of how it is draining the defense and security resources of my home State and others. As we speak, a unit from Walnut Creek, California, in my district, is leading a task force comprised of six units that come from armories throughout the East Bay and Northern California. The California Army National Guard indicates that the unit of 824 soldiers is the largest single California National Guard unit to be deployed since the Korean War. These are men and women who will benefit from this legislation in real time.”