We meet today to examine the Coast Guard's law enforcement missions, focusing on the Service's counterdrug and migrant efforts and its work to limit illegal, unreported, and unregulated, or IUU, fishing.

2023 was one of the deadliest years for illegal maritime migration.

IUU fishing replaced piracy as the leading global maritime security threat.

To have the Coast Guard this country needs, we must invest in Coasties by providing the Coast Guard with resources for effective recruiting and to repair crumbling infrastructure affecting recruits, cadets, Coasties and their families.

The Chinese Communist Party provides billions of dollars in subsidies to their distant-water fishing fleet to plunder the fishing stocks of other nations.

So, in your estimation, are there particular policies that are driving the increase in migration?

So, if these banks were up and running, loaning money, creating jobs, all the things that happen when money is spent, don't you think that would complement the local existing banks that are there as opposed to deterring them from their…

Its purpose is to provide infrastructure money in lieu of anything else that might be out there, so, it would be non-Federal money, nontax money.

The Coast Guard is in the middle of a multidecade recapitalization campaign to replace aging surface and air assets.

Unfortunately, no administration of either party has requested anything even approaching the resources necessary to carry out this recapitalization in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

I oppose the plan to reduce the total number of aircraft.