Timothy Roemer: “I rise to commend the bipartisan support for this bill and the leadership. However, I am concerned that the level of…”

“I rise to commend the bipartisan support for this bill and the leadership. However, I am concerned that the level of modernization funding for our aging tactical trucks, specifically the HMMWV and the 2 rac{1}{2} ton truck extended service program, may be inadequate. The Army and Marine Corps have placed HMMWV near the top of their unfunded requirements priority list, but the fiscal year 1999 HMMWV budget request level would result in a gap in HMMWV production. The Army would require an increase to the budget of $65.7 million to meet existing requirements and avoid a production gap. The Marine Corps would require an increase of $37 million to accelerate replacement of aging HMMWVs with corrosion problems. In addition, the 2 rac{1}{2} ton truck ESP program is critical to our Army Guard and Reserve forces which have large fleets of overage trucks. To meet existing requirements and to avoid a production gap, the 2 rac{1}{2} ton truck ESP request needs to be increased by $93 million. The Senate version does this, and I would encourage the conferees to support the Senate authorization levels for these programs.”