Jeanne Shaheen

I apologize. We are about to run out of time on this vote. I am going to have to recess the hearing for a few minutes until Senator Ayotte comes back.

I am concerned about the condition of some of the facilities in which our service men and women operate.

I look forward to hearing how DOD will continue to balance between environmental protection and readiness.

How do we anticipate the costs and the effectiveness of a BRAC round?

How is the Army aligning appropriate resources and ensuring that strategic facilities like the Military Ocean Terminal Concord (MOTCO) remain in a condition so it is able to respond to operational demand, potential contingencies, and…

What is the effect of not having adequate funding for the shipyard modernization plan?

I hate to take your time to do that, so we will try and better schedule this hearing the next time.

I think we're committed, as all the Services, to make sure that we're responsible, based on the budget and where we go, and to work together.

I understand, in this era of limited resources, that this is one place where there might be some savings.

One emerging requirement from combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan has been the development of an enhanced performance round (EPR).

I think we have to come back and show you that we are making a difference, and continue to keep the trust of the American people.

There have been some high-profile scandals recently that I think we need to ask about.

Our men and women who are serving in our military are among the best and brightest in this country.

I wonder if you can talk about how you view recruiting people to replace those workers that we're going to be losing.

It's a concern that we've been hearing in Portsmouth, at the Naval Shipyard.

Is that also true of the Navy, Admiral Cullom?

As I understand, the Army budget brief suggested that units will continue to build progressive readiness and achieve the highest training and readiness levels, based on available resources.

The morale, the impact it's going to have on the All-Volunteer Force as we move forward.

We're mortgaging the future of all our Services here.

We're cutting BCTs and we're cutting end strength. But, our guidance is to keep a balanced force.

If sequestration played out through the remainder of the years that the BCA projected, are there capabilities that we just plain-old lose at the end of that?

Thank you for your continued support.

I would like to say at the start of the hearing, that we are all very saddened by the tragic events 2 days ago at Naval Station Norfolk.

Last year's Bipartisan Budget Act did not fix our force readiness problem. It only temporarily stopped the hemorrhaging of readiness.

I very much appreciate your testimony and look forward to continuing to work with you as you make these changes.