Sec. 352. Sense of Congress on access to training ranges within United States Pacific Command area of responsibility
489 words·~2 min read·
/bill/113/hr/4435/eh/section-352·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Congress makes the following findings: Reliable access to military training ranges is an essential component of military readiness. The training opportunities provided by military training ranges are critical to maintaining the technical and operational superiority of the Armed Forces. The 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review states that the operational readiness of the Armed Forces hinges on unimpeded access to land, air, and sea training and test space. The 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review states that United States forces in the Asia-Pacific region will resume regular bilateral and multilateral training exercises, pursue increased training opportunities to improve capabilities and capacity of partner nations, as well as support humanitarian, disaster relief, counterterrorism, and other operations that contribute to the stability of the region .
A number of critical military training ranges, including the Pohakuloa Training Center in Hawaii, are located within the United States Pacific Command area of responsibility providing units from all the military services, as well as allied and partner militaries with realistic joint and combined arms training opportunities. Due to the tyranny of distance in the Asia-Pacific region, there are significant challenges in transporting equipment and personnel to the various military training ranges within the United States Pacific Command area of responsibility.
The Department of Defense continues a number of efforts aimed at preserving military training ranges, while also minimizing the environmental effects of training activities. The Department of Defense has a variety of authorities that may be used to mitigate encroachment on military testing and training missions. In light of the findings specified in subsection (a), it is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Defense should— ensure that members of the Armed Forces continue to have reliable access to military training ranges; optimize the use of multilateral, joint training facilities overseas in order to increase readiness and interoperability with allies and partners of the United States; utilize a full range of assets, including both air- and sea-based assets, including inactive Joint High Speed Vessels, to improve accessibility to military training areas within the United States Pacific Command area of responsibility; provide stable budget authority for long-term investments in range and test center infrastructure to lower the cost of access to the ranges and training centers; take appropriate action to identify and leverage existing authorities and programs, as well as work with State and municipalities to leverage their authorities, to mitigate encroachment or other challenges that have the potential to impact future access or operations on military training ranges; maximize the use of the United States Pacific Command training ranges, including Pohakuloa Training Center in Hawaii, by the military departments and increase the use of such training ranges for bilateral and multilateral exercises with regional allies and partners; and take appropriate action to leverage existing authorities and programs, as well as work with local governments to leverage their authorities, to address any challenges that have the potential to impede future access to or operations on military training ranges.