DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS

FOR 1997

HEARINGS

BEFORE A

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY

C. W. BILL YOUNG, Florida, Chairman

JOSEPH M. MCDADE, Pennsylvania
JERRY LEWIS, California

JOE SKEEN, New Mexico

DAVID L. HOBSON, Ohio

HENRY BONILLA, Texas

GEORGE R. NETHERCUTT, JR., Washington
ERNEST J. ISTOOK, Jr., Oklahoma

JOHN P. MURTHA, Pennsylvania
NORMAN D. DICKS, Washington
CHARLES WILSON, Texas

W. G. (BILL) HEFNER, North Carolina
MARTIN OLAV SABO, Minnesota

NOTE: Under Committee Rules, Mr. Livingston, as Chairman of the Full Committee, and Mr. Obey, as Ranking
Minority Member of the Full Committee, are authorized to sit as Members of all Subcommittees.

KEVIN M. ROPER, JOHN G. PLASHAL, DAVID F. KILIAN, ALICIA JONES, JULIET PACQUING,
GREGORY J. WALTERS, PATRICIA RYAN, DOUG GREGORY, PAUL W. JUOLA, TINA W. JONAS,
and STEVEN D. NIXON, Staff Assistants; STACY A. TRIMBLE, Administrative Aide

PART 1

Secretary of Defense and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of

Staff

.....

Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Army
Secretary of the Navy, Chief of Naval Operations, and
Commandant of the Marine Corps

...........

Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force

Page

1

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45-432

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COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

BOB LIVINGSTON, Louisiana, Chairman

JAMES W. DYER, Clerk and Staff Director

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS

FOR 1997

THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 1996.

FISCAL YEAR 1997 DEFENSE POSTURE

WITNESSES

HON. WILLIAM J. PERRY, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

GENERAL JOHN M. SHALIKASHVILI, USA, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF

HON. JOHN HAMRE, COMPTROLLER, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

INTRODUCTION

Mr. YOUNG. The Committee will come to order. The Committee would like to welcome the Honorable William J. Perry, Secretary of Defense; General John M. Shalikashvili, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and the Honorable John Hamre, Comptroller of the Department of Defense; who are here to present the President's proposed Defense budget for fiscal year 1997. We look forward to your testimony and also your assessment regarding the status of the Bosnia operation in which American forces are once again serving with great skill and dedication.

By way of introduction, I would like to make a few comments about the 1997 budget you will be presenting here this morning. The President's fiscal year 1997 request for those defense functions funded by this Committee is approximately $234 billion. This is a reduction of $10 billion from the current year's budget, and if approved without a change would mark the 12th straight year of negative real growth in defense appropriations.

These figures are disturbing to us, Mr. Secretary, and I am disappointed that once again we are being asked to make serious reductions in our defense program. Now, we fully understand the constraints that you, Mr. Secretary, were under when you built this budget proposal. You had some guidelines from the White House and the President that you had to live within. Hopefully, we will be able to make some positive adjustments as we did in the fiscal year 1996 appropriations.

I want to compliment a number of positive things in this budget, especially when it comes to taking care of our most valuable defense resource, the men and women in uniform. For example, you have proposed fully funding the military pay raise, which we appreciate, not only this year, but in the outyears. We are glad to see that your position, Mr. Secretary, and General Shalikashvili's prevailed on this issue, because, as you know, President Clinton proposed freezing military pay in his first two budgets. Congress and

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