Amendments to NDAA to Address Missile Alert Procedures

Rep. Colleen Hanabusa official photo.

Amendments benefiting Hawai‘i in the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) have passed an initial committee hearing as of Tuesday, May 8.

Proposed by Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa, the amendments address ballistic missile alert procedures, provide more than $300 million in funding for military construction projects in Hawai‘i, and support modernization efforts at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard.

The FY19 NDAA passed the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) by a vote of 60 to one, and now moves to the full House for consideration.

“We worked in a bipartisan fashion to secure critical resources and provisions important to the U.S. Department of Defense’s mission in the Pacific and the military’s ability to live and work in Hawai‘i,” said Congresswoman Hanabusa. “Our priority is to ensure that the more than 36,600 active duty military personnel stationed in Hawai‘i have everything they need to fulfill their mission of protecting U.S interests in the Indo-Asia-Pacific and securing our station in the region. The military is an important community and economic partner in our state and I will always work to provide for our men and women responsible for our national defense.”

Hanabusa cited the statewide false missile alert that incited panic for Hawai‘i residents in January as part of her motivation behind the amendments.

“I firmly believe it should be the DoD’s responsibility to alert the public in the event of an act of war, like a ballistic missile attack,” said Hanabusa. “We secured language in the NDAA that directs the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to provide a briefing on ballistic missile alert procedures, plans, and timelines in the event of a legitimate attack.”

Highlights in the NDAA for Hawai‘i include support for Hawai‘i Military Construction Projects. Five Hawai‘i projects received funding through the FY19 NDAA:

• $95 million to help with building a Command and Control Facility at Fort Shafter;
• $45 million for a Dry-dock Waterfront Facility at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam;
• $78.32 million for a Water Transmission Line at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam;
• $66.1 million for a Corrosion Control Hangar at Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i;
• $17 million to construct an addition to the F-22 Low Observable Composite Repair Facility at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.