Davis, Taylor to Announce Introduction of National Guard Empowerment Act

January 28, 2007

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., ranking member on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, will join with Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., and Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Kit Bond, R-Mo., to introduce the National Guard Empowerment Act of 2007 at 2 pm on Tuesday, January 30, 2007 at The House Radio/TV Gallery H321, U.S. Capitol.

The bill will strengthen the Guard by having the Department of Defense approve one four-star general for the National Guard and give this Guard General a seat at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It also will expand the pool of National Guard generals, ensure that the deputy commander of the United States Northern Command comes out of the ranks of the National Guard, require better coordination and planning between the National Guard, the Department of Defense and the nation s governors, and provide greater transparency on budgeting for National Guard equipment.

A Government Accountability Office study to be released at the press conference points to the need for better reporting on the Guard s domestic preparedness. The DOD reports annually on the Guard s readiness for war fighting, but its needs to meet domestic emergencies are not regularly identified. A section of the bill addresses the need to define and improve the fractured planning and operational relationships between DOD, the Guard, the U.S. Northern Command and our governors.