WASHINGTON — The House voted to pass a sweeping $886 billion defense authorization bill Thursday that includes dozens of provisions affecting Hawaii and the greater Pacific.
Among the most notable is a requirement that the U.S. Defense Department study the long-term health impacts on those exposed to water that was contaminated by a fuel leak at the Navy’s Red Hill storage facility in 2021.
The study, which will require annual updates on the findings, was pushed by all four members of Hawaii’s congressional delegation.
In a statement, U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz said the study will give public health officials and others “a better understanding of what that kind of exposure can do to someone’s health.”
“People who were exposed to toxic fuel from this leak should know what kind of impact that might have on their long-term health and what kind of additional federal help they can get,” he said.
The House passed the National Defense Authorization Act with a bipartisan vote of 310-118. Both U.S. Rep. Ed Case and U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda voted in favor of the bill. It had already passed the Senate so now heads to President Joe Biden for his signature.
The legislation, which covers fiscal year 2024, includes more than $3.5 billion for a wide variety of projects in Hawaii and the Pacific, according to a press release from U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, who sits on the Armed Services Committee.
The biggest project authorized by the legislation is a $1.3 billion replacement of a dry dock at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
But the bill also includes the authorization of $134 million for improvements to a water reclamation system at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe that last year received a six-figure fine from the state health department for improperly discharging high levels of fecal matter into the nearby ocean.
In addition, the NDAA includes a 5.2% pay raise for military and civilian personnel as well as a requirement that DOD hire liaisons to work directly with Native Hawaiian and other indigenous communities located near its installations.
Tokuda, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, said in a statement that the bill includes “critical priorities” for Hawaii while at the same time eliminating many culture war provisions that conservative House Republicans slipped into the measure aimed at abortion, diversity and gender-affirming care.
“While this is by no means a perfect bill, Democrats fought hard to remove far-right, extreme provisions that targeted health care for women, transgender service members, and the Department of Defense’s ability to recruit and retain a diverse workforce,” Tokuda said. “This final product ultimately reflects Congress’s bipartisan commitment to support our service members and their families, stand by our allies and partners, invest in our domestic industrial base, and strengthen our national defense.”
Tokuda, who is in her first term in the House, was successful in securing a number of provisions in the bill, including a market analysis to study the military’s effect on the local housing market and the designation of a DOD point person to coordinate upcoming negotiations for the extension of land leases, including at the Pohakuloa Training Area on the Big Island.
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