AUSA on the HillAUSA President Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., attended the Senate Army Caucus breakfast on May 17.Among the guests were Caucus co-chairs, Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii and James Inhofe, R-Okla; and Sens. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.; Scott Brown, R-Mass.; Kay Hagan, D-N.C.; and John Cornyn, R-Texas.The breakfast gave Sullivan the opportunity to discuss AUSA and Army priorities with the senators and their senior staff.He was also able to reiterate the message delivered by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, the featured speaker. (See related story, Page 2)Odierno’s message to the audience was blunt: The Army could be cut to 400,000 if the sequestration option spelled out in the Budget Control Act of 2011 goes into effect."If we have sequestration, it will affect both the active and reserve components, Odierno said.He added, "The thing about sequestration that is also bothersome, even though the amount of cuts is, in my mind, unreasonable, it’s the fact that we don't have any choice on where those cuts are directed. It’s a percentage cut out of every line item that we have. And so it would completely have significant impact on our modernization programs."After the breakfast, Sullivan and the former Army vice chief of staff, Gen. Peter Chiarelli, USA, Ret., met with Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., for a discussion about Post Traumatic Stress/Traumatic Brain Injury and research on brain injury and brain disease as it relates to military personnel.As the chairwoman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Murray is concerned about the mental health condition of veterans and returning service members.Chiarelli serves as the chief executive officer for One Mind for Research, an independent, non-profit organization bringing together health care providers, researchers, academics and the health care industry – on a global scale – to cure all brain disorders. AUSA/Military Coalition meet with House leadersAUSA’s Assistant Director of Government Affairs Julie Rudowski joined AUSA’s partners in The Military Coalition for a recent meeting with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and other top Democratic members of Congress to discuss legislative goals.The impending sequestration and the effect it would have on the military was discussed at length as well as homelessness and unemployment facing service members and their families as they return from deployment.A representative from Blue Star Families, a national non-profit organization supporting military families, discussed the results of its 2012 Military Family Lifestyle survey.The key concerns identified were pay/benefits, with specific emphasis on changes to retirement benefits, the effects of deployment on children, general operational tempo (OPTEMPO), military spouse employment, and issues surrounding Post Traumatic Stress (PTS), combat stress, and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).In addition to veterans’ issues and sequestration, several coalition representatives urged the leadership to oppose the Defense’s Department’s plan to increase/implement fees on TRICARE beneficiaries and also urged them to end the Survivor Benefit Plan/Dependency and Indemnity Compensation offset. Update on defense billsFiscal Year 2013 National Defense Authorization Bill. Despite a veto threat from the White House, the House passed the Fiscal Year 2013 National Defense Authorization Bill by a vote of 299 –120.The $643 billion bill includes $88.5 billion for the war in Afghanistan and other overseas fighting missions.The bill is $3.6 billion more than the president’s request and $8 billion more than called for under the debt reduction law (PL 112-25).The Senate Armed Services Committee completed the markup of their version of the authorization bill on May 25. The bill authorizes $631.4 billion in discretionary funds, including $525.8 billion for the base Defense Department budget, $88.2 billion for the war in Afghanistan and $17.4 billion for Department of Energy and other national security programs related to nuclear safety.Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., has asked that the bill go to the Senate floor before the August recess.That committee also blocked the Defense Department’s attempt to raise/increase TRICARE fees.In other words, AUSA’s campaign against the Defense Department’s plan to increase/implement TRICARE fees worked! AUSA would like to salute all of you who took the time to contact your member of Congress as well as all of you who signed our petition on the AUSA Facebook page. Our campaign would not have been successful without you. Fiscal Year 2013 Defense Appropriations Bill. The House Appropriations Committee approved the Fiscal Year 2013 Defense Appropriations Bill on May 17.The legislation provides $519.2 billion in non-war funding, an increase of $1.1 billion over the fiscal 2012 level and $3.1 billion above the President’s request. The bill also contains $88.5 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) for defense activities related to the Global War on Terror.The legislation includes funding for a 1.7 percent pay raise for the military and $35.1 billion for health and military family programs.This is $334 million above last year’s level and $348 million above the president’s request.Funding increases include $246 million for cancer research, $245 million for medical facility and equipment upgrades, $125 million for Traumatic Brain Injury and psychological health research, and $20 million for suicide prevention outreach programs.The legislation also includes $2.3 billion for family support and advocacy programs.It is expected that the legislation will go to the House floor for approval sometime this summer. Meanwhile, there is no timetable for the Senate’s version of the defense appropriations bill. Fiscal Year 2013 Military Construction and Veterans’ Affairs Appropriations Bill. The House Appropriations Committee approved the Fiscal Year 2013 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill May 16.The legislation totals $71.7 billion in discretionary funding, which is the same as the Fiscal Year 2012 level. The bill provides the military with the infrastructure needed to house, train, and equip military personnel, provides for the quality of life of troops and their families, and maintains strong military base structure. It also funds veterans’ benefits and programs.The bill will go to the full House floor for approval.The Senate Appropriations Committee is still working on the markup of its military construction legislation.