Washington, D.C. -- When the House Armed Services Committee gave its final approval to the 2010 National Defense Authorization Act at 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, the legislation included a list of conditions offered by Representative Neil Abercrombie concerning the huge buildup on Guam to accommodate the transfer of the 3rd Marine Division and other units from Okinawa, Japan.

Concerns have been expressed about the scope and quality of construction on Guam, including funding, job creation and oversight. The buildout will eventually house more than 8,000 Marines, along with families and support personnel and activities.

The committee adopted Abercrombie’s proposed requirements for the Guam construction:

• All military construction on Guam must meet U.S. federal standards.
• In a close vote, the minimum wage standard for all construction workers on Guam will be at the prevailing wage level for similar construction projects in Hawaii.
• A military hospital on Guam is fully authorized at $446 million.
• The Department of Defense Inspector General will serve as chair of an interagency coordination group to provide objective oversight and transparency over the military construction projects on Guam.
• The Department of Defense will not accept the proposed Marine Corps Air Station at Futenma, Okinawa, Japan as a replacement facility until it meets minimum naval aviation safety requirements.
• Foreign workers will be allowed to do no more than 30% of the work on the project.

“At a time when a depressed economy has dealt a body blow to our construction industry, the Department of Defense should not even consider turning over badly needed jobs to foreign workers at questionable wages,” said Abercrombie. “This is a huge opportunity to put Americans to work, in an American territory, building an American military base. My amendments provide clear guidelines to manage the buildup while ensuring quality work for our service members and their families.”

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