Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017
Floor Speech
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Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Dent for letting me offer this very important amendment. I thank my colleagues from the entire Missouri delegation--Mr. Clay, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Graves, Ms. Hartzler, Mr. Long, Mr. Luetkemeyer, and Mr. Smith--for their steadfast support and bipartisan cosponsorship.
This amendment is critical to meeting the current and future mission requirements of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and its replacement West headquarters in north St. Louis.
This amendment allocates $801,000 for land and transfer acquisition activities associated with acquiring the land for the headquarters, conforming with the Senate's MILCON-VA bill.
After an exhaustive process, the NGA identified the north St. Louis city site as a superior location because of its ability to provide the most technological, academic, and professional environment for the agency to develop the capabilities and solutions necessary to solve the country's most vital intelligence and national security challenges.
Mr. Chair, the City of St. Louis is providing the land for this project at no cost to the Federal Government. Its selection ensures that NGA West's 70-year history in St. Louis continues and that the 2,000 NGA West employees who live in Missouri remain in close proximity to the headquarters.
The St. Louis region has a proven track record in national defense and technology capabilities that make it an ideal choice for NGA's new home.
I ask that my colleagues vote in favor of this amendment to ensure NGA West can continue to perform its critical role in our national security within a community that understands its needs and strongly supports its mission.
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Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Chair, in closing, I just want to say that NGA chose St. Louis because the location best supports the agency's mission.
The superiority of the urban setting is ideal for recruiting and retaining a highly skilled workforce. When focusing on the most technological, academic, and professional environment to ensure our Nation's security, the NGA chose St. Louis. The decision has been made, and my amendment supports the NGA's decision.
Mr. Chair, I thank the chairman and my colleague from the First District of Missouri.
I yield back the balance of my time.
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