Honolulu, Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie declared an "emergency proclamation" to allow the USACE to remove UXO from state lands without the need to follow strict state laws. The decision ended a long battle between the State Regulators and the USACE over prerequisites required to support UXO removal actions. For example, the declaration eliminates the need for an Environmental Assessment in support of munitions disposal operations.

The reasons provided by the Governor's office regarding the decision included the protection of human health and the potential for loss of federal funds to address UXO in Hawaii if the USACE was not allowed to execute its work. The decision reportedly has outraged various environmental groups who feel that the Governor has over-stepped his authorities. In response, the Governor's office has issued a lengthy FAQ section to its website addressing the potential concerns that have been raised over the decision.

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Washington, D.C. The office of Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, D-Hawaii issued a news release on their website on the earmarks slated for Hawaii in the FY2011 Defense Appropriations Bill recently approved by the Senate Committee on Appropriations. The earmarks include over $7M for UXO related projects including:

$1.75 million for initiatives related to military munitions, particularly along the Leeward Coast as part of the $5M Army Conservation and Ecosystem Management Funds to support the Army's stewardship of the land through ordnance monitoring, fire control management, and community outreach.

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Washington, D.C. Lawmakers are debating the FY10 National Defense Authorization Act in Congress. Although the funding levels for FY10 UXO cleanup are still being debated, some lawmakers are asking for more refined cost tracking of MMRP budgets. This is evident in House Bill HR 2647 which includes a section on "Military Munitions Response Sites" (sec 318). Section 318 requires DoD to track MMRP funding requests annually by State and County. Previous Annual Reports to Congress only tracked MMRP funding by State.

Washington, D.C. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released testimony that was presented to the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, House of Representatives covering "Lessons Learned from the Cleanup of FUDS and Military Munitions Sites". While the testimony focused on the Spring Valley site as the primary example, the lessons learned summarized and presented were applicable to the FUDS munitions program as a whole. The lessons learned were broken down into four themes including:

• Impacts that shortcomings in available information and guidance can have on decision-making.

• Impacts that incomplete data on site conditions and emerging contaminants can have on the development of cost estimates and schedules.

• How funding may be influenced or impacted by overall program goals and other priorities.

• How better coordination is needed among regulators and property owners to increase public confidence in the program.

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Washington, D.C., A congressional hearing on the munitions cleanup of Spring Valley has been scheduled for Wednesday June 10 in the Rayburn House Office Building. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton who is spearheading the hearing is looking for a progress update from the USACE. In a statement release from her office, Norton contends that "no information has been submitted to the public or Congress concerning how the Corps has ascertained that the entire site is clear, safe and without residual health effects". The hearing will be held at 2pm in Room 2247 of the Rayburn House Office.

Washington, D.C. Congressman McGovern (D-Massachusetts) introduced a Bill in the House of Representatives to limit the use of cluster munitions (i.e. submunitions). HR 981 known as the 'Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act of 2009' only allows the use of submunitions to be deployed against defined military targets that have less than a 1 percent failure rate.

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Washington, D.C. Congressmen Peter T. King (New York) and Bennie Thompson (Mississippi) introduced the National Bombing Prevention Act of 2009 (HR 549) in Congress. The Bill amends the Homeland Security Action of 2006 to establish an Office of Bombing Prevention. The "Office" will be responsible for coordinating national and intergovernmental bombing prevention activities; conducting a capabilities analysis of First Responders including State and Local Bomb Squads; assisting State, Local and Tribal Governments with developing IED security plans; and establishing a public awareness campaign on how to respond to a terrorist attack.

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Washington, D.C. U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski (Maryland Democrat) sent a letter to the Senate Appropriation Committee seeking to include "shovel ready" environmental projects into the federal infrastructure stimulus plan backed by the President. The letter specifically referenced clean up projects at Fort Meade to address the cleanup of UXO and other environmental projects related to groundwater contamination at the base.

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Washington, D.C.Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii) Hirono's efforts has resulted in over $24M worth of earmark funding for 2009 for various programs in Hawaii's 2nd Congressional District. The appropriations include $9.8M in funding related to munitions and IEDs including the following three defense appropriations:

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Washington, D.C. The current version of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Reported in House Bill H.R. 5658) has an interesting new requirement related the use of military munitions. Section 359 "Sense of Congress Regarding Procurement and Use of Munitions" requires the Secretary of Defense to undertake a review of live-fire practices for the purpose of reducing UXO and munitions constituent contamination without impeding military readiness.

UXOInfo.com will continue to track the FY09 Defense Authorization Act as it makes it way through Congress to see if this new reporting requirement makes it into law.