Bill Owens

Fort Drum

Our country owes a great deal to the fighting men and women here at home and those deployed across the world in defense of America.  Keeping Fort Drum strong will help honor their work and ensure they have everything they need to complete the mission.  The installation serves as a powerful driver for economic development in the North Country, and is doing tremendous work to train American soldiers for the battles they face overseas. For the value Fort Drum provides to tax payers in the community and overseas, I strongly support continued investments in the installation and will vigorously oppose any effort to reduce their presence in New York, whether through the BRAC process or other means.

As a Member of the Armed Services Committee, I am proud to have helped secure the military construction funding through the National Defense Authorization Act that continues to help grow Fort Drum’s mission in New York.  Now, the work to strengthen and maintain Fort Drum continues as community members, Fort Drum leadership and federal representatives such as myself support innovative solutions to improve soldier healthcare, strengthen family programs, better equip Fort Drum’s war fighters and build low-cost, quality housing for soldiers in the community.

To that end, I have supported legislation that would better help soldiers and their families compete for low-cost housing, improve employment opportunities for military spouses and reduce paperwork and bureaucracy for returning soldiers who decide to enter the VA system.  In addition, to ensure we honor the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform, I have repeatedly supported legislation to raise troop pay and sponsored legislation to guarantee their paycheck comes even in the event of a government shutdown. 

I remain impressed by the work that those in the Fort Drum community have done to support these efforts, and will continue doing everything possible to help in any way that I can.  The 10th Mountain Division is the most deployed in the country, and as their Representative I stand with residents of the North Country in my commitment to see that Fort Drum has everything it needs to complete the mission and be a part of the North Country community for years to come.