On May 1st, 2024, Representatives Rick Crawford (R-AR-1) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19), along with 68 of their colleagues, submitted a bipartisan letter to the House and Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittees encouraging support for humanitarian demining research and development, breaking the record set by the same letter last year.
The letter calls for $25 million for the Army’s Humanitarian Demining Research and Development (HD R&D) program, an increase of $1.032 million over last year. The HD R&D program develops new landmine clearing technology to make demining safer and more efficient for U.S. forces and humanitarian demining organizations. HD R&D technology saves the lives of American servicemembers, reduces costs, helps the U.S. military address explosives, and supports American industry – all while allowing humanitarian demining organizations like HALO access to specialized demining equipment to clear explosives safely and efficiently.
The Representatives who signed the letter include:
Rep. Alma Adams, Rep. Colin Allred, Rep. Gabe Amo, Rep. Ami Bera, Rep. Don Beyer, Rep. Sanford Bishop, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Rep. Shontel Brown, Rep. Julia Brownley, Rep. Nikki Budzinski, Rep. Sean Casten, Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Rep. Jim Costa, Rep. Rick Crawford, Rep. Jason Crow, Rep. Madeleine Dean, Rep. Diana DeGette, Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, Rep. Debbie Dingell, Rep. Bill Foster, Rep. Ruben Gallego, Rep. John Garamendi, Rep. Jesús "Chuy" Garcia, Rep. Robert Garcia, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Rep. Jimmy Gomez, Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, Rep. Josh Gottheimer, Rep. Raúl Grijalva, Rep. Jahana Hayes, Rep. Jim Himes, Rep. Steven "Steve" Horsford, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, Rep. Bill Keating, Rep. Robin Kelly, Rep. Ro Khanna, Rep. Dan Kildee, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, Rep. Stephen "Steve" Lynch, Rep. Lucy McBath, Rep. Jennifer McClellan, Rep. Rich McCormick, Rep. Jim McGovern, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Rep. Kevin Mullin, Del. Eleanor Norton, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Rep. Frank Pallone, Rep. Jimmy Panetta, Rep. Chris Pappas, Rep. Bill Pascrell, Rep. Dean Phillips, Del. Amata "Aumua Amata" Radewagen, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Del. Gregorio "Kilili" Sablan, Rep. Linda Sánchez, Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Rep. Adam Schiff, Rep. Brad Schneider, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, Rep. Abigail Spanberger, Rep. Pete Stauber, Rep. Marilyn Strickland, Rep. Claudia Tenney, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Rep. Lori Trahan, Rep. Mike Turner, and Rep. Susan Wild.
Read the full letter, and see all the signatures, here.
