Lawmakers introduce bipartisan legislation to invest tax dollars into military depots

Utah GOP Rep. Blake Moore, Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Chris Deluzio and Texas GOP Rep. Michael Cloud introduced bipartisan legislation earlier this month to spend tax money as an investment in military depots. 

Military depots are facilities that are used to store equipment, materials and supplies to fix military systems that need service. 

"We just need to make sure we're modernizing this important manufacturing work," Moore said on the "John Solomon Reports" podcast. "It's primarily a civilian workforce that works in these places across the country."

The legislation is titled the "Depot Investment Reform Act." 

Moore said there is a heavy presence of military depots in his home state of Utah, including Tooele Army Depot, Camp Williams and Hill Air Force Base. Moore also said that the depots are run efficiently, but need more support. 

"We need to make sure that we have appropriately addressed the requirements that are given with the opportunity to fulfill those requirements," Moore said. "Right now, we have all these stipulations that we want our military to accomplish, but then they don't necessarily have the means in which to go and get it done, and a lot of that work is done to the depots."

A similar bipartisan Senate bill related to the depots was introduced by Senators John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Tom Cotton, R-Ark. “Military depots like Tobyhanna and Letterkenny are the backbone of our military readiness,” Fetterman said in a statement. "They ensure our soldiers have access to the weapons systems and platforms they need to keep our nation safe. The Depot Investment Reform Act takes action to make sure our depots can respond to rapidly evolving global threats.”

Tobyhanna and Letterkenny are both located in Pennsylvania. 

Of the depots in general, Moores said, "They're run quite efficiently."

Praising the workers in the depots, Moore added that the work is "done by people that want to be part of the mission. They could go elsewhere and probably take their skills and go work in a different manufacturing or private sector opportunity, but they want to be a part of the mission. So we have to value that and also make sure they have the support that they need."