ARLINGTON, Va., - National Guard equipment levels are improving nationwide, the commander of U.S. Northern Command told a congressional committee March 11.
Air Force Gen. Victor E. Renuart Jr. told the Senate Armed Services Committee that equipage is up to more than 70 percent. "That's new equipment. The training quality is up. And we're especially pleased that the equipment related to these homeland support missions is close to 100 percent in most of the states."
Guard leaders have expressed concern about equipment levels for years.
In 2006, then chief of the National Guard Bureau, Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum sounded a warning. "We are now in a dangerously low resourcing level for missions back here at home, and that must be seriously addressed," he said.
Last year, in testimony to the House Armed Services Committee, the chiefs of the Army and Air National Guards' cited improvement.
"The Army has made great progress toward improving equipping levels within the Army National Guard," said its acting director, Maj. Gen. Raymond W. Carpenter. "In recent years, the Army has made an unprecedented level of investment in Army National Guard equipment."
Both Carpenter and Lt. Gen. Harry M. Wyatt III, director of the Air National Guard, said more needs to be done to improve equipment critical to both domestic and warfighting missions.
Also last year, Defense officials told the House Armed Services Committee that National Guard equipment will be returned from Iraq to the United States and Guard units can fill shortages with equipment currently in use in Iraq.
Renuart was elaborating on his command's 2010 posture statement, which he delivered to the committee.
"National Guard and Reserve forces are critical to [NORTHCOM's] ability to carry out our assigned homeland defense and civil support missions," he said in the posture statement.
NORTHCOM's headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo., has 50 full-time National Guard positions, of which 45 are filled, Renuart said.
An additional 130 positions could be filled, and the command is working closely with the National Guard Bureau, Renuart said.
"We've built a closer relationship with the National Guard Bureau itself than we've ever had before," he said.
Accompanying Renuart was Command Chief Master Sgt. Allen Usry - NORTHCOM's senior enlisted leader -the first National Guard member to fill the position.
A newly hired military assistant for NORAD will come from the Colorado Air National Guard, Renuart also announced.
"Colorado has been particularly supportive," he said. "We have 25 Colorado Guardsmen, who are part of that full-time support."
The National Guard bridges the gap between civilians and the all-volunteer force, Colorado Sen. Mark Udall said.
"As powerful and as sophisticated as it is, there's a tendency for [full-time forces] to become isolated from society," he said. "The Reserves and the Guard provide … that pipeline … that connection between civilians and those who serve so ably in the military."