Council of Governors Letter Regarding Annual Report on the Non-Federalize National Guard

General Joseph Lengyel
Chief, National Guard Bureau
1636 Defense Pentagon Ste 1E169
Washington, DC 20301-0001

Dear General Lengyel:

As you know, the Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) included a provision requiring an annual report on personnel, training and equipment needs of non-federalized National Guard. Section 333 of the FY18 NDAA requires you, as the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, to compile this report in consultation with the chief executives of each state and the Council of Governors.

This report will help ensure that the states provide valuable input into the requirement process at the Department of Defense. Considering the wide-scale response efforts of the National Guard during this year’s hurricane and firefighting seasons, it is critical that these mission needs are addressed in the Department’s budget and requirements process.

Governors are responsible for the safety and welfare of our citizens and are the commanders-in-chief of the National Guard forces in our respective states. It therefore is critical for the National Guard Bureau and the Department of Defense to work collaboratively with us on this report.

We ask that you ensure governors, adjutants general, and the National Governors Association are made aware of any request for information which pertains to this reporting requirement. We also encourage you to work with us on the most effective means to gather the information required by the statute.

We look forward to discussing this topic further at the next plenary meeting of the Council of Governors on February 23rd, but we are also available to you in the interim should you wish to discuss this matter further.

Sincerely,

Governor Mary Fallin
Governor of Oklahoma
Co-Chair, Council of Governors

Governor Dannel Malloy
Governor of Connecticut
Co-Chair, Council of Governors

cc: Secretary Mattis