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The Department of Defense promises great resources in its plan to revise the military’s way of dealing with sexual assault, but a handful of powerful senators are questioning the Pentagon’s timeline for these changes.
Eight MPs from both sides of the aisle, including Sens. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Kirsten Gillibrand (DN.Y.), wrote to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin this week with concerns that the DoD plan will take too long to implement.
“We are writing to express our disappointment and concern about the Department of Defense’s vague approach and lax schedule,” the Senators wrote this week. “This approach fails to meet the challenge of addressing the crippling and endemic sexual assault crisis that plagues our nation’s military. Instead, the memo defines four priority levels with a deadline of 2027 at the earliest and 2030 at the latest. “
Senators are calling for a briefing from the DoD by November 30th on how to place the decision to prosecute sexual assault and other serious crimes to a professional military attorney. You also want reassurance that the DoD is developing tactics, techniques, and procedures to aid investigations. The letter asks how the DoD will improve the security of military installations and better education and training.
While the letter is only asking for a briefing, the DoD’s responses could suggest additional law or action by Congress.
In his preliminary responses to the Senate Armed Forces Committee on Thursday, Ashish Vazirani, nominated as Assistant Secretary of State for Personnel and Readiness, put sexual assault high on his list of military readiness challenges.
“I understand the division is preparing an implementation roadmap for the recommendations regarding the Independent Military Sexual Assault Review Commission,” he wrote. “If confirmed, I will work to support Austin’s vision in this area and to ensure that we do all we can to adequately combat sexual assault. These behaviors cannot be tolerated. “
Vazirani said he was determined to implement the recommendations.
“Department heads must always be held appropriately responsible for handling complaints of sexual harassment,” he wrote. “To improve the quality of the investigations, if confirmed, I will fully support efforts to improve leadership engagement in this area, including the implementation roadmap for IRC recommendations, including the investigation of all sexual harassment incidents by an independent, well-trained agency outside of the US.” Chain of command. Addressing issues of sexual harassment is critical to stopping this prejudicial behavior. “
The DoD announced its roadmap to amend its sexual assault policy in September. The Review Commission made 82 recommendations to the Pentagon.
Recommendations range from changing the tracking of assaults and harassment to better taking data into account through climate surveys.
“Our recommendations are really designed as a comprehensive and complementary package, they are not a stand-alone recommendation and forget about the others,” said Kayla Williams, one of the commissioners, in August. “There is much more meat on the bone than just changing the legal structure.”
The Senate version of the Defense Clearance Act of 2022 requires the DoD to remove sexual crimes and other serious crimes from the chain of command earlier than the Pentagon’s schedule. However, not everything is covered in the review.
The Senate Grants Committee’s Defense Draft provides $ 400 million to expedite these recommendations.
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Senators concerned over DoD’s sexual assault overhaul timeline
