wars without the National Guard. And lost readiness costs more than the price of health care.”
The Army and Air National Guard and the Air Guard’s space missions are now included in their services’ modernization programs. A road map is created to modernize all major weapons systems. Congressio- nal funding – in the form of National Guard and Reserve Equipment Appropriations, or NGREA – is now linked to America’s National Defense Strategy, service and combatant command priorities, and domestic operations requirements. “We must remain relentless in pursuing our goal of deployable, sus- tainable and interoperable equipment and force structure,” Hokanson said. “That will always be a vital priority. “We’ve proven the National Guard is an operational force – but that’s not enough,” he continued. “We must be an operational force that is modernized so we are fully interoperable with the Joint Force and our partners and allies.” Telework Where it makes sense, Hokanson has spearheaded a 10% telework initiative, allowing some of the NGB workforce to remain in home states and work remotely. The general cited improved state/NGB communication; retention of high-skill, high-talent team members; improved staff competitiveness for higher positions; an increase in the inclination of the 54 to share their best talent; family stability; and readiness gains as benefits. “Most of all, it brings us closer to being the agile, adaptable, integrat- ed force we need to be,” he said. State Partnership Program The Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Pro- gram, or SPP, began in the Baltics in 1993. This security cooperation program aligned with combatant command priorities celebrates its 30th anniversary next year and now includes 45 percent of the world’s nations. “The 2022 National Defense Strategy is clear,” Hokanson said. “Mutual- ly beneficial alliances and partnerships are an enduring strength. They are critical for achieving our objectives – and we have been doing it for almost 30 years.”
Calling health care a strategic and moral imperative essential to readiness and vital to recruiting and retention, Hokanson said: “Our National Guardsmen need health care, regardless of duty status. We fight the same wars as our active-duty counterparts. We spend weeks, months, even years away from our families, like our active-duty counterparts. “We must provide health care for every single person who serves in uniform,” he added, “so they are always ready to fulfill our promise to America.” Childcare
The Army National Guard is piloting a drill weekend childcare pro- gram across six states starting in October.
“No one in uniform serves alone,” Hokanson said, “and when we prioritize people, that includes prioritizing our strongest supporters and our greatest advocates: our families.” Annual Training Guardsmen are required to complete the same mandatory training and briefings as active-duty troops, such as cyber, sexual harass- ment and assault prevention and suicide awareness. For the tra- ditional status members who comprise most of the force – troops who balance civilian careers with their military duties – increasing requirements compete for the critical time needed to sustain Sol- dier and Airmen skills. The NGB has worked with the 54 and the parent services – the Army and Air Force – to prioritize and consolidate mandatory training requirements into a single drill weekend, freeing up the rest of the year to maintain and sharpen military professional skills, boosting component readiness. Army: Eliminated 16 requirements. Reduced 38 administrative tasks. Army Guard now can complete all mandatory training in two days. Air Force: Gone are 15 requirements. Consolidated 16 courses. Evaluating mandatory tasks. Exploring initiatives to allow Airmen to “test out” of some.
The SPP is, he said, “one of the best, most valuable security coopera- tion programs in the world.”
“We’re making real progress,” Hokanson said, “and that … translates to readiness.
The NGB will issue country recommendations this summer to add 30 more countries to the 93-nation SPP over the next 10 to 15 years.
“Readiness begins with the individual,” he said, “but modernization begins as an enterprise.” Modernization “We work in a system of systems,” the CNGB said. “Our states, our parent services, the Joint Force, and our partnerships at every level. All of these elements affect modernization – personnel, equipment, training, processes, and more.”
“People, readiness, modernization and reform – they aren’t top-down priorities: they belong to all of us,” Hokanson said.
You can find Guardsmen in the heart of almost every American com- munity, he observed. And in the heart of the Joint Force, world events, and the human experience. “I am proud to share our stories and represent our Guardsmen,” Hokanson said. “Together, we have shown we can accomplish almost anything.”
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