Tennessee Democrats believe in a strong national defense supported by necessary resources. National security policies that Tennessee Democrats have approved of include, the Panel on Defense and Acquisition Reform, which has investigated budget overruns in weapons procurement. This work helped to enact the Weapons Acquisition Reform Act of 2009. Tennessee Democrats support the National Urban Search and Rescue System Act. This act combines the authorization of the National Urban Search and Rescue program and put its authority in one section of the Stafford Act. Doing so would help to make sure that Urban Search and Rescue can efficiently respond to a wide range of national disasters. The bill provides Urban Search and Rescue Task Force members with uniform workers compensation and tort liability protection under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.
