S.Amdt. 3147

SA 3147. Mr. HARKIN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 3254, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2013 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle C of title V, add the following:

SEC. 526. REPORT ON STANDARDS FOR AUDITORY FITNESS-FOR-DUTY OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall, in consultation with the Secretaries of the military departments--

(1) develop auditory fitness-for-duty standards for members of the Armed Forces on active duty that accurately reflect essential operational requirements for such members, as well as available accommodations to meet such standards; and

(2) submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the updated standards to be used by the military departments to determine the auditory fitness-for-duty of members of the Armed Forces on active duty.

(b) Elements in Connection With Updated Standards.--If an updated standard to be used for determining the auditory fitness-for-duty of members of the Armed Forces on active duty differs from a standard currently or recently used for that purpose, the report shall include a description of the difference between the two standards and an assessment of the impact of such updated standard on members of the Armed Forces on active duty who have auditory impairments.