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2010-27379 ResoRESOLUTION NO. 2010-27379 A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, URGING PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA AND THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO ADOPT THE MILITARY READINESS ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2009 (H.R. 1283), WHICH ELIMINATES THE "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL" POLICY AND, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ADOPTS A POLICY OF NON- DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION WITHIN THE UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES; DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO TRANSMIT A CERTIFIED COPY OF THIS RESOLUTION TO PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE NANCY PELOSI, SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID, SENATORS BILL NELSON AND GEORGE LEMIEUX, AND THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY UNITED STATES CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION. WHEREAS, service in the United States Armed Forces by lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans has been at question for many years, leading to the creation of the National Defense Authorization Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-160), more commonly known as the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue, Don't Harass" or simply the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy; and WHEREAS, the servicemembers Legal Defense Network has found that, notwithstanding a policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," nearly 10,000 servicemembers were discharged in its first ten years, including some 800 with "critical skills," of whom, 322 were linguists; and WHEREAS, the United States Armed Forces is currently unable to meet its recruiting goals, thus forcing National Guard and Reserve members to serve extended tours of duty, while at the same time highly qualified and patriotic gay, lesbian, and bisexual Americans are prevented from serving solely because of their sexual orientation; and WHEREAS, troop levels put national security at risk through lack of personnel, inadequate training, increased troop fatigue and stress, and decreased morale; and WHEREAS, the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy also affects national security and military readiness in more insidious ways, including harassment, violence, secrecy, and lack of confidentiality in medical care, all of which undermine unit cohesion; and WHEREAS, the Department of Defense has issued four reports since 1957 examining the presence of lesbian, gay, and bisexual servicemembers in the Armed Forces, with findings indicating that these servicemembers do not pose security risks or impair military readiness, but rather perform their duties as well as heterosexual servicemembers; and WHEREAS, lesbian, gay, and bisexual servicemembers have served, and are serving, bravely and honorably in all branches of the United States Armed Forces and in all locations, national and international, numbering one million veterans and 65,000 active duty personnel, according to the servicemembers Legal Defense Network; and WHEREAS, top United States national security agencies do not discriminate against their personnel based on sexual orientation, rather, the Department of Homeland Security, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National Security Agency all allow personnel to serve openly, leaving the Armed Forces as the only agency in the federal government that continues to use sexual orientation to discriminate in employment decisions; and WHEREAS, many of America's allies, including Israel, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, allow lesbian, gay, and bisexual servicemembers to serve openly in their militaries, and the United Kingdom now actively recruits these servicemembers; and WHEREAS, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network finds that American taxpayers spend nearly $26 million a year training replacements for servicemembers discharged under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, with unknown costs associated with the actual discharge of these servicemembers and non-monetary costs related to troop cohesion and low morale associated with the loss of unit members; and WHEREAS, national security and military readiness will be best served by allowing every willing and able American to serve in the United States Armed Forces, without regard to sexual orientation; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT DULY RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. The recitals and findings contained in the Preamble to this Resolution are adopted by reference and incorporated as if fully set forth in this Section; and Section 2. The City Commission of the City of Miami Beach urges President Barack Obama and the United States Congress to adopt the Military Readiness Act of 2009 (H.R. 1283), which replaces the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy and, among other things, adopts a policy of non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation within the United States Armed Forces; and Section 3. The City Clerk is directed to transmit a certified copy of this Resolution to President Barack Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senators Bill Nelson and George LeMieux, and the Miami-Dade County United States Congressional Legislative Delegation. PASSED and ADOPTED this ~~ day of April, 2010. ATTEST: I~ ~ ~ ~ ROBERT PARCHER CITY CLERK n ~~ ~' T HERR RA OWER MAYOR ,~,~y~c,.®i~.y,~'~ ~i F:\atto\TURN\RESOS\Don't Ask Don't Tell Policy - H.R. 1283.docx r ... - ~ ~b °- , Atem~y ~~ m MIAMIBEACH ' OFFICE OF TFIE MAYOR AND COMMISSION MEMORANDUM i TO: Jorge Gonzalez, City Manager I Jose Smith, City Attorney _------, FROM: Deede Weithorn, Commissioner ~ ~` ~i~ `'f DATE: April 2, 2010 Sua~ECT: Agenda item for April 14, 2010 Commission meeting I am requesting a resolution supporting the repeal of the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy directed to Florida State Senator Bill Nelson. Examples are attached to this memo. DW/aks ~,,~ ~„F -~,»~„~,~,<,,~„~;~~,,,q ~x~znc<.r o~~r~ ~E,v,~~ „~~~<,,~;,: ~, ~,~,N,~o,;,,~, ,v~,~. <,,,<,,,,o,,;,, ~ll Agenda Item R~ ~ Date ~(-I~(- ~(] ~t~ t't ,,;. City of Miami ~'~~~ ~ Legislation i~ ~ J/~()_1t~1~ Resolution City Hall 3500 Pan American Drive Miami, FL 33133 ~wvw.miamigov.com File Nunilrer; (1 9-1111 8 1$ I~inod Action Un(c: A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION URGING PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA AND THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO ADOPT THE MILITARY READINESS ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2009 (H.R. 1283), WHICH ELIMINATES THE "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL" POLICY AND, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ADOPTS A POLICY OF NON-DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION WITHIN THE UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES; DIRECTING CITY CLERK TO TRANSMIT A CERTIFIED COPY OF THIS RESOLUTION TO PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE NANCY PELOSI, SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID, SENATORS BILL NELSON AND MEL MARTINEZ AND THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY UNITED STATES CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION. WHEREAS, service in the United States Armed Forces by lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans has been at question for many years, leading to the creation of the National Defense Authorization Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-160), more commonly known as the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue, Don't Harass" or simply the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy; and WHEREAS, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network has found that notwithstanding a policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" nearly 10,000 servicemembers were discharged in its first ten years, including some S00 with "critical skills," of whom, 322 were linguists; and WHEREAS, the United States Armed Forces is currently unable to meet its recruiting goals, thus forcing National Guard and Reserve members to serve extended .tours of duty, while at the same time highly qualified and patriotic gay, lesbian, and bisexual Americans are prevented from serving solely because of their sexual orientation; and WHEREAS, troop levels put national security at risk through lack of personnel, inadequate training, increased troop fatigue and stress, and decreased morale; and WHEREAS, the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy also affects national security and military readiness in more insidious ways, including harassment, violence, secrecy, and lack of confidentiality in medical care, all of which undermine unit cohesion; and WHEREAS, the Department of Defense has issued four reports since 1957 examining the presence of lesbian, gay, and bisexual servicemembers in the Armed Forces, with findings indicating that these servicemembers do not pose security risks or impair military readiness, but rather perform their duties as well as heterosexual servicemembers; and WHEREAS, lesbian, gay, and bisexual servicemembers have served, and are serving, bravely and honorably in all branches of the United States Armed Forces and in all locations, national and Ci1p ofJlimtd Pege / of3 Printed Ors 7/23/?009 File Number: 09-00815 international, numbering one million veterans and 65,000 active duty personnel, according to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network; and WHEREAS, top United States national security agencies do not discriminate against their personnel based on sexual orientation, rather, the Department of Homeland Security, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National Security Agency all allow personnel to serve openly, leaving the Armed Forces as the only agency in the federal government that continue to use sexual orientation to discriminate in employment decisions; and WHEREAS, many of America's allies, including Israel, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, allow lesbian, gay, and bisexual Servicemembers to serve openly in their militaries, and the United Kingdom now actively recniit these Servicemembers; and WHEREAS, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network finds that American taxpayers spend nearly $26 million a year training replacements for servicemembers discharged under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, with unknown costs associated with the actual discharge of these servicemembers and non-monetary costs related to troop cohesion and low morale associated with the loss of unit members; and WHEREAS, national security and military readiness will be best served by allowing every willing and able American to serve in the United States Armed Forces, without regard to sexual orientation; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA; Section 1. The recitals and findings contained in the Preamble to this Resolution are adopted by reference and incorporated as if fully set forth in this Section. i Section 2. The Miami City Commission urges President Barack Obama and the United i States Congress to adopt the Military Readiness Act of 2009 (H.R. 1283), which replaces the "Don't' Ask, Don't Tell" policy and, among other things, adopts a policy of non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation within the United States Armed Forces. Section 3. The City Clerk is directed to transmit a certified copy of this Resolution to the President Barack Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senators Bill Nelson and Mel Martinez and the Miami-Dade County United States Congressional Legislative i Delegation. Section 4. This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon its adoption and signature of the Mayor.{1} Footnotes: Cilp of A/iruei Pnge ? of 3 PrDNer1 On: 7/13/1009 File Number: 09-00815 {1} If the Mayor does not sign this Resolution, it shall become effective at the end often calendar days from the date it was passed and adopted. If the Mayor vetoes this Resolution, it shall become effective immediately upon override of the veto by the City Commission. Crtp ofA/lanei Pngc 3 of 3 Prrnled Oa: 7/1.3/1009 !WHAT IS "DON'T ASI<, DON'T TELL"? • Passed by Congress in 1993, DADT requires the discharge of openly gay, lesbian and bisexual service members. • More than 14,000 service members have been fired under the law since 1994. MOVEMENT TO END BAN • President Obama said, "I will end 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'." • Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, told Congress that repealing DADT is "the right thing to do." Former Chairman John Shalikashvili agrees. Colin Powell and Richard Cheney say it's time to re-examine this law. • 190 members of the House of Representatives have signed onto the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (H. R. 1283), which would repeal the current law and replace it with a policy ofnon-discrimination. • Senators Lieberman, Levin and 23 other senators have sponsored a Senate counterpart of H.R. 1283 (S. 3065). This bill includes an transition provision that takes into account the schedule of the Defense Department implementation Working Group. • The White House and DoD should include DADT repeal in the FY2011 Defense authorization bill; repeal should happen this year. i GROWING MILITARY SUPPORT FOR REPEAL OF "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL" • Seventy-three percent of military personnel said they were comfortable around lesbians and gays (Zogby International, 2006). • The younger generations, those who fight America's 21st century wars, largely don°t care about whether someone is gay or not -and they do not linkjob performance with sexual orientation. • One in four U.S. troops who served in Afghanistan or Iraq knew a member of their unit who was gay (Zogby International, 2006). • A recent article in Joint Force Quarterly concludes, "after a careful examination, there is no scientific evidence to support the claim that unit cohesion will be negatively affected if homosexuals serve openly." `GROWING PUBLIC SUPPORT TO END "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL" • Seventy-five percent of Americans support gays serving openly - up from just 44% in 1993 (ABC News/Washington Post, 2010). This includes majorities of Independents (77%) and Republicans (64%) that favor repeal. • Majorities of weekly churchgoers (60%) and conservatives (58%) also want to see the end of DADT (Gallup, 2009). f ~- ;~ ~y h ABOUT SERVIC>/MEMBERS LEGJIL DEFENSE NETWORK ,`~ y ti"f; Servicemembers' Leyal Defense Network (SLDNJ is a national, non-profit legal services, watchdog .,~ nail policy nrganizntion dedicated to ending "Dan'[<lsk, Don'f Tell." SLDN Siuff: 15 I Founded: ' 1993 SERVICEMEM6ER5 LEGAL DEFENSE NETWORK I P.O. 60X 65301 WA51-IINGrON, DC 20035-5301 "DON'T ASI<, DON'T TELL" HURTS MILITARY READINESS. • The U.S. must recruit and retain the greatest number of the best and brightest - especiallywhile weare fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. • The Pentagon reports that 75% of young Americans are ineligible to serve in our military because of inadequate education, criminal records or weight problems. Conduct waivers have been given for recruits with records of bomb threats, sex crimes and negligent or vehicular homicide. And yet, qualified, smart, law-abiding and fit youths who want to serve are being excluded merely because of their sexual orientation. • According to the GAO, as of 2003, the military had discharged more than 750 mission- ' critical service members and more than 320 with skills in important languages such as Arabic, Korean and Farsi (GAO, Military Personnel.• Financial Costs and loss of Critical Skills Due to DOD's Homosexual Conduct Policy Cannot Be Completely Estimated). f AMERICA'S ALLIES SUPPORT OPEN MILITARY SERVICE. • More than two dozen countries allow gays to serve openly. The US and Turkey are the only two original NATO countries that still have bans in place. • Studies of the militaries in Australia, Israel, Great Britain and Canada have shown open service to have no adverse effect on enrollment or retention. "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL" IS EXPENSIVE. • The same GAO study identified almost $200 million in costs for the first ten years of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," while concluding that the total costs could not be estimated. • A follow-up study by an expert commission put these costs at more than $363 million. PENTAGON, GOVERNMENT STUDIES SUPPORT OPEN SERVICE. • In 1993, RAND Corp. concluded that openly gay people in the U.S. military do not negatively impact unit cohesion, morale, good order or military readiness. An update of this study should be completed in the next 90 days. • Several other military-commissioned and GAO studies have concluded that open service does not undermine military readiness, troop morale or national security. LGBT PATRIOTS ARE SERVING WITH HONOR AND DISTINCTION NOW. • Today, there are at least 66,000 gay Americans serving on active duty and one million gay veterans in the United States, according to the Urban Institute. • Admiral Mullen told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he had served with gays since 1968. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES DO NOT DISCRIMINATE. • The CIA, FBI, State Department, the Defense Department on the civilian side, and defense contractors do not discriminate based on sexual orientation.