Rep. Gonzales urges NDAA language and funding for NAS Kingsville pass‑and‑tag and fire station projects

Representative Gonzales asked the House Armed Services Committee to help secure funding for two infrastructure priorities at Naval Air Station Kingsville: a new pass‑and‑tag facility relocated inside the installation’s entry and renovation or replacement of an aging fire station training facility.

Gonzales said NAS Kingsville trains roughly half of Navy and Marine Corps tactical jet pilots each year and is economically important to the region, employing over 4,000 people and contributing substantially to the local economy. He told the committee the current pass‑and‑tag facility sits 1.3 miles beyond the south entry control point, requiring security personnel to process visitors more than a mile into the installation and creating a security and entry‑delay risk. He urged funding for a new facility sited to eliminate that security gap.

He also requested funding to renovate and expand the base’s fire station training facility, which he said is nearly 80 years old and too small to accommodate modern firefighting apparatus; he cited leaky roofs, mold and ineffective climate control as chronic problems that impede training and readiness.

Gonzales said previous requests for inclusion in future years’ defense program lists and NDAA amendments had not advanced the projects; he asked the committee to consider report or bill language in the FY26 NDAA that would help move these long‑deferred projects toward eligibility for funding. No committee votes or formal directions were recorded during member day.