The ongoing political fight over what running shoes troops can buy spilled over into another legislative debate this week, providing yet one more setback for opponents of New Balance sneakers.
The result could mean a new Pentagon bureaucracy to purchase and distribute running shoes to military recruits, abolishing the practice of letting troops shop around for the sneakers they like best.
At issue is a provision included in the House and Senate versions of the annual defense authorization bill, both of which require the Defense Department to purchase only American-made footwear for service members.
As written, the language would force military officials to buy sneakers almost exclusively from New Balance, the athletics apparel company based in Massachusetts, which touts itself as "the only major company to make or assemble more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear per year in the USA."
And it would also do away with vouchers issued to troops to purchase their own training sneakers, replacing them with service-issued footwear.
Army, Navy and Air Force recruits receive a stipend to buy their own shoes, although the Navy restricts those purchases to certain sneaker types. The new legislative proposals call for military leaders to "furnish such footwear directly to the members instead of providing a cash allowance."
That has raised concerns about how much sneaker inventory service planners would have to keep in stock, and whether the shoes troops get will fit them properly. The authorization bills' provisions would allow for exceptions for medical needs, with those specifics to be worked out later.
Several lawmakers unsuccessfully objected to the new rules in their respective chamber debates on the authorization bill. With its inclusion in both the House and Senate drafts, the provision isn't up for debate in conference negotiations, and it would become law if the measure is finalized later this year.
This week, Rep. Mark Sanford, R-S.C., pushed to undercut the new policy as part of the pending defense appropriations bill, offering an amendment which would strip all funding for the "American-made" shoes provision.
"(This new rule) would begin to limit choices," he said during a floor speech Wednesday, "I think for the average recruit out there, there is wisdom to have new choices based on the (idea) one size never fits all. There have been military studies that show a correlation between injury and fewer choices."
But Niki Tsongas, D-Mass., one of the main proponents of the sneaker change, said the issue is one of fairness, since defense officials promised to purchase American-made products once they became available.
"Today the domestic shoe industry has rebounded, employing thousands of workers throughout the country," she said. "Several versions of a completely American-made shoe are now available to the Defense Department, but they have yet to provide those shoes to new recruits."
Sanford's bid to remove the new sneaker rules failed by a 155-265 vote.
The White House and Defense Department oppose the measure, but appear to have little path to stop Congress' decision other than a series of vetoes. President Barack Obama has threatened a veto over both the appropriations and authorization bills, but not on the sneaker provisions.
Details of how the sneakers will be bought and distributed still must be worked out by Pentagon officials, if the provision is included when the authorization bill becomes law. The measure is expected to be finalized sometime this fall.
Leo Shane III covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He can be reached at lshane@militarytimes.com.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.
