Defense Daily :: Congressman Roscoe G Bartlett

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Congressman Roscoe G Bartlett
Maryland's Sixth district, US House of Representatives

A principled conservative, Congress Bartlett considers himself a citizen-legislator. He was first elected to the 103rd Congress. He took office on January 3, 1993 was re-elected to each succeeding Congress and is currently serving his eighth term. In the 110th Congress, Bartlett serves as the Ranking Member of the Seapower and Expeditionary Forces Subcommittee and also serves on the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the Committee on Armed Services. One of three scientists in Congress and a former small business member of the extensive experience with DOD R&D contracts, he also serves as a senior member of the Committee on Science & Technology and the committee on Small Business.

His goal as a Congressman? "I'm not interested in politics," say Dr. Bartlett. "I'm interested in my country. Upholding the Constitution, including the entire Bill of Rights, and maintaining a strong defense should be our priorities. If we don't get these priorities right, nothing else will matter."

Congressman Bartlett earned a Bachelor's Degree in theology and biology from Columbia Union College. He went on to earn both a Mastes and Ph.D in Human Physiology from the University of Maryland at College Park.

Congressman Bartlett has been married to Ellen Bartlett for more than forty years and they have 10 children, 16 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. A devout Seventh Day Adventist, he was born June 3, 1926 in Moreland KY.

Additional Scientific/Engineering Biographical background:

Congressman Bartlett was awarded 20 patents druing his scientific, engineering, and teaching career and authored more than 100 studies published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. While on staff at the U.S. Navy's School of Aviation Medicine (S.S.NAMI) in Pensacola, Florida, Bartlett invented a series of break-through respiratory support equipment. He holds the basic patents for rebreathers which recycle oxygen from exhaled air and filter carbon monoxide (CO) in closed systems. This technological advance extends oxygen supplies and makes them portable. Bartlett's inventions are critical components of the equipment that supplies oxygen to astronauts, pilots, and fire/rescue personnel. Congressman Bartlett worked on many other projects for the United States Navy as well as NASA's Gemini, Mercury and Apollo programs while serving as Director of Space Life Sciences Division at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL). He also held positions at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Howard University in Washington DC, at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), IBM and at Frederick Community College. In 1999, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) awarded him its Jeffries Aerospace Medicine and Life Sciences Award for his career contributions to the advancement of medical knowledge and technologies in aviation and aerospace exploration.

Highlights of Congressman Bartlett's work on the Armed Services Committee:

Congressman Bartlett was instrumental in the inclusion of cost caps for the DD(X), now known as DDG-1000, in the FY 2006 National Defense Authorization Act.

Congressman Bartlett authored the provision in the FY 2005 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to commission a study to enable the U.S. shipbuilding industry to become more efficient in the short term and commercially viable within a decade.

Congressman Bartlett authored the provision in the FY 2004 National Defense Authorization Act commissioning the Navy and the Center for Naval Analysis to initiate serveral independently-conducted studies to analyze and recommend potential future fleet architectures for the Navy.

Congressman Bartlett authored the provision that established the Congressional Commission whose 2004 report warned of twin dangers that might invite and reward an Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) high-altitude nuclear attack on the United States. US Military and civilian infrastructure is increasingly vulnerable to EMP because of the pervasive dependence upon electronics. Efforts to acquire EMP is one of the small number of asymmetric threats that would catastrophic consequences on the very fabric of US society as well as America's military capability.

Congressman Bartlett was the 2002 House recipient of the National Military Family Association's Annual Award in recognition of his leadership and advocacy on behalf of military families while he served as the Chairman of the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Panel (MWR) of the House Armed Services Committee during the 106th Congress.

Congressman Bartlett authored the provision in the FY 2001 National Defense Authorization Act permitting the adoption of military working dogs after their retirement.

Congressman Bartlett authored the provision that requires notification by the Administration to the Congress and a sufficient period for review and any potential legislative response prior to the assignment of women as crew members on submarines.