Senate, House defense bills largely agree on submarine spending
Lawmakers want to spend about $8 billion on submarine programs next fiscal year.
The House and Senate Armed Services Committees passed their versions of the National Defense Authorization Act, which outlines how defense dollars will be spent in fiscal year 2018. There do not appear to be many discrepancies between the two versions, which eventually will become one bill.
The numbers for submarine programs in particular are very close. The House committee's bill authorizes $6.2 billion for the Virginia-class attack submarine program. Of that, $3.3 billion would go to purchasing the last two Virginia-class submarines in Block IV. And $2.9 billion in advanced procurement funds would go toward buying materials in advance. That's $943 million more than what the Trump administration requested.
The contract for Block V, the next group of submarines, is expected to be awarded in fall 2018. The House's measure includes language authorizing the Navy to build up to 13 Virginia submarines in Block V from 2019 to 2023 at a minimum procurement rate of two per year, with the possibility of building three attack submarines in 2020, 2022 and 2023. The $2.9 billion in advanced procurement funds would help the defense industrial base prepare for the increased work.
The authorization for up to 13 Virginia submarines would send a "strong signal" to the defense industrial base that Congress is "prepared to support the next notch of three a year," said U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District.
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The House's bill authorizes $1.9 billion for the development and design of the first Columbia-class submarines. The Columbia submarines will replace the aging fleet of Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarines. Of the $1.9 billion, $1 billion would go to research and development and $843 million would support continued design of the submarine and other development efforts.
The Senate's version authorizes $6.4 billion for the Virginia program, including $1.2 billion above the Trump administration's request for advanced procurement funds to buy materials in advance and to support the third submarine in 2020.
It also authorizes $1.8 billion for the Columbia program. U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, both D-Conn., led an effort to include an additional $150 million over what Trump requested for the program to boost the supply base in advance of construction.
"The whole idea is to buy forward," Blumenthal said, adding later that "we have to plan ahead, invest ahead and think ahead."
There's language in both bills directing the Navy to provide a plan for addressing the backlog in submarine maintenance. The USS Boise, a Los Angeles-class attack submarine based in Norfolk, Va., has been sidelined for nearly 50 months as a result of overdue maintenance and a large maintenance backlog at the Navy shipyards. Blumenthal, Murphy and Courtney want to see Electric Boat get that maintenance work to help maintain workforce levels. EB has been on a hiring spree to meet increased demand.
The House's version also includes language directing the secretary of defense to provide a briefing to both the Senate and House committees by Dec. 1 on efforts to shorten the security clearance review process. A backlog of federal background investigations, which hit 500,000 in September 2016, has slowed hiring at EB and other defense contractors.
The two bills are expected to be taken up on the floors of the House and Senate after Congress returns from its Fourth of July recess.
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