Chief among provisions in the 2023 military spending package that could impact southeastern Connecticut is funding addressing workforce development and supply chain issues, U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, said last week.

Following the U.S. House of Representative’s passage of the annual National Defense Authorization Act last week, Courtney and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal provided context on the $858 billion bill, which the Senate passed Thursday night.

The bill will be sent to the White House for President Biden’s signature.

“The historic investments in this legislation will bolster Connecticut’s workforce and ensure our state remains at the forefront of defense manufacturing,” Blumenthal said in a statement. “I’m proud to have fought for measures that will strengthen our state’s economy, aid our allies in Ukraine, increase pay for service members, and provide important protection to survivors of military sexual assault.”

The $858 billion budget far exceeds last year’s $768 billion defense budget.

“The one real standout is $770 million for supply chain and workforce development. That is an unprecedented number,” Courtney said Friday. “About $500 million is going into supply chain investment, which is the relatively small companies that are feeding into these programs because we can’t do this all within the shipyard. It’s a good program, we’ve had it on the books in the past, but at a much more modest level of spending.”

Courtney pointed to Bozrah’s Collins and Jewell, an industrial equipment supplier, that has used the supply chain investment program for equipment in the past.

“That takes pressure off Huntington-Ingalls and Electric Boat in terms of spreading out the work in the U.S., which is a good thing,” Courtney said. “I think you’re going to see a lot more companies lining up for help in terms of the volume of work that clearly is going to be around for a long time.”

The NDAA addresses supply chain issues stemming back to last year and beyond with the “unprecedented amount” of funding Courtney mentioned. He said these issues remain and will persist.

“I think it’s going to be a recurring line item,” he said. “This is clearly something that is trying to keep the cadence of production where it needs to be. Everyone recognizes that’s one of the bottlenecks, having a less brittle supply chain.”

Biden moved last last year to expand defense production capability. At the time, Courtney and others predicted the move could bring help to the region’s submarine building industry, which had been hard hit by supply chain and manpower issues.

Electric Boat President Kevin Graney has said in multiple public statements multiple times during the pandemic that the company has had low staffing levels due to the coronavirus while hiring new employees also slows the construction process. Suppliers also have had their own workforce issues, according to Electric Boat and the White House.

On Tuesday, Electric Boat Spokesman Dan McFadden said in a statement that the NDAA “supports Electric Boat and the shipbuilding industry with workforce development and investment in the submarine industrial base to stabilize the supply chain.”

McFadden added that authorizing two Virginia-class submarines and continuing to fund the first of the Columbia-class, “and the advanced procurement funds included in the bill sends an important, positive demand signal to the supply base of work to come.”

“The extensive training pipeline and programs supported in the authorization are critical for Electric Boat and our suppliers to develop the skilled manufacturing talent we need to grow our capacity and deliver the submarines the Navy needs,” McFadden continued. “The legislation also provides important funding for research and development into expanded capabilities for future Virginia-class submarines and the next generation submarine that will follow, SSN(X). These funds will enhance Electric Boat’s leadership in undersea warfare technology and bring these advanced capabilities to the fleet.”

The Day reported in June of last year that problems with parts on the Navy's Virginia-class submarines failing faster than predicted could lead to more work for private shipyards such as Electric Boat. Last year’s nearly $770 billion defense budget had money in it meant to help EB with workforce, supply chain and production capability issues, but not nearly as much as this year’s allotment.

The $750 million for submarine industrial base and workforce development is targeted at submarine supplier development, shipyard infrastructure, and submarine workforce training and development. The NDAA also includes an across-the-board 4.6% pay raise for all military personnel.

International alliance

September marked the one-year anniversary of a defense agreement between Australia, the U.S. and the U.K. that could bolster the shipbuilding industry in the region. Courtney said last week that this is the first official action from Congress, since the AUKUS agreement was signed in December 2021, in support of the new defense alliance. A Courtney-led amendment initiates a training program for Royal Australian Navy sailors to get them ready to pilot new nuclear-powered submarines.

Courtney said the training program should have started immediately because Australia’s submarine force has never worked with nuclear subs before.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles visited Electric Boat’s Quonset Point facility last week.

“Electric Boat has been constructing submarines in the US since 1899 and it was great to see first hand the complexity of what’s involved in that process,” Marles said in a tweet.

Courtney disputed what he characterized as “fairly negative” comments from his legislative colleagues about whether the U.S. has the industrial base to handle the AUKUS agreement in addition to regular production.

When the agreement was first mapped out more than a year ago, the three nations were to come up with a construction plan for Australian submarines in an 18-month period. The countries have been holding classified meetings, and Courtney said the plan is expected to be ready in March of next year.

s.spinella@theday.com