The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday passed a water infrastructure bill that includes a measure that allows the expansion of a pier at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton to accommodate the newest fast-attack submarines.

U.S. Rep Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, authored a proposal included in the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 to allow extension of Pier 8 in order to accommodate the newer Virginia-class submarines. The new subs are 84-feet longer than the current Virginia-class submarines.

In order to expand Pier 8, Courtney said a portion of the Thames River channel will need to be transferred from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to the U.S. Navy because the scope of the project extends beyond submarine base property.

Courtney, in a statement, said expansion of the pier will allow the Navy to homeport the new submarines while they are on patrol “well into the 2060s.“

The Water Resources Development Act of 2024 has yet to be taken up by the Senate.