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CONTACT:
Cynthia L. Brown
202-544-8170
(Washington, D.C.) – Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis (R-VA) was today recognized by the American Shipbuilding Association as the Sea Power Ambassador of the year.
“Congresswoman Davis is being recognized as the 2004 Sea Power Ambassador of the Year for her tireless efforts in working to rebuild America’s sinking naval fleet and the shipbuilding industry necessary to build America’s Sea Power for the 21st Century,” said Cynthia Brown, President of the American Shipbuilding Association.
Specifically, Congresswoman Davis is the sponsor of H.R. 375, legislation stating that it is the “policy of the United States to build and maintain as soon as possible a naval fleet of no fewer than 375 ships.” This legislation is critical in underscoring the demise of America’s naval fleet as a result of inadequate budgets that have been providing for the procurement of only six ships a year, on average, for more than a decade. These rock bottom shipbuilding budgets have cut the Nation’s sea power fleet from 594 ships in 1987 to 295 ships today. This 50 percent reduction comes when the Navy is being called upon as never before to wage war on terrorism and defend peace around the globe. This reality was underscored in the initial military offensive in Iraq, which required the highest deployment rate of America’s Navy since World War II.
Congresswoman Davis also authored legislation contained in the House reported Defense Authorization Act, H.R. 4200 Section 1014, limiting leasing of foreign-built ships by the Department of Defense to no longer than one year. Her legislation is crucial to prevent further erosion to an extremely weakened defense shipbuilding industrial base, and to save taxpayer dollars by urging direct purchase rather than the more costly long-term lease acquisition approach.
Brown said that because of Representative Davis’s unwavering support for Sea Power, the American Shipbuilding Association is proud to name her Sea Power Ambassador of the Year.
The American Shipbuilding Association (ASA) is the national trade association of the shipbuilding industry. ASA members include the nation’s largest shipyards and 50 companies engaged in the manufacture of ship systems and components. |
