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American Shipbuilder
Volume 16, Issue 3 May-June 2010
Senator Thad Cochran Receives Herbert H. Bateman Award
Honored for consistent leadership in support of a strong shipbuilding industrial base, Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) was presented with the American Shipbuilding Association’s Herbert H. Bateman Award during a ceremony held on June 23 rd. The Bateman Award is the shipbuilding industry’s highest honor.
“Thad Cochran, throughout his 38 years of service in the U.S. House of Representatives and in the U.S. Senate, has been a tireless advocate for a stronger shipbuilding industry and our Nation’s sea services. He has consistently increased shipbuilding budgets to fund more naval ships to meet national security requirements. He has provided funding to recapitalize the aging fleet of Coast Guard cutters for homeland security, and has promoted commercial shipbuilding in the United States. He is also a tremendous supporter of the Jones Act, which requires ships transporting cargo between U.S. ports to be American-built, -owned, and –crewed,” said ASA President, Cynthia Brown.
“His long and impressive record in support of a larger Navy, Coast Guard, and merchant fleet, and the supporting shipbuilding industry has made him a very deserving recipient of the Herbert H. Bateman Award,” Brown said.
The Herbert H. Bateman Award was established by the American Shipbuilding Association in 2000. This award is given annually to an individual in the Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, or industry who has demonstrated years of consistent, outstanding, and inspirational leadership in fighting for a stronger shipbuilding industry. Representative Herbert H. Bateman (R-VA), the award’s namesake who served the First District of Virginia from 1981-2000, demonstrated these qualities throughout his tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives. Previous recipients of the Herbert H. Bateman award include: Representative Herbert H. Bateman (R-VA); Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME); Representative Gene Taylor (D-MS); Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK); Representative Duncan Hunter, Sr. (R-CA); Senator Trent Lott (R-MS); Representative Jo Ann Davis (R-VA), Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), and Representative John P. Murtha (D-PA) and Senator Jack Reed (D-RI).
House and Senate Authorize FY 2011 Shipbuilding Budget Request
On May 28 th the House of Representatives passed its version of the FY 2011 National Defense Authorization Act (HR 5136). The Senate Armed Services Committee completed its version of the bill (S 3454) on the same day. Both bills authorize the Administration’s budget request of $13.9 billion for nine naval ships. The Committees approved the Administration’s request for two Virginia-class attack submarines; two DDG-51 multi-mission destroyers; one LHA amphibious assault ship; one mobile landing platform; two littoral combat ships; and one joint high speed vessel.
In the reports accompanying the respective House and Senate versions of the legislation, both chambers expressed concern in sustaining two surface combatant shipyards with the Navy’s acquisition strategy of buying three DDG-51 multi-mission destroyers every two years. The Senate report referenced previous studies conducted by the Navy, which concluded that the surface combatant industrial base “can only be effectively sustained if shipyards were building the equivalent of three DDG-51 destroyers per year, with additional work…”
In the report accompanying its bill, the Senate Armed Services Committee distinguished “the specialized shipbuilding industrial base for large surface combatants, amphibious ships, Navy auxiliary ships and littoral vessels as a critical component of national security and expects the Department of Defense to appropriately sustain this industrial base.”
In support of commercial shipbuilding, the House bill authorizes $60 million for the Title XI ship loan guarantee program administered under the Maritime Administration of the Department of Transportation.
Commandant of the Marine Corps Meets with the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus
On June 16 th the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus, co-chaired by Representatives Gene Taylor (D-MS) and Rob Wittman (R-VA), hosted a meeting with the Commandant of the Marine Corps General James T. Conway to discuss the Marine Corps’ ship force structure needs, emerging global threats, and the U.S. shipbuilding industry. Other Members of the Caucus in attendance were Representatives Todd Akin (R-MO), Rodney Alexander (R-LA), Jason Altmire (D-PA), Joe Courtney (D-CT), Susan Davis (D-CA), Darrell Issa (R-CA), Mike McIntyre (D-NC), Tom Perriello (D-VA), Bobby Scott (D-VA), and Joe Wilson (R-SC).
In his opening remarks, General Conway highlighted the Marine Corps accomplishments in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and its overwhelming humanitarian response following the earthquake in Haiti. He emphasized that in order for the Marine Corps to fulfill its missions and respond to existing and emerging threats, the Nation must maintain a fleet of 38 amphibious ships. He cautioned that any number below 33 vessels would become “untenable”, and the risk to the Marine Corps and America’s security interests would be too great. Noting that the capability of the Marine Corps’ fleet remains in high demand around the world, the Commandant stressed that the “value of the amphibious fleet cannot be questioned.”
The General said that America’s naval capability is often “taken for granted”, and that it is a struggle for the Navy to ensure adequate funding for all its platforms. The General noted that the Navy, which is responsible for purchasing the vessels for the Marine Corps, has competing priorities. He said funding for aircraft carriers, submarines, and surface ships are higher on the Navy’s priority list than amphibious ships. In order to elevate the importance of maintaining a strong amphibious fleet, the Marine Corps continues to emphasize the flexibility of the amphibious platforms and their contribution to forcible entry and maintaining a presence offshore. In response to a question on how the Marine Corps approaches its ship requirements with the Navy, the General said that his approach has been to emphasize the number of ships it needs rather than a particular dollar amount to give the Navy flexibility in buying amphibious ships.
The General said that whenever shipbuilding is addressed, that the Navy and Marine Corps always take into consideration the industrial base and how the work is distributed among the Nation’s shipyards. According to him, the Navy, Marine Corps, and shipbuilding industrial base together form a vital component of America’s national defense, and “that capability must not be allowed to dwindle.”
Senators Request $60M for the Title XI Program
Senators Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and nine of their colleagues sponsored a letter to the Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee in support of appropriating $60 million for new Title XI ship loan guarantees.
Administered by the Maritime Administration, Title XI provides small and medium sized U.S. ship owners with a federal guarantee of 87.5% of a commercial bank loan over 25 years. With America’s commercial fleet of ships rapidly approaching retirement age, the affordable financing provided by Title XI remains vital to ensuring that ship owners are able to place orders for new ships in America’s shipyards. Sixty million dollars, at a minimum, is needed annually to satisfy the demand for commercial ship construction.
The Maritime Administration has seen a surge of applications for financing or refinancing of ship construction projects in recent years. The influx of applications underscores the need for consistent funding of the Title XI program to assist American ship owners. Funding of the program will stimulate job growth and stability. Once an application for Title XI financing is approved, the ship construction order is immediately placed in a shipyard, instantly creating and sustaining jobs in the shipyard and supplier base. Title XI is a proven wise investment of taxpayer dollars. An appropriation of $60 million in FY 2011 will finance up to $1.2 billion in new ship construction, and it will create and sustain roughly 13,000 shipyard jobs and tens of thousands more jobs in the supplier base.
In addition to Senators Landrieu and Wicker, the following Senators signed the letter in support: Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Joe Lieberman (I-CT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), David Vitter (R-LA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Jim Webb (D-VA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
Rep. Duncan Hunter Warns of Cuts to National Defense
In the June 14 th edition of Defense News, Representative Duncan Hunter (R-CA) wrote an op-ed on the dangers of cutting U.S. defense spending when America must recapitalize its armed forces to meet threats from emerging peer competitors. Following are excerpts from the article:
“There is no shortage of threats facing America today or emerging on the horizon. In Afghanistan, our military is engaging a dangerous enemy while global terrorism, fueled by radical ideology, will take more than fire power to defeat…All the while, Iran continues its march toward acquiring nuclear weapons, North Korea continually provokes its neighbors, and China is arming itself faster than any other country in the world. Each of these threats is unique and presents its own set of challenges, which is why America’s armed forces must be prepared on all fronts.”
“Despite the longevity of most military equipment, the resources that originated during the Cold War are growing older, becoming increasingly unreliable and affecting core security capability, including the ability to project power worldwide… Nowhere is this more evident than with an aging U.S. naval fleet… a point missed by Defense Secretary Robert Gates during a recent critique of the annual defense budget and our national security funding priorities.”
“The Navy faces numerous obstacles to its 30-year shipbuilding plan… Meanwhile, China’s trajectories for surface ships, submarines, and fighter aircraft are steadily increasing. Other advancements by Iran and North Korea to acquire nuclear capability have been unwisely met with billions of dollars in cuts to our missile defense budget.”
“…Strengthening national defense must remain among our top funding priorities. New security threats will continually emerge, some far more serious than others, making it even more necessary that we are prepared to confront any situation that arises with a fighting force that is second to none.”
Well Said!
“Naval power is the natural defense of the United States.”
President-elect John Adams
1796
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