Courtney applauds House passage of Defense Authorization

June 14, 2013

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Joe Courtney and the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 1960), by a vote of 315-108. The bill fully supports continued investment in programs critical to Connecticut's economy and industrial base. Among its provisions, which are detailed below, the bill supports continued two-a-year production of Virginia Class Submarines, ongoing development of the Ohio Replacement Program (ORP) and denies a request for a new base closing round.

"Today's vote of strong bipartisan support for submarine production shows that an effort I fought tooth and nail for when I first arrived in Congress is now an integral and widely-accepted component of our national security strategy," said Congressman Courtney. "At a time when the specter of sequestration clouds our defense budget, the talented men and women of Electric Boat can rest assured that the Congress recognizes their masterful work turning out submarines ahead of schedule and under budget.

"While, on the whole, this bill is good news for Connecticut, I remain deeply concerned about the continued inaction by this Congress in addressing the mounting impact of sequestration. If we are to protect these gains and our economic recovery, we still need a smart, balanced solution to defuse this mechanism."

Below are selected provisions of the bill:

Key Connecticut Programs

Submarine Procurement and Development

Virginia Class Submarine. The bill supports Congressman Courtney's continuing efforts to secure strong, bipartisan support for a two submarine build rate by authorizing $5.8 billion for the Virginia-class submarine program, including two subs in 2014, and advance procurement funding for two ships planned in 2015. The bill fully supports the upcoming ten boat, five year multiyear contract currently being negotiated by the Navy and Electric Boat.
Ohio Class Replacement. Authorizes over $1 billion to continue development of the OHIO class ballistic missile submarine replacement.
Virginia Payload Module. Authorizes $59 million for the continued development of the Virginia Payload Module, which would integrate strike payload capacity for Tomahawk Land Attack and follow on missiles in Block V submarines (FY19-23).

Aircraft and Helicopter Procurement and Development

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The bill authorizes $8.4 billion for 29 F-35 joint strike fighters, including 19 for the Air Force, six for the Marine Corps and four for the Navy. During committee debate, Congressman Courtney opposed an amendment that would have unnecessarily delayed F-35 production by nearly a year, impacting the industrial base and injecting greater uncertainty into the program.
KC-46 Tanker Replacement. The bill authorizes $1.6 billion for continued development of the KC-46A aerial refueling tanker.
F-100 Engines. The bill increases funding for 25 spare F-100 engines, built by Pratt & Whitney, to fill shortfalls in spares for the F-15 fighter aircraft.

Helicopter procurement and development

$1.3 billion for 65 Sikorsky Army Black Hawk helicopters, $849 million for 19 Naval MH-60R helicopters and $455 million for 18 Naval MH-60s helicopters.
$396 million for the combat rescue helicopter (CRH). The Air Force plans to award the new Combat Rescue Helicopter in fourth quarter FY 2013, for which Sikorsky is competing.
$503 million continued development of the CH-53K, a heavy lift helicopter being developed and tested by Sikorsky for the Marine Corps.
$94 million for development of the VXX presidential helicopter. Sikorsky is expected to compete for this program later this year.

Other Key provisions

Afghanistan. During debate on the House floor, Congressman Courtney supported an amendment offered by Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) requiring the President to complete the accelerated transition of combat operations from the US Military to the Government of Afghanistan no later than by the end of 2013, the accelerated transition of military and security operations by the end of 2014, including the redeployment of U.S. troops, and to pursue robust negotiations to address Afghanistan's and the region's security and stability. The amendment also establishes the sense of Congress that, should the President determine the necessity for post-2014 deployment of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, the Congress should vote to authorize such a presence and mission by no later than June 2014. The amendment passed on a bipartisan basis in a 305-121 vote.

Denies BRAC Request. The 2014 NDAA specifically rejects the request for a new BRAC round in 2015, and prohibits the Department of Defense from using funds to prepare for a new round. Congressman Courtney strongly opposed the request for a new BRAC round during consideration of the 2014 NDAA, citing growing costs and declining savings from prior rounds.

Excess Equipment from Afghanistan. During debate yesterday, the committee lent bipartisan approval to an amendment offered by Congressman Courtney to require the Department of Defense to develop a plan for making U.S. military equipment that is declared surplus during the drawdown in Afghanistan available to entities here at home that could use them, such as towns and law enforcement agencies. Specifically, the amendment requires DOD to focus on improvements to real-time information sharing with interested parties regarding what equipment might be available, when, where, and in what condition. Congressman Courtney pursued this amendment after seeing drawdown preparations in Afghanistan first hand in March.

Unmanned Cargo Systems. The bill includes language authored by Congressman Courtney requiring the Army to assess the utility of unmanned cargo delivery system to provide supplies to remote operating locations. Kaman, a Connecticut-based company, is working with the Marine Corps to test the K-Max system, an unmanned helicopter that has been successfully deployed for 15 months in Afghanistan. The system has demonstrated the ability to move cargo between remote areas without the need for manned convoys that put our men and women in uniform in harm's way.

C-130 Upgrades. The authorizes additional funds above the budget request for key upgrades to older model C-130H aircraft, which are primarily found in our Air National Guard fleet. Upgrades includes improvements to avionics, cockpit controls, engines and other systems needed to keep these aircraft – the backbone of our tactical airlift capabilities – fully operational. The 103^rd Airlift Wing of the Connecticut Air National Guard is transitioning to a C-130H mission later this year.

Shipbuilding. The bill authorizes over $15 million for eight new ships, including two Virginia Class submarines, 4 Littoral Combat Ships, a DDG-51 destroyer and a Mobile Landing Platform (MLP), as well as continued construction of the CVN-78 Aircraft Carrier. Congressman Courtney is Vice Chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee and co-chairman of the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus.

Addressing Military Sexual Assault. The 2014 NDAA contains a number of provisions aimed at addressing the growing issue of sexual assault in the military, including reforms that strip commanders of their authority to dismiss a court martial funding, prohibit commanders from reducing sentences, establish minimum sentencing guidelines for sexual assault, and a number of other provisions aimed at supporting victims and holding perpetrators, and the military chain of command, accountable.

Military Pay Raise. Authorizes a 1.8% pay raise for members of the military, a .8% increase over the budget request.

TRICARE Fees. The bill rejects a proposal to increase fees on military retirees who receive coverage through TRICARE.

Increased Oversight of Drone operations. The bill includes a bipartisan provision that codifies congressional oversight of drone strikes and capture missions.

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