WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Defense Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2008, approved by Congress last week, includes $49.4 million for defense and military construction spending in Rhode Island, according to U.S. Sen. Jack Reed.
The measure, which also includes a 3.5-percent pay raise for U.S. military personnel, allocates money for the acquisition or development of military equipment – including a new nuclear submarine – and other defense technology from Rhode Island businesses.
“This bill provides critical funding for our brave men and women in uniform and gives them a much-needed pay raise,” said Reed, an Army veteran and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The measure includes $588 million to General Dynamics’ Electric Boat division, for advanced procurement of additional equipment and materials, “to double its production rate of the Virginia-class submarine from one submarine a year to two” as soon as 2010, Reed said. Included in that sum is $7 million for labor costs at Quonset Point in North Kingstown, where he said the workload is expected to increase significantly in future years. “I am proud that Rhode Island will play such a vital role in its construction,” Reed added, saying that “the Virginia-class submarine is an essential component of our nation’s defense capabilities.”
Other major contracts supported by the measure include:
• $5 million to Aspen Aerogels of East Providence, under the Flexible Aerogel Materials Supplier Initiative. The money will allow Aspen to develop affordable production methods and become a domestic supplier for military and commercial aerogel materials.
• $4.4 million to Systems Engineering Associates Corp. of Middletown, under two different programs: $2.8 million to enable SEA CORP to demonstrate submarine ISRT functionality, supported by the Scan Eagle Compressed Carriage and Stealthy Affordable Capsul System technologies; and $1.6 million for the Improved Surface-Vessel Torpedo Launcher program to support the continued fabrication and testing of two Advanced Development Models, leading to the production of a torpedo-launcher option for launching Mk 54 torpedoes from an unmanned surface vessel.
• $4 million to MPRI of Middletown to procure 250 additional Laser Collective Combat Training System (LCCATS) for the Army National Guard.
• $4 million to Epoxies, Etc. Inc. of Cranston, to develop and demonstrate rapid-repair, ultraviolet-curable structural adhesives for aircraft applications.
• $3.2 million to Mikel Inc. of Middletown, for its Advanced Intercept Ranging System (AIRS) program. The allocation will allow Mikel to complete the final research and development, at-sea testing, implementation of real-time algorithms and in-board electronics for AIRS, and installation on existing and future submarine classes.
• $3.2 million to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport, for the Improved Submarine Towed Thin-Line Array Handler and Array Reliability program. The money will support the program’s three-year initial phase, allowing NUWC to complete the system design, then develop and test prototype system changes, to improve thin-line towed array system reliability.
• $3 million to TPI Composites of Warren, for the Armor Ready Composite Cab Transition, allowing TPI to build several dozen armor-ready composite cabs and create the necessary infrastructure to expand the program to a variety of vehicle platforms.
• $2.8 million to various Rhode Island companies for the Undersea Perimeter Security Integrated Defense Environment (UPSIDE) program, supporting the transition from a prototype undersea detection/classification/response system to a fully integrated, functional and deployable shorefront infrastructure protection system.
“Rhode Island is a leader in the defense industry, and this spending bill recognizes the valuable contribution our workers make to our national defense,” Reed said. The legislation – approved Thursday by the U.S. House and Senate – is now awaiting the president’s signature.
Additional information on the U.S. Department of Defense Appropriations Bill (H.R. 3222), and or other Congressional legislation, is available from the Library of Congress at thomas.loc.gov.
