Defense Bill

Domestic Defense Bill Introduced

Senator Clinton (D-NY) introduced the Domestic Defense Fund Act of 2004 (S. 2021) to provide for a domestic defense fund to improve the Nation's homeland defense, and for other purposes. If enacted, the bill would, among other things, authorize $4 billion annually for distribution to states for various homeland security projects, including port security. (Source: HK Law)

House: Give Extra Billion to the Navy

It appears that the considerable, unrelenting lobbying effort of shipbuilders and Navy leaders has finally worked. According to a wire reports, a House of Representatives panel on Tuesday, April 30, voted to spend $3.2 billion more on military hardware than the President asked for, a sum which includes an additional $1 billion for Navy Ships. Reuters reported that the House Armed Services procurement subcommittee approved a plan to provide $73

U.S. Coast Guard to Reinstate Tuition Assistance

The U.S. Coast Guard joins the Department of Defense in reinstating tuition assistance in response to an amendment that was inserted into the General Provisions of the 2013 Appropriations Bill. The amendment to the Appropriations Bill submitted by U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), directs the U.S. Coast Guard, a component of Department of Homeland Security, placed under the category of "other departments or agencies" to restore funding for Tuition Assistance set aside under

Sen. Landrieu Backs Larger Naval Fleet

Lousiana Senator Mary Landrieu introduced legislation last week aimed to increase the number of naval ships. The Landrieu bill makes it the policy of the United States to return to a Navy of a least 375 ships, the amount recommended by the Chief of Naval Operations. In addition to increasing port security this bill would help protect important jobs at shipyards throughout the country. "With a current force structure well below Department of Defense requirements

U.S. Sues Shipbuilder For Alleged Overcharges

The United States has filed suit against Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. alleging that the company knowingly mischarged the U.S. Navy on costs it incurred for work under commercial contracts from 1994 to 1999, the Justice Department announced today. The lawsuit alleges that the Newport News, Virginia-based company charged the Navy for independent research and development (IR&D) costs for double-hulled tankers that Newport News was building for commercial customers under existing contracts

Bill to Reform Deepwater Acquisition Passes Committee

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure passed the Deepwater Integrated Program Reform Act, H.R. 2722, authored by Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. The Committee also passed the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2007, H.R. 2830, authored by the Chairman of the full Transportation Committee, James Oberstar (D-MN) and by Congressman Cummings. Both bills passed on voice votes.

Raytheon Advances Ship Computing

Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) achieved another in a series of milestones for the Zumwalt-class destroyer program with the successful Total Ship Computing Environment (TSCE) Release 6 software specifications review. Zumwalt’s TSCE is an advanced, open systems architecture that provides a scalable platform for cost-efficient delivery of new mission capability while capitalizing on the reuse of millions of lines of code from existing Navy programs

Massachusetts Legislature Considers Bill to Regulate Tank Barges

Massachusetts House Bill 59 (HB 59) was reported out of the Joint Committee on Natural Resources and Agriculture and referred to the Steering, Policy and Scheduling Committee. HB 59 is similar to bills introduced, but never enacted, in the 1997 and 1998 state legislative sessions. The bill requires all tank barges transporting bulk petroleum products be equipped with an operable anchor system and be manned, unless the state Department of Environmental Protection determines alternative

Editor's Note

Despite the renewed vigor for military activities due to the prolonged commitment to fighting terrorism at home and abroad, it seems that lawmakers are still reticent — via the proposal of a Navy Budget for Fiscal Years '02 and '03 — to spend adequate levels of money to maintain a strong fleet. According to the American Shipbuilding Association (ASA), The Defense Authorization Bill for FY02, that passed both the House and Senate (S

Container Security Bill Introduced

Representative Sanchez (D-CA) introduced a bill (H.R. 4355) to strengthen port security by establishing an improved container security regime, to expand on the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, to strengthen the Coast Guard port security mission, and for other purposes. In a Media Advisory, Representative Sanchez summarized the purposes of the bill. She also released an advance copy of the bill, called the Secure Containers from Overseas and Seaports from Terrorism Act or Secure