Jo Ann Davis News

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced that William Ebbs has taken on the new role of vice president, federal policy, and Andrew Hicks has been promoted to vice president, legislative affairs. Both will report to Mitchell B. Waldman, corporate vice president, government and customer relations. "Will and Andrew have been important members of our legislative team and have tremendous experience working with Congress and the executive branch of the government," Waldman said.

The American Shipbuilding Association (ASA) announced that U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) would be the 2010 recipient of the Herbert H. Bateman Award. The award will be presented Wednesday, June 23 at 6:00 pm during ASA's Salute to the Illih Congress reception in the Gold Room (2168) of the Rayburn House Office Building. "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.

The American Shipbuilding Association (ASA) announced that Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) is the 2009 recipient of the Herbert H. Bateman Award. This award was presented on Wednesday, May 13th at 6:00 pm during ASA’s Salute to the 111th Congress reception in the Gold Room (2168) of the Rayburn House Office Building. Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996, Senator Reed is a senior Member of the Armed Services Committee, a Member of the Subcommittee on Seapower, and a Member of the Appropriations Committee. Senator Jack Reed has dedicated his years in the United States Senate to working men and women who build the finest submarines and surface ships in the world so that American Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen and women have the best in executing their missions.

Rob Whittman was announced as the new Co-chair of the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus. The announcement came from Congressman Gene Taylor, another Co-Chair for the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus. Congressman Wittman was elected on December 11, 2007 during a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the late Jo Ann Davis. The Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus was founded by Congressman Taylor and Congressman Davis in January 2005. The Caucus was intended as a forum for which members of Congress could discuss shipbuilding issues that would impact their districts. The Caucus currently has 98 members. Source: WAVY

leases of foreign-built ships to not more than one year. Services Committee. amendment,” said Cynthia Brown, president of the American Shipbuilding Association. (DOD) practice has been to evade the Budget Enforcement Act and U.S. leases of 59 months in duration, foreign-built ships to the detriment of America’s defense industrial base,” said Brown. because of budget analyses demonstrating that leasing is more expensive to the taxpayer than a direct acquisition. same ship for another 59 months to meet military unique long-term mission requirements. first year as required by Office of Management and Budget regulations accompanying the Budget Enforcement Act. U.S. law also requires that ships purchased for all branches of the Armed Forces be built in the United States.

Congressman Gene Taylor (D-MS) and Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis (R-VA) convened the first meeting of the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus today. Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Vern Clark, was the first guest speaker at the closed session. In comments during the Caucus meeting, Taylor expressed his worry that the current 290-ship fleet is well-below the Navy’s recommended requirements. "If enacted, the proposed FY06 Navy shipbuilding budget doesn’t fix the situation. In fact, this budget would only undercut our ability to fight the Global War on Terror and meet the national security challenges of the future," said Taylor. Taylor also conveyed his great concern over the Navy’s recent announcement to re-open the competition for the DD(X) destroyer.

The Department of Defense announced that they would back off a previously announced Navy proposal to conduct a winner-take-all competition between shipyards for the construction of the next generation destroyer DD(X). According to the President's fiscal year 2006 budget, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in Pascagoula, Mississippi, was scheduled to build the first three DD(X) destroyers, with Maine's General Dynamics Bath Iron Works shipyard building two additional ships. However, changes to the shipbuilding budget triggered the Navy to explore a revised bidding process that would have created a winner-take-all competition between Northrop Grumman and Bath Iron Works. "You're looking at a situation where one shipyard would likely be forced out of business.

The Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus met yesterday with shipbuilding industry officials to discuss commercial and military shipbuilding priorities. The event was part of the Shipbuilding Industry Day Conference hosted by the American Shipbuilding Association. During a discussion among members of Congress, presidents of the Big Six shipyards, shipbuilding labor representatives, and major ship system and component manufacturers from across the country, the group outlined the threats facing the Nation if our naval fleet and shipbuilding industry continue to decline. Shipbuilding Caucus co-chairs Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis (R-VA) and Congressman Gene Taylor (D-MS) were joined by Congressmen Tom Allen (D-ME)…

Northrop Grumman reached its first construction milestone in the life of the new-generation aircraft carrier, CVN 21. The company cut one of the first pieces of steel, a 15-ton plate for a side shell unit of CVN 78, the first ship of the CVN 21 program. Design work on the CVN 21 is underway at Northrop Grumman's Newport News sector, with the full construction contract anticipated in 2007. Advance construction began in 2005 to allow shipbuilders to test the design-build strategy before overall construction begins in 2007. Each ship of the class is valued at approximately $8 billion. The ceremony also served as the grand opening for the shipyard's new heavy-plate bay facility, one of several new facilities built for CVN 21 construction.

The Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus (CSC) co-chaired by Representatives Gene Taylor (D-MS) and Jo Ann Davis (R-VA), met with ship component manufacturers on the impact that low rates of naval shipbuilding have had on their companies and the challenges confronting the ship manufacturing industrial base. The ship manufacturers that met with the Caucus included: Mr. Craig Hansen of BWXT/ Babcock and Wilcox in Mount Vernon, IN; Mr. Walter Herr of Fairbanks Morse Engine in Beloit, WI; Mr. Roy Arnold of IMECO, Inc. in Iron Mountain, MI; Mr. Michael Stobbart of Lister Chain and Forge, Inc. in Blaine, WA; and Mr. Terry Sterling of Nelson Stud Welding in Elyria, OH.

The American Shipbuilding Association (ASA) announced that Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) is the 2007 recipient of the Herbert H. Bateman Award. This award will be presented on Wednesday, June 6th at 6:00 pm during ASA’s Salute to the 110th Congress reception. Senator Collins was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996 and reelected in 2002, and is Ranking Member and former Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. She also serves on the Armed Services Committee. “Senator Collins is a consistent, strong advocate for the shipbuilding industry of the United States. She helped to defeat the Navy’s ‘One Shipyard’ policy to ensure that both Bath Iron Works and Ingalls continue to design and build surface combatants for the Navy.

The American Shipbuilding Association (ASA) announced that Representative Jo Ann S. Davis (R-VA) would be the 2006 recipient of the Herbert H. Bateman Award. This award will be presented on June 28th during ASA’s Salute to the 109th Congress reception in the Gold Room (2168) of the Rayburn House Office Building. Representative Jo Ann Davis succeeded Congressman Herbert H. Bateman in representing the 1st congressional district of Virginia. She was elected in November 2000, and has served 6 years in the House of Representatives. “Representative Davis has been a tireless leader in Congress in promoting a strong shipbuilding industry. She is the founding co-chair of the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus, and in 18 months has grown the caucus to over 100 members. Ms.

The Daily Press reports that a new Navy shipbuilding plan envisions a future fleet with one fewer aircraft carrier and six fewer attack submarines than exist today, posing a threat to jobs at Northrop Grumman Newport News in the next decade. The draft plan, which was obtained by the Daily Press but won't be released until February, calls for a total combat force of 313 ships, a significant increase from today's fleet of about 281 ships. But that total masks a proposed decline in the large - and costly - ships that sustain major shipyards like Newport News. The overall increase in fleet size can be explained by the Navy's plan to buy 55 Littoral Combat Ships - small, fast attack boats that can patrol waters close to shore. None of those ships exist today.

The Coast Guard’s newest weapon against terrorism will be commissioned in a formal ceremony 9:30 a.m. Friday at Coast Guard Training Center Yorktown, Va. Representative Jo Ann Davis (R-VA) will be the guest speaker for the commissioning ceremony. Atlantic Area Commander Vice Adm. James Hull will be the presiding official. Maritime Safety and Security Team (MSST) 91102, the second of six Coast Guard anti-terrorism/force protection teams to be established as a direct result of the Sept. 11 attacks, will be commissioned after completing an intensive four-week initial training course at Camp Lejeune, N.C., which culminated in a 36-hour exercise in the port of Wilmington, N.C., last month.

In a letter to Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis, Navy League National President Timothy O. Fanning, expressed his strong support and appreciation for the legislation that she introduced to increase shipbuilding construction. The legislation entitled National Naval Force Structure Policy Act (H.R. 5196) states that it should be the "policy of the United States to rebuild, as soon as possible, the size of the fleet of the U.S. Fanning points out that the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Vern Clark is also calling for a minimum of 375 ships to meet America's naval commitments. However, the current build rate will result in a fleet considerably below 300 ships, posing a national security concern.