Madam Speaker, yesterday President Bush signed into law H.R. 3222, the Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2008.  The bill contained many important provisions to support our men and women in uniform, their families and our returning veterans.  The measure includes a 3.5% pay raise for our troops, blocks the President’s proposed fee increase for Tricare beneficiaries and provides significant funding for family advocacy programs to help military spouses and children manage the difficulties associated with deployments.  We all recognize that our military’s strength comes from the people who serve, and this legislation demonstrates our commitment to their health and well-being.

I am also extremely pleased that the Defense Appropriations Act includes an additional $588 million in advance procurement funding for materials that will permit the expedited construction of a second Virginia-class submarine.  As co-chair of the Congressional Submarine Caucus, I know the importance of submarines to our national security.  Quiet yet powerful, submarines can conduct a variety of surveillance and reconnaissance missions, protect our fleet, project U.S. force onto distant shores and support global strike operations.  The ability of submarines to operate independently in unconventional locations makes them one of the most capable components of our fleet.  In fact, submarines are in such high demand that the Navy can fulfill only about 60% of Regional Combatant Commanders’ requests to use them for missions. 

The Navy has estimated that we need 48 attack submarines to meet the needs of our military commanders.  However, under the Navy’s current 30-year shipbuilding plan, they do not expect to increase production to two subs per year until 2012, causing a perilous decline in our future sub fleet – dropping below 48 ships in FY2020-33 and hitting a low of 40 in FY2028 and FY2029.  Since I came to Congress nearly seven years ago, I have consistently advocated an increase in our build rate of Virginia-class submarines to two per year so that we have sufficient capabilities to address emerging threats.  Unfortunately, the Navy has repeatedly pushed back its two-per-year target date, causing instability in the industrial base.  In FY2004, the Navy expected to build two subs per year in FY2007.  By FY2005, the target had moved to FY2009.  That date was delayed again and again, and now stands at FY2012.   Meanwhile, our defense industrial base in Southeastern New England has suffered layoffs of submarine designers and engineers, whose specialized skills would be very difficult to reconstitute if lost.  Without prompt action, we risk shrinking our sub fleet to dangerously low levels, precisely when nations such as China are expanding and modernizing their navies. 

The FY2008 Defense Appropriations Act demonstrates Congress’s commitment to addressing this dangerous problem and will enhance our national security.  On behalf of the submarine industrial base in Rhode Island, I want to thank Chairman Murtha and Ranking Member Young for their leadership on this important issue.  I would also like to thank my friend and colleague from Connecticut, Mr. Courtney, for his tireless advocacy and efforts to achieve this goal, as well as the co-chair of the Submarine Caucus, the gentleman from Virginia, Mr. Forbes, for being such a dedicated partner in this initiative. 

I am hopeful that this additional funding will prompt the Navy to adjust its shipbuilding plan to begin construction of a second submarine in next year’s budget.  I remain committed to that goal, and I look forward to working with the Navy and my colleagues in Congress to build a more robust and capable submarine fleet.