Legislation to provide funds for variety of Maine-based projects

WASHINGTON – Rep. Tom Allen hailed Wednesday’s passage of the Defense Authorization Bill. Allen serves on the House Armed Services Committee, which crafted the bill with its Senate counterpart.

“This bill authorizes procurement of research and development funds vital to Bath Iron Works, Saco Defense, Pratt & Whitney in North Berwick, other firms and research facilities in Maine, and important construction projects at the Brunswick Naval Air Station and at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery,” Allen noted.

Among the bill’s provisions affecting projects important to Maine are:

. $2.8 billion for three DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyers to maintain the schedule that divides construction equally between BIW and the Ingalls Shipyard in Mississippi, and $457 million ($100 million more than requested) in advance procurement to extend the multiyear procurement plan at up to three destroyers a year;

. $1.5 billion for two LPD-17 amphibious assault ships, one of which will be built at BIW;

. $540 million in research and development for the DD-21 Zumwalt-class, next-generation destroyer;

. $14.3 million for procurement of the MK-19 grenade launcher machine gun manufactured at Saco Defense;

. $2.8 million for research and development on the Advanced Lightweight Grenade Launcher to be manufactured at Saco Defense;

. $73 million for upgrades of the engines on F-15 aircraft, to be performed in part at the Pratt & Whitney plant in North Berwick;

. an increase of $69 million for retrofit of engines on F-16 aircraft, also to be performed in part at the Pratt & Whitney plant in North Berwick;

. $18.7 million to replace and build new enlisted housing (168 units) at BNAS;

. $2.5 million for an aircraft de-icing facility at BNAS;

. $5 million for a new waterfront crane system at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard; and

. more than $40 million in research and development for projects affecting work at Fiber Materials, Inc. of Biddeford; Applied Thermal Sciences of Sanford; Technology Systems, Inc. of Wiscasset; and the University of Maine.