An attempt by Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) to restore the original language of the Navy’s 2-4-6 cruiser modernization plan was rejected by the House Armed Services Committee during a markup of the fiscal year 2016 defense authorization bill on April 29.
According to the 2-4-6 compromise agreed to by the Navy and Congress last year, the sea service would phase two Ticonderoga-class cruisers per year into a four-year modernization period, laying up no more than six cruisers at a time. However, in its 2016 proposal of the National Defense Authorization Act, HASC’s Seapower and Projection Forces subcommittee would limit the modernization period to two years.
Shortening the modernization period from four years to two years would make it difficult for the Navy to achieve savings and compete out the work to industry, argued Courtney, the ranking member for the subcommittee.
His amendment was defeated in a 24-38 vote.
The Navy originally wanted to retire its cruiser fleet and has only agreed to the modernization plan because of congressional pressure, said subcommittee chairman Randy Forbes (R-Va.).
“The Navy doesn’t want to go along with this,” he said. “They want to destroy these cruisers and not take them out [of modernization]…If we let these cruisers go in there for that 2-4-6 program, you’ll never see these cruisers surface again.”
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert on April 28 sent a letter to HASC Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) to voice his concern about the proposed changes. The 2-4-6 plan would have netted the Navy up to $400 million, while the 2-2-6 plan would eliminate those savings and deplete the Ship Modernization, Operations and Sustainment fund in fiscal year 2018, one year earlier than planned, he wrote.
Furthermore, the 2-2-6 plan would delay the induction of CG 65 and CG 69 from 2016 to 2018 “due to the two year procurement lead time for equipment and the requirement to be in receipt of the material prior to the beginning of modernization per the 2-2-6 proposed language,” the letter said.
HASC adopted a package of amendments to the subcommittee’s mark, including one that would halve the amount of funding the subcommittee originally authorized to modernize Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. The mark initially contained $120 million for that purpose, which Greenert identified in his list of unfunded priorities this year. The amendment, sponsored by Forbes, cut $60 million from that sum and shifted it to research and development for advanced submarine systems.