[Senate Hearing 115-772]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 115-772
NOMINATION OF VICE ADMIRAL
KARL L. SCHULTZ, TO BE PROMOTED
TO ADMIRAL AND TO BE COMMANDANT,
UNITED STATES COAST GUARD
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HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
APRIL 17, 2018
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available online: http://www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
39-949 PDF WASHINGTON : 2020
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SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
JOHN THUNE, South Dakota, Chairman
ROGER WICKER, Mississippi BILL NELSON, Florida, Ranking
ROY BLUNT, Missouri MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
TED CRUZ, Texas AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota
DEB FISCHER, Nebraska RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut
JERRY MORAN, Kansas BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii
DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska EDWARD MARKEY, Massachusetts
DEAN HELLER, Nevada TOM UDALL, New Mexico
JAMES INHOFE, Oklahoma GARY PETERS, Michigan
MIKE LEE, Utah TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin
RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois
SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire
CORY GARDNER, Colorado CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada
TODD YOUNG, Indiana JON TESTER, Montana
Nick Rossi, Staff Director
Adrian Arnakis, Deputy Staff Director
Jason Van Beek, General Counsel
Kim Lipsky, Democratic Staff Director
Chris Day, Democratic Deputy Staff Director
Renae Black, Senior Counsel
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing held on April 17, 2018................................... 1
Statement of Senator Wicker...................................... 1
Statement of Senator Nelson...................................... 2
Statement of Senator Klobuchar................................... 18
Statement of Senator Hassan...................................... 20
Statement of Senator Sullivan.................................... 22
Statement of Senator Peters...................................... 25
Statement of Senator Lee......................................... 28
Statement of Senator Blumenthal.................................. 30
Statement of Senator Baldwin..................................... 32
Statement of Senator Thune....................................... 34
Letter dated April 10, 2018 to Admiral Paul F. Zukunft,
Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard from Dennis Daugaard,
Governor, State of South Dakota............................ 36
Statement of Senator Cortez Masto................................ 37
Statement of Senator Cantwell.................................... 39
Statement of Senator Moore Capito................................ 40
Statement of Senator Cruz........................................ 42
Witness
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz, to be promoted to Admiral and to be
Commandant, United States Coast Guard.......................... 3
Prepared statement........................................... 5
Biographical information..................................... 9
Appendix
Response to written questions submitted to Vice Admiral Karl L.
Schultz by:
Hon. Roger Wicker............................................ 47
Hon. Dan Sullivan............................................ 47
Hon. Jim Inhofe.............................................. 49
Hon. Todd Young.............................................. 50
Hon. Bill Nelson............................................. 50
Hon. Maria Cantwell.......................................... 50
Hon. Brian Schatz............................................ 55
Hon. Gary Peters............................................. 57
Hon. Tammy Baldwin........................................... 66
Hon. Catherine Cortez Masto.................................. 67
NOMINATION OF VICE ADMIRAL.
KARL L. SCHULTZ, TO BE PROMOTED
TO ADMIRAL AND TO BE COMMANDANT,.
UNITED STATES COAST GUARD
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TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m. in room
SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Roger Wicker,
presiding.
Present: Senators Wicker [presiding], Thune, Lee, Heller,
Cruz, Moore Capito, Sullivan, Nelson, Cantwell, Klobuchar,
Blumenthal, Baldwin, Peters, Hassan, and Cortez Masto.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ROGER WICKER,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MISSISSIPPI
Senator Wicker. Good morning, one and all. Thank you for
your attendance and interest today. Today we will consider the
nomination of Vice Admiral Karl Schultz to be promoted to
Admiral and to become the 26th Commandant of the U.S. Coast
Guard.
The Coast Guard has had a tremendous year by all accounts.
As our Nation's smallest armed service, it has repeatedly shown
its value to the American people. The Coast Guard yielded
record results last year in its mission to combat the flow of
illegal narcotics by transnational criminal organizations. In
total, the Coast Guard interdicted more than $6.6 billion worth
of cocaine and other drugs before they could reach our shores,
while apprehending more than 600 smugglers for prosecution.
This past fall, we experienced one of the most catastrophic
hurricane seasons on record. Hurricane Harvey in Texas,
Hurricane Irma in the Caribbean and Southeast United States,
Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, and Hurricane Nate along the
Gulf Coast caused an unprecedented $200 billion in damages.
This eclipsed the previous record of $159 billion, which we
experienced in 2005 from Hurricane Katrina.
And yet for every storm that battered our shores, the Coast
Guard answered the call, surging personnel from all over the
country to provide relief to affected communities. The Coast
Guard estimates that the heroic actions of their men and women
saved more than 11,000 lives.
Despite these noteworthy results, there are numerous
challenges ahead for the service as it continues to take on
more and more responsibility. We are seeing significant
increases in vessel traffic in the Arctic as opening waterways
offer new commercial opportunities for the maritime industry.
The Coast Guard will be relied upon for search and rescue,
fisheries management, and environmental enforcement in these
hazardous waters.
Currently, the Coast Guard is performing its missions with
antiquated equipment and aging ships that are in constant
danger of breaking down. The Coast Guard's sole heavy
icebreaker, the POLAR STAR, was commissioned in 1967 and is a
single point of failure for the U.S. presence in the Arctic.
Other legacy assets, such as the high endurance cutters and the
inland river tenders are more than 40 and 50 years old.
The Coast Guard is in the midst of a major recapitalization
effort. It is Congress' responsibility to assist in this effort
and to provide the Coast Guard with adequate resources to meet
increasing demands.
I am pleased to report that the Senate will finally be
considering the Coast Guard Authorization Act during this work
period. Members from both sides of the aisle worked to pass
this bill through the Committee last June. After more than 10
months, it is well past time that we move forward with this
important piece of legislation. This bill would provide the
Coast Guard with the programmatic authorities necessary to
address future challenges.
Vice Admiral Karl Schultz is well qualified to lead the
Coast Guard during this critical and challenging time.
Throughout his 35 years of service, he has proven to be a
trustworthy and capable leader. As the Atlantic Area Commander,
Vice Admiral Schultz oversees all Coast Guard operations from
the Rocky Mountains to the Arabian Gulf. He also serves as
Commander, Defense Force East, where he is responsible for
providing Coast Guard mission support to the Department of
Defense and the combatant commanders. His personal awards
include the Defense Superior Service Medal, four Legions of
Merit, four Meritorious Service Medals, three Coast Guard
Commendation Medals, two Coast Guard Achievement Medals, and
numerous others.
So, Admiral Schultz, we thank you for testifying today and
look forward to you continuing to serve our country.
With that, I turn to our distinguished Ranking Member,
Senator Nelson, for his opening statement.
STATEMENT OF HON. BILL NELSON,
U.S. SENATOR FROM FLORIDA
Senator Nelson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Admiral Schultz will lead the branch of our Armed Forces
charged with protecting and saving lives at sea, securing our
ports, and conducting numerous other missions critical to our
safety and security. It's not only an Armed Force, as given
military responsibilities, but it uniquely combines with the
law enforcement function as well. We need to look no further
than the last hurricane season to see the exceptional work that
56,000 Active Duty Reserve and civilians, and 31,000 Auxiliary
volunteers did when the Nation needed them.
As you have stated, Mr. Chairman, the Admiral serves as the
Atlantic Area Commander. He led the Coast Guard's response to
Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate.
And I want to thank you, Admiral, and all of your fellow
servicemembers for all that you did as we went around after a
couple of those hurricanes throughout Florida, and then as I
have been down visiting with your troops in Puerto Rico.
In addition, the Coast Guard had an incredibly successful
year in preventing drugs from coming into the country, a
success attributed to your specially-trained personnel,
including the Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron and the
Joint Interagency Task Force South, which both reside in the
State of Florida. And, Admiral, as you well know, this Friday
marks the 8th anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,
which took the lives of 11 people. The incident also polluted
over 1,100 miles of coastline, impacted the marine environment
and the livelihood and personnel across the Gulf States, and it
serves as a reminder of the need to protect our waters from oil
spills. The Coast Guard served as the Federal on-scene
coordinator for that disaster and is well aware of the cost of
that mess and the ongoing consequences.
A lot of people don't realize all that the Coast Guard
does; this Committee does. When the administration proposed a
significant budget cut for the Coast Guard's Fiscal Year 2018
budget, many on this Committee took exception. Ultimately, your
budget, Admiral, included a $1.7 billion increase over the
Fiscal Year 2017 enacted level, and that ensures the
continuation of operations and timely recapitalization of your
assets. This appropriations level includes funding for the
first offshore patrol cutter and long lead-time materials for
the second of 25 planned cutters. And as you know, this cutter,
which surprisingly is being built in Panama City, Florida--they
were not expected to be the winning bidder but they won--will
be the cornerstone of your service's fleet and comprise 70
percent of the Coast Guard's offshore presence. These cutters
are replacing cutters that are 25 to 50 years old. We do our
best here to make sure the Coast Guard is properly resourced
and has the tools that it needs to do of all the many, many
things that we ask of it, and this includes the expeditious
passing of the Coast Guard Authorization Act.
The OMB won't let you tell us what resources you really
need, Admiral, but we're usually able to figure out and provide
them to you anyway. You've got a big job, and I believe you're
going to handle it very well.
Admiral, good luck, and we're looking forward to having you
as our next Commandant.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Nelson, for that very
insightful opening statement.
Admiral Schultz, we're delighted to have you. Please
proceed with your verbal statement, and feel free to introduce
any family members you might have present in the room.
STATEMENT OF VICE ADMIRAL KARL L. SCHULTZ,
TO BE PROMOTED TO ADMIRAL AND TO BE COMMANDANT,
UNITED STATES COAST GUARD
Admiral Schultz. Good morning, Chairman Wicker, Ranking
Member Nelson, and distinguished members of the Committee and
Subcommittee. I request that my written statement be submitted
for the record.
I'm honored to appear before you today and humbled to have
the confidence of President Trump and Secretary Nielsen with
their nomination to serve as the 26th Commandant of the United
States Coast Guard. I'm blessed to have my wife of almost 29
years, Dawn Marie, sitting behind me to share this important
day.
I'm also grateful to our Commandant, Admiral Paul Zukunft,
who served the Nation with the highest level of distinction
these past 4 decades, and more specifically for these--for his
steadfast, insightful leadership leading the world's best Coast
Guard these past 4 years.
With a focus on being ready, relevant, and responsive, if
confirmed, I will ensure that your United States Coast Guard
continues to proudly serve our great Nation.
For nearly 35 years, I've dedicated my life to serving
America in the Coast Guard. I have reportedly and repeatedly
seen firsthand the value the Coast Guard provides to our
Nation. This past fall, I witnessed the adaptability of our
service and the decided bias for action of our extraordinary
workforce during the Coast Guard's response to Hurricanes
Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate. During these operations, our
coastguardsmen's tireless and heroic efforts led to the rescue
of 11,300 lives and restored our vital ports and waterways as
key drivers of our national economy.
If confirmed, the top priority to be to focus on our
service readiness. At our core, the Coast Guard's most valuable
asset is our 56,000 Active Duty, Reserve, and civilian members.
These adaptive and agile professional men and women stand the
watch each and every day. For the service to be ready, our
coastguardsmen must have the right knowledge, skills, and
abilities to successfully execute our challenging missions.
Equally important, our men and women must represent the
American public we serve. Diversity breeds new ideas,
inclusion, and a stronger team. Quite simply, it fosters
service readiness.
In addition to our proficient and diverse workforce, our
service requires modern, interoperable, and multimission assets
ready to conduct operations. I thank the administration,
Congress, and specifically this Committee for all of your
support of the ongoing modernization of our capital assets, as
well as the recent supplemental funding to rebuild our shore
infrastructure following last fall's catastrophic hurricanes.
However, like the other Armed Forces, the Coast Guard needs
to rebuild readiness with sound investments in our operation
and maintenance accounts. While readiness in the other Armed
Forces has been the focus of recent budgetary increases, your
Coast Guard has not yet seen much relief in this budget
category. For these reasons, ensuring our service readiness
will be a top priority of mine.
It will also be my priority to leverage our service's
unparalleled relevance to the challenges facing the Nation. As
an Armed Force, coastguardsmen integrate with DoD and joint
task force organizations, and we provide the Department of
Homeland Security something extremely unique, its only military
service. Throughout my career, it's been clear that through our
broad authorities and vast network of international, Federal,
State, and local, and private industry partnerships across a
broad spectrum from military operations to humanitarian
efforts, the Coast Guard brings unique access and expertise to
the Nation. Your Coast Guard has never been more relevant than
we are today.
Finally, if confirmed, it will also be my priority to
ensure our service remains responsive to the Nation's needs.
The Coast Guard regularly works with the public and the
maritime industry as well as with our fellow DHS components and
across the broader interagency of government, including the
national intelligence community, to support unity of effort
across the government.
Your Coast Guard facilitates the safe transit of $4.6
trillion million of commerce annually throughout the marine
transportation system, a system of some 360 seaports, 3,700
marine terminals, and 25,000 miles of waterways, a system
highly dependent on a complex globally networked system of
automated technology always vulnerable to cyber disruption.
Throughout the Western Hemisphere, the Coast Guard is a key
component of the Department of Homeland Security's
comprehensive approach to border security, where we push out
the borders and respond to maritime threats.
In Fiscal Year 2017, I proudly note that the Coast Guard
removed a record 223 metric tons of illegal narcotics, and
detained and transferred to the Department of Justice 606
smugglers for Federal prosecution.
In the Arctic, we are responsive to a region where our
Nation has substantial political, national security, natural
resource, and environmental interests. Through our annual
Arctic Shield seasonal operations and our leadership in
international Arctic forums, the Coast Guard has the Nation's
only surface presence in the increasingly accessible high
latitudes, will continue to secure our Nation's Arctic
interests.
In Southwest Asia, a fleet of six Coast Guard patrol boats
continues to provide vital support to the CENTCOM missions,
just as they have since 2003. Coast Guard multimission forces
continue to integrate seamlessly as part of today's joint
force, supporting DoD combatant commanders across the globe.
In conclusion, if confirmed, I recognize and am humbled by
the immense responsibility I will assume as the 26th Commandant
of the United States Coast Guard, a ready, relevant, and
responsive Coast Guard. Our inherent bias for action ensures we
remain ``Semper Paratus,'' always ready to meet the present and
future challenges of the Nation.
Chairman Wicker, Ranking Member Nelson, distinguished
members, I am truly privileged to appear before you today. I
thank you for the opportunity to testify, and I look forward to
your questions.
[The prepared statement and biographical information of
Admiral Schultz follow:]
Prepared Statement of VADM Karl L. Schultz, Nominee to be Commandant,
U.S. Coast Guard
Introduction
Good afternoon, Chairman Thune, Ranking Member Nelson, and
distinguished members of the Committee. It is an honor and a privilege
to appear before you today. I am humbled by the opportunity and
grateful for the confidence of President Trump and Secretary Nielsen in
nominating me to be the 26th Commandant of the United States Coast
Guard. I would also like to thank Admiral Paul Zukunft, our Commandant,
for entrusting me to serve as the Atlantic Area Commander, where I am
responsible for the execution of Coast Guard missions from the Rocky
Mountains to the Arabian Gulf.
In my nearly 35 years as a Coast Guardsman, I have had the
privilege of serving alongside a remarkable team of dedicated public
servants. This was reinforced last summer as I led the Coast Guard's
response efforts to hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate. I remain
humbled by the dedication and devotion to duty of the exceptional Coast
Guard men and women who executed our response to these disasters. Their
tireless efforts and heroics during back-to-back storms led to the
rescue of 11,300 people, a staggering number considering that on
average the Coast Guard saves 3,600 lives a year.
My resume reflects the experiences of a leader with a clear bias
for action and the keen ability to recognize and accept risk when and
where warranted to accomplish the mission. I have developed strategies
and Service-level policies to address critical issues; I have worked
with the Administration and Congress to obtain the resources to bring
these policies to fruition; and, I bring a strong understanding of how
to best utilize and leverage the Coast Guard's broad authorities and
robust capabilities. If confirmed, I will ensure the Coast Guard
optimally supports DHS, and continues to provide exceptional value to
our Nation.
Overview of the Coast Guard
America's security, prosperity, and global influence are
inextricably linked to the maritime domain. Your Coast Guard's agility
and adaptability in identifying and responding to emerging risks,
challenges, and opportunities in this domain are essential to both
National and Homeland Security, as well to the economic prosperity of
our Nation. Our reputation remains strong. Our total workforce--active
duty, reserve, civilian and auxiliary volunteers--highly capable. And,
our Nation's demand for Coast Guard services has never been higher.
As the world's premier, multi-mission maritime service, the Coast
Guard offers unique and enduring value to the Nation. We are at all
times a U.S. Armed Force, to include being an integral part of the
modern Joint Force \1\ and a force multiplier for DoD, a Federal law
enforcement agency, a member of the National Intelligence Community, a
regulatory agency, and a first responder. There is no other agency with
such a broad array of authorities and capabilities. Positioning the
Coast Guard within DHS allows our Service to utilize these attributes
to support DHS in securing borders, combating transnational criminal
organizations (TCO), and safeguarding and enabling the flow of commerce
on America's waterways.
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\1\ In addition to the Coast Guard's status as an Armed Force (10
U.S.C. Sec. 101), see also Memorandum of Agreement Between the
Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security on the
Use of Coast Guard Capabilities and Resources in Support of the
National Military Strategy, 02 May 2008, as amended 18 May 2010.
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We are also the Nation's ``maritime first responder.'' Our bias for
action and ability to rapidly surge resources in response to emerging
threats, as most recently demonstrated during last fall's devastating
hurricane season, are hallmark traits of our Service. The Coast Guard
also performs a multitude of other vital maritime missions including
search and rescue; safeguarding and facilitating maritime commerce;
protecting against and preparing to respond to maritime acts of
terrorism; interdicting drug and migrant smugglers; enforcing fisheries
laws; responding to oil and hazardous material spills; maintaining aids
to navigation; screening commercial ships and crews entering U.S.
ports; inspecting U.S.-flagged vessels; examining cargo containers;
investigating marine accidents; training international partners;
credentialing merchant mariners; domestic and international ice
breaking; and, supporting defense operations.
These critical functions help keep our Nation safe and secure, and
strengthen the foundation of a vibrant global maritime economy. On an
average day the Coast Guard conducts 44 search and rescue cases, saves
12 lives, assists 60 people in distress, seizes 1,221 pounds of
cocaine, conducts 48 waterborne patrols in support of critical maritime
infrastructure, interdicts seven undocumented migrants, conducts 107
marine inspections, and facilitates the maritime movement of $12.6
billion in goods and commodities.
I commit to you that your Coast Guard will continue to fulfill
these responsibilities with honor, integrity, and a commitment to
excellence.
Unity of Effort
The Coast Guard enjoys the strong support of the Secretary of the
Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen--and we
extensively collaborate with other DHS components, furthering ``unity
of effort'' within the Department against its five enduring missions:
Preventing terrorism and enhancing security;
Securing and managing our borders;
Enforcing and administering our immigration laws;
Safeguarding and securing cyberspace; and,
Ensuring resilience to disasters.
As Commandant, I will remain fully committed to these missions, as
well as to the Department's focus to mature and strengthen the Nation's
homeland security enterprise. While currently the Coast Guard's
Atlantic Area Commander, I am also the Director of DHS Joint Task
Force--East, a role which exists to enhance unity of effort across the
Department's multiple components, and to create and optimize linkages
within DoD and the broader interagency community.
I intend to continue working tirelessly in the pursuit of
excellence in each of the aforementioned DHS missions, and to working
hand-in-hand with the other DHS components, as well as with federal,
state, and local partners.
Sustaining a READY_RELEVANT_RESPONSIVE 21st Century Coast Guard
The maritime operating environment is increasingly dynamic and
complex. Yet under Budget Control Act (BCA) levels of funding, the
Coast Guard has been consistently funded below the BCA level within our
``Operations and Support'' accounts. This has caused our Service to
lose purchasing power--almost 10 percent--which erodes readiness. If
confirmed, Maintaining Service Readiness will be a top priority.
At the core of Service Readiness is our most valuable asset, our
highly professional and dedicated people. Coast Guard women and men are
tirelessly standing the watch across the Nation. The Coast Guard must
remain focused and committed to safeguarding and sharpening the skills
of our 56,700 members (42,000 Active Duty; 6,200 Reservists; and 8,500
civilians). These great Americans, along with the Auxiliary--our
volunteer arm, enable frontline success across the wide spectrum of
missions we perform. Indeed, human capital requirements are critical to
successful mission execution. Only Coast Guard women and men with the
right knowledge, skills, and abilities can successfully execute our
challenging maritime missions. Our human resources, and human capital
functions, must be treated as key enablers to service readiness and
mission execution.
The Coast Guard workforce has limited capacity to respond to
prolonged and sequential events. While well-positioned for immediate
and effective first response, with only 42,000 Active Duty and 6,200
Reservists, sustained contingency operations and the ability to hand-
off responsibilities once a crisis has stabilized must remain a primary
consideration for Coast Guard commanders responding to either man-made
or natural disasters.
We ask a lot of our people and to keep them sharp, effective, and
READY to lead, we owe them the requisite training and resources. And we
must train and operate in a climate and culture befitting of our
Nation's trust and confidence. To this end, I am fully committed to
helping the Service better represent the diverse American public we
serve. Diversity breeds new ideas, it breeds inclusion, and it fosters
a stronger ethos critical to mission success.
Maintaining a modern and diverse workforce also requires state-of
the-art, interoperable, and multi-mission assets. The Coast Guard
continues to benefit from the strong support from both the
Administration and the Congress to recapitalize our major assets. While
these efforts are vital to modernizing our fleet of ships and aircraft,
we must also ensure we have sufficient resources to operate and
maintain them. The increased sophistication and capabilities of our new
platforms make them considerably more expensive to maintain and
operate. And as the historic hurricane season of 2017 made clear to us,
surge operations accelerate wear and tear on equipment, and erode our
future readiness. Hurricane damage to many of our Coast Guard
facilities also made it clear that we must continue making our
facilities more storm-resilient and survivable.
I thank the Administration, this Committee, and the 115th Congress
for the $835 million in supplemental funding to address Coast Guard
response costs, and to rebuild our damaged infrastructure to modern
resiliency standards.
I especially thank this Committee for its personal commitment to
our workforce, their families, our assets, the housing they live in,
and the facilities they work aboard and operate from. I look forward to
working with each of you to continuously improve the Service's
Readiness.
In terms of both National and Homeland Security, as well as with
enabling economic prosperity, the work of the modern Coast Guard has
never been more RELEVANT than it is today. It has been clear throughout
my years of service that the mutual benefit of the Coast Guard
partnering with others, and others with the Coast Guard, is the ability
to address challenges that alone could not be overcome. When we work
together, it is resoundingly evident the Coast Guard can address
challenges like few others. Going forward, we must continue to hone our
robust network of joint service, international, federal, state, local,
tribal, and territorial partnerships, while maintaining transparency
with stakeholders in the private sector to facilitate a whole-of-
government approach to protect and defend our Nation.
The Coast Guard provides DHS something extremely unique--its only
military service. As an Armed Force, Coast Guard women and men are
frequently integrated with DoD service partners in Joint Task Force
organizations,. We support maritime interception operations, port
security and defense operations, theater security cooperation, rotary
wing air intercept operations, and maritime operational threat response
options.
As the former DoD U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) Director of
Operations, I understand how DoD plans and executes its missions. At
Atlantic Area I leverage that knowledge frequently as I work with five
of the six Combatant Commanders. I engage with SOUTHCOM against
transnational criminal organizations; U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM)
for maritime security in the Arabian Gulf; U.S. Africa Command
(AFRICOM) and U.S. European Command (EUCOM) for Partner Nation Capacity
Building; and, U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) where we collaborate to
protect the maritime domain.
The following examples demonstrate various types of Coast Guard
support provided to the Combatant Commanders this past Fiscal Year
alone:
Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA)
provided near-continuous effective presence and maritime
security support to CENTCOM's theater support cooperation
mission throughout the Arabian Gulf.
Tactical Law Enforcement Teams onboard U.S. Navy and foreign
Partner Nation vessels maximized available assets to conduct
intercept and interdiction operations, whether along primary
narcotics transshipment routes in the Eastern Pacific and
Caribbean Sea, or in support of protecting critical fish stocks
off the coast of Africa or in the Western Pacific.
National Capital Region Air Defense Facility crews
maintained a 100 percent scramble rate and responded to over
175 active air defense missions, including nine launches for
reported Unmanned Aircraft Systems within the Washington, D.C.
Restricted Flight Zone.
Beyond our Joint Armed Service duties, the Coast Guard routinely
works with DHS components and other interagency partners, including the
National Intelligence Community, as well as international organizations
and other regulatory authorities to be RESPONSIVE to the maritime needs
of the Nation.
The Coast Guard leverages the Maritime Operational Threat Response
(MOTR) protocols, memoranda of agreement, bilateral agreements and
treaties, combined operating guidelines, and DHS policies to instill
unity of effort in planning and execution of all of our maritime safety
and security operations. Of note, we also emphasize and demonstrate
proficiency in the Incident Command System (ICS), the universal
language of first responders across the Nation, which is critical to
unified operations during crises.
In so many ways, the Coast Guard cooperates and supports the
interagency at all levels of government to integrate seamlessly during
national defense, national security, and disaster response operations--
the Coast Guard is RESPONSIVE, and I thank the Administration, the
Congress, and particularly this Committee for trusting the Coast Guard
to most effectively serve our Nation.
Moving Forward
The Coast Guard will continue to act with strategic intent and
focus our limited resources to maximize the service we provide to the
Nation.
As a Nation, we must continue to confront the rise of adaptive TCOs
because if left unchecked, these networks will quickly erode maritime
governance, the rule of law, and regional stability. As a frontline
sentinel of DHS's comprehensive approach to border security, the Coast
Guard is a key enabler of combatting such organizations, and is best
positioned to push out our maritime borders and remove large scale
quantities of illicit commodities where they are most vulnerable--at
sea. I am proud to note that this past Fiscal Year (2017), the Coast
Guard removed over 223 metric tons of illegal narcotics and detained
and transferred 606 smugglers for U.S. criminal prosecution. Through
unity of effort, we will continue to combat TCOs, secure our borders,
and safeguard commerce.
Similar to Secretary Nielsen, and Admiral Zukunft, I consider Cyber
Security to be one of the most serious, and immediate, economic and
national security challenges confronting our Nation. With 360 seaports
and 3,700 marine terminals facilitating $4.6 trillion in annual
commerce, our Nation is critically dependent on a safe, secure, and
efficient Marine Transportation System (MTS). Our MTS in turn is highly
dependent on a complex, globally networked system of automated
technology. Thus, we will continue to internally and externally defend
our cyber networks, enable operations, and demonstrate leadership in
the protection of critical infrastructure.
Importantly, the United States has been an Arctic Nation since
1867, when it purchased Alaska for $7.2 million. We maintain
substantial political, national security, natural resource,
environmental, and other interests in the Arctic, and this remote
region is rapidly becoming more accessible. Other Arctic and non-Arctic
nations are laying claims and exploring its vastness. Through our
annual Arctic Shield operations, and with unity of effort, we will
continue to improve awareness, modernize governance, and broaden
partnerships in the high latitudes. Ultimately, we must preserve our
national sovereign rights in the Arctic through a variety of means,
including the surface presence enabled by Coast Guard cutters ensuring
access, security, and the ability to respond in the High Latitudes.
Conclusion
I offer my sincere appreciation and gratitude to Admiral Paul
Zukunft, our 25th Commandant, who has served the Coast Guard with the
highest distinction for over four decades. His inspirational leadership
has set our Service on the right path for enduring success. Admiral
Charles Michel, our Vice Commandant, has been an equally capable and
dedicated public servant these past 33 years!
As Admiral Zukunft noted in his testimony before you in 2014, ``The
Coast Guard will succeed, as it has for over two centuries, because of
our skilled, courageous, and dedicated workforce.'' I whole-heartedly
concur, and am fully committed to both the professional and personal
well-being and development of this extraordinary workforce, and
committed to supporting their families as well. With a focus on being
READY, RELEVANT, and RESPONSIVE, these topnotch Coast Guard men and
women will embody our Core Values of ``Honor, Respect, and Devotion to
Duty'' while continuing to serve our great Nation with distinction.
If confirmed, I look forward to working with the Administration and
the Congress, including this Committee, to meet these and the future
challenges of our Service--your United States Coast Guard.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I look forward to
your questions.
______
a. biographical information
1. Name (Include any former names or nicknames used): Karl Leo
Schultz.
2. Position to which nominated: Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard--
Admiral (0-10).
3. Date of Nomination: 08 March 2018.
4. Address (List current place of residence and office addresses):
Residence: Information not released to the public.
Office: Coast Guard Atlantic Area, 431 Crawford Street,
Portsmouth, VA 23704.
5. Date and Place of Birth: 14 June 1961; Hartford, Connecticut.
6. Provide the name, position, and place of employment for your
spouse (if married) and the names and ages of your children (including
stepchildren and children by a previous marriage).
Spouse: Dawn Marie Schultz; stay-at-home mother; Children:
Kelsey Elisabeth Schultz, 24; Lindsey Marie Schultz, 24;
Annaliese Nicole Schultz, 20; Eric Karl Schultz, 19.
7. List all college and graduate degrees. Provide year and school
attended.
1979-1983: U.S. Coast Guard Academy; Bachelor of Science--Civil
Engineering.
1991-1992: University of Connecticut; Master of Arts in Public
Administration.
2005-2006: Harvard University, Kennedy School of Gov't; Nat'l
Security Fellow.
8. List all post-undergraduate employment, and highlight all
management level jobs held and any non-managerial jobs that relate to
the position for which you are nominated.
1983 to present: Commissioned Officer; United States Coast
Guard.
Management Level Positions:
1985-1987: Executive Officer, United States Coast Guard Cutter
PETREL.
1989-1991: Commanding Officer, United States Coast Guard Cutter
FARALLON.
1996-1999: Commanding Officer, United States Coast Guard Cutter
ACACIA.
2003-2005: Commanding Officer, United States Coast Guard Cutter
VENTUROUS.
2006-2008: Commander, Coast Guard Sector Miami, Florida:
Captain of the Port; Federal Maritime Security Coordinator;
Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator; Federal On-scene
Coordinator; and Officer-in-Charge Marine Inspection.
2008-2010: Chief, Coast Guard Congressional and Governmental
Affairs Division.
2010-2012: Director, Governmental and Public Affairs (CG-092).
2012-2014: Commander, Eleventh Coast Guard District.
2014-2016: Director of Operations, U.S. SOUTHERN Command.
2016 to present: Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area/Director
DHS Joint Task Force-East.
Non-managerial Level Positions:
1987-1989: Command Center Duty Officer, Seventh Coast Guard
District, Miami, FL.
1993-1996: Officer Personnel Management Division, Coast Guard
Personnel Command.
1999-2000: Department of State, Coast Guard Liaison Officer to
the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement
Affairs (INL).
2000-2003: Congressional Liaison Officer, United States House
of Representatives.
9. Attach a copy of your resume.
My official Coast Guard Resume is attached.
10. List any advisory, consultative, honorary, or other part-time
service or positions with Federal, State, or local governments, other
than those listed above, within the last five years. None.
11. List all positions held as an officer, director, trustee,
partner, proprietor, agent, representative, or consultant of any
corporation, company, firm, partnership, or other business, enterprise,
educational, or other institution within the last five years. None.
12. Please list each membership you have had during the past ten
years or currently hold with any civic, social, charitable,
educational, political, professional, fraternal, benevolent or
religious organization, private club, or other membership organization.
Include dates of membership and any positions you have held with any
organization. Please note whether any such club or organization
restricts membership on the basis of sex, race, color, religion,
national origin, age, or handicap.
Family membership to the West Broward County (Florida) YMCA Fitness
Center/Youth Sports/Recreational (2006-2010 and 2014 to present).
Family membership to the Novato (California) YMCA (2012-2014). No
restrictions on membership on the basis of sex, race, color, religion,
national origin, age or handicap.
13. Have you ever been a candidate for and/or held a public office
(elected, non-elected, or appointed)? If so, indicate whether any
campaign has any outstanding debt, the amount, and whether you are
personally liable for that debt. No.
14. Itemize all political contributions to any individual, campaign
organization, political party, political action committee, or similar
entity of $500 or more for the past ten years. None.
15. List all scholarships, fellowships, honorary degrees, honorary
society memberships, military medals, and any other special recognition
for outstanding service or achievements.
Pi Alpha Alpha, Nat'l Honor Society--Public Affairs &
Administration (not-active)
16. Please list each book, article, column, or publication you have
authored, individually or with others. Also list any speeches that you
have given on topics relevant to the position for which you have been
nominated. Do not attach copies of these publications unless otherwise
instructed. None.
17. Please identify each instance in which you have testified
orally or in writing before Congress in a governmental or non-
governmental capacity and specify the date and subject matter of each
testimony.
(a) 02 November 2017, as Commander, Atlantic Area before the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of
Representatives. Subject of the hearing was ``Emergency
Response and Recovery: Central Takeaways from the Unprecedented
2017 Hurricane Season.''
(b) 04 April 2017 as Director, Joint Task Farce-East (JTF-E) before
the Border and Maritime Security Subcommittee of the House
Committee on Homeland Security. Subject of the hearing was
``Defeating a Sophisticated and Dangerous Adversary: Are the
New Border Security Task Forces the Right Approach?''
(c) 16 June 2015) as Director of Operations U.S. SOUTHERN Command
before the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee
of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Subject of hearing was ``Western Hemisphere Drug Interdiction
Efforts.''
(d) 26 November 2007, as Commander, Coast Guard Sector Miami,
Florida on Maritime Border Security'' before the House of
Representatives Committee on Homeland Security (CHS),
Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counter-Terrorism.
This was a Field Hearing held at the Miami City Hall in Coconut
Grove, Florida.
18. Given the current mission, major programs, and major
operational objectives of the department/agency to which you have been
nominated, what in your background or employment experience do you
believe affirmatively qualifies you for appointment to the position for
which you have been nominated, and why do you wish to serve in that
position?
For the past 35 years I have served as a commissioned Coast Guard
officer in a broad range of challenging operational and staff
assignments, including external liaison positions at the Department of
State and on Capitol Hill, and in a DoD Joint Service billet at U.S.
SOUTHERN Command in Miami, Florida where I served for two years as the
Director of Operations (J-3). In my current assignment as Atlantic Area
Commander for the past 20 months, I've been privileged to oversee all
Coast Guard operations east of the Rocky Mountains to the Arabian Gulf,
and lead about two-thirds of all frontlinc Coast Guard operators. While
at Atlantic Area, I have concurrently served as the Director of the
Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Joint Task Force--East (JTF-E),
tasked to enhance the coordination and synchronization of DHS cross-
component operations and investigations within our vast and
predominantly maritime joint operating area.
The Service has also provided me with enriching academic
opportunities such as obtaining a Master's Degree in Public
Administration, and completing a one year National Security Fellowship
at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. I believe the
diversity of my aforementioned professional experiences, and a proven
track record of performance within the Coast Guard, interagency, and
the joint service environments, position me well for continued service
as a senior Coast Guard leader. I have been nominated to serve as the
26th Commandant of the United States Coast Guard and I can think of no
higher calling to serve the nation, the Department of Homeland
Security, and the men and women that comprise the Service's active
duty, Reserve, civilian and Auxiliary (volunteer) ranks. While humbled
and honored beyond words by the President's nomination, I am confident
in my readiness to serve in this demanding position and to best
represent the interests of the nation, our Coast Guard, and the men
women I will be entrusted to lead and have the privilege to serve
alongside of.
19. What do you believe are your responsibilities, if confirmed, to
ensure that the department/agency has proper management and accounting
controls, and what experience do you have in managing a large
organization?
As a career commissioned officer in our Nation's Armed Services,
and as a Federal Government employee, I hold myself and my organization
wholly accountable for being responsible stewards of the public trust,
including all fiscal resources, assets and equipment, and for the
associated supervisory responsibility for my organization's
subordinates. As a former Congressional Liaison to the House of
Representatives, former Chief of Coast Guard Congressional and
Governmental Affairs, and the flag officer Director of the Coast
Guard's Governmental and Public Affairs programs, I am intimately
familiar with the critical importance of a Federal agency such as the
Coast Guard strictly adhering to the highest standards of proper
management, fiduciary responsibility, accounting controls and
transparent behavior. I believe my record of responsibly leading
organizations from the regional, through theater level, including
within the Interagency and Joint domains, demonstrates a strong and
steady commitment to proper management and accounting controls.
20. What do you believe to be the top three challenges facing the
department/agency, and why?
In a department dedicated to the security of our Homeland, the
interdependence of the legitimate flow of commerce and security is
clear. As our partners in the Department of Defense address a multitude
of national security challenges overseas, the Coast Guard must continue
to combat the full spectrum of transnational crime in the Western
Hemisphere, including the transshipment of illicit narcotics. The Coast
Guard must continue to enhance our domestic and international
partnerships, where possible, pushing out our borders and enabling
mutual security opportunities. The Service must continue to enable
economic prosperity by ensuring the security of the maritime
transportation system (MTS) whereon 95 percent of our Nation's commerce
occurs, facilitating S4.6 trillion in annual economic activity.
Protecting the homeland in an environment where trans-regional
terrorist organizations and violent extremists are increasingly more
prevalent will remain a daunting challenge for our Nation's security
forces, including the United States Coast Guard--the lead Federal
agency for maritime safety and security. Under that umbrella falls the
large task of combatting transnational criminal organizations whose
activities threaten the stability and legitimacy of partner nation
governments in the Western Hemisphere, fuel extreme violence, and seed
corruption. While the illicit and violent activities that transnationa1
criminals engage in typically occur far from our homeland, the effects
and impacts of those activities manifest themselves at our borders and
in our American cities and neighborhoods. More than 50,000 Americans
died of drug related causes last year alone, and tens of thousands of
unaccompanied children are sent by their families on the long and
arduous journey to escape the violence and lack of opportunity found in
their Central American home towns and cities in the Northern Triangle
where the homicide rates are up to 20 times that found in America.
These transnational criminals exploit highly sophisticated smuggling
networks to facilitate the movement of their illicit cargoes and
activities from south to north, including drug and migrant smuggling,
as well as the trafficking of persons. Along these same corridors or
networks, bulk cash and weapons move in the reverse direction,
completing the cycle of illicit activity. Protecting the homeland from
the aforementioned threats, as well as from homegrown violent
extremists, will remain a top priority mission and challenge for the
Department of Homeland Security and the United States Coast Guard.
Secondly, the Coast Guard is on solid footing with stable
requirements for recapitalizing our aging assets into a capable force
to execute our broad portfolio of homeland security and other legacy
missions. Predictable/stable funding, at the appropriate levels, is
essential to maintaining momentum. Near term investments must be viewed
as providing continuity for essential service delivery. Sustained
momentum on this front will require open and honest dialogue, and
likely hard choices--this is the nature of our government. A clear
focus will be required to restore the service's declining readiness and
significant lost buying power, the result of multiple years of funding
at/or below Budget Control Act (BCA) caps for non defense discretionary
spending, by making timely and necessary investments in key assets,
infrastructure, and our Coast Guard workforce. Additionally, the Coast
Guard faces evolving and uncertain threats in the Cyber Space domain,
as well as increasing levels of activity in an expanding Arctic region
where the service has statutory responsibilities related to the safety,
security and stewardship of those operating in the region and the
envirorunent itself. As the fifth Armed Service, the Coast Guard must
strive to enjoin our readiness funding needs to the Administration's
ongoing efforts to rebuild the Nation's Armed Forces. It is paramount
that the Coast Guard remain efficient and effective fiscal stewards of
taxpayer monies and continue to annually earn a clean financial audit.
The increasing costs we face servicing the interest on our $20 trillion
Federal debt, and the ongoing struggle as a nation to reach any kind of
an agreement or shared definition regarding the appropriate size and
nature of the services and programs our government should provide, pose
a not too distant existential fiscal threat to operating agencies like
the Coast Guard.
Thirdly, the Coast Guard will need to be mindful of managing its
human capital, of remaining an ``employer of choice'' amidst a changing
American workforce at a time when a new military retirement plan--the
Blended Retirement System--was introduced at the start of this calendar
year, and high tech competitive industries are seeking the same talent
we need in our ranks. As a service, the Coast Guard will need to
continue to demonstrate the value we place on our people, value that is
measured in terms of trust, opportunity, professional growth and
satisfaction. We need to draw the best talent possible from across
America to fill our ranks--officer, enlisted and civilian. While our
workforce is remarkably capable and productive, we have the opportunity
and obligation for this workforce to be more representative of the
citizens we serve, and the Coast Guard must continue to raise awareness
of career opportunities in our service to under represented groups and
inspire inclusiveness. Lastly, we need to provide our people with the
training, educational benefits, health care and family support programs
that make them want to stay attached to our brand.
b. potential conflicts of interest
l, Describe all financial arrangements, deferred compensation
agreements, and other continuing dealings with business associates,
clients, or customers. Please include information related to retirement
accounts.
Please see my PFDR.
2. Do you have any commitments or agreements, formal or informal,
to maintain employment, affiliation, or practice with any business,
association or other organization during your appointment? If so,
please explain. None.
3. Indicate any investments, obligations, liabilities, or other
relationships which could involve potential conflicts of interest in
the position to which you have been nominated. None.
4. Describe any business relationship, dealing, or financial
transaction which you have had during the last ten years, whether for
yourself, on behalf of a client, or acting as an agent, that could in
any way constitute or result in a possible conflict of interest in the
position: to which you have been nominated. None.
5. Describe any activity during the past ten years in which you
have been engaged for the purpose of directly or indirectly influencing
the passage, defeat, or modification of any legislation or affecting
the administration and execution of law or public policy.
My official Coast Guard duties have from time to time required me
to make recommendations to Coast Guard officials regarding Coast Guard
policy and Coast Guard related legislation.
6. Explain how you will resolve any potential conflict of interest,
including any that may be disclosed by your responses to the above
items.
I will obtain advice from a Coast Guard ethics official and follow
that advice.
c. legal matters
1. Have you ever been disciplined or cited for a breach of ethics
by, or been the subject of a complaint to any cement, administrative
agency, professional association, disciplinary committee, or other
professional group'? If so, please explain. No.
2. Have you ever been investigated, arrested, charged, or held by
any Federal, State, or other law enforcement autho1ity of any Federal,
State, county, or municipal entity, other than for a minor traffic
offense? If so, please explain. No.
3. Have you or any business of which you are or were an officer
ever been involved as a party in an administrative agency proceeding or
civil litigation? If so, please explain. No.
4. Have you ever been convicted (including pleas of guilty or nolo
contendre) of any criminal violation other than a minor traffic
offense'? If so, please explain. No.
5. Have you ever been accused, formally or informally, of sexual
harassment or discrimination on the basis of sex, race, religion, or
any other basis? If so, please explain. No.
6. Please advise the Committee of any additional information,
favorable or unfavorable, which you feel should be disclosed in
connection with your nomination. None.
7. If you ever served as a general court-martial convening
authority involving an offense involving sexual misconduct or assault,
have you ever disapproved the findings of a court-martial related to
the offense(s) or reduced the sentence adjudged by a court martial,
other than in connection with a pre-trial agreement? No.
d. relationship with committee
1. Will you ensure that your department/agency complies with
deadlines for information set by congressional committees? Yes.
2. Will you ensure that your department or agency does whatever it
can to protect congressional witnesses and whistle blowers from
reprisal for their testimony and disclosures? Yes.
3. Will you cooperate in providing the Committee with requested
witnesses, including technical experts and career employees, with
firsthand knowledge of matters of interest to the Committee? Yes.
4. Are you willing to appear and testify before any duly
constituted committee of the Congress on such occasions as you may be
reasonably requested to do so? Yes.
______
Resume of Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area; Commander, Coast Guard Defense
Force East; Director, DHS Joint Task Force--East
Vice Admiral Schultz assumed the duties of Commander, Coast Guard
Atlantic Area on August 4, 2016 . He serves as the operational
commander for all Coast Guard missions from the Rocky Mountains to the
Arabian Gulf, spanning across five Coast Guard Districts and 40 states.
In addition to his duties at Atlantic Area, he serves as Commander,
Coast Guard Defense Force East, which provides Coast Guard mission
support to the Department of Defense and Combatant Commanders. He
concurrently serves as Director, DHS Joint Task Force--East,
responsible for achieving the objectives of the DHS Southern Border and
Approaches Campaign Plan throughout his Joint Operating Area, which
covers the Caribbean Ocean and Eastern Pacific Region and Central
America.
Vice Admiral Schultz reports to the Atlantic Area having recently
served as Director of Operations (J3), U.S. Southern Command in Doral,
Florida, where he directed joint service military operations across the
Caribbean Basin, Central and South America. Prior flag officer
assignments were Commander, Eleventh Coast Guard District, where he was
responsible for multi-mission operations from California to Peru, and
Director of Governmental and Public Affairs at Coast Guard Headquarters
in Washington, D.C., where he was responsible for external engagement
with Congress, the media, and inter-governmental entities.
Previous operational assignments include Sector Command in Miami, as
well as command tours aboard Cutters VENTUROUS, ACACIA and FARALLON.
Staff assignments include Chief of the Office of Congressional and
Governmental Affairs; Congressional Liaison Officer to the U.S. House
of Representatives; Liaison Officer to the U.S. Department of State,
Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs;
Assignment Officer at the Coast Guard Personnel Command, and Command
Duty Officer in the Seventh Coast Guard District Operations Center in
Miami.
Vice Admiral Schultz is a native of East Hartford, Connecticut and a
1983 Coast Guard Academy graduate, earning a Bachelor of Science degree
in Civil Engineering. In 1992, he was awarded a Master's Degree in
Public Administration from the University of Connecticut, and in 2006
completed a one year National Security Fellowship at Harvard
University's Kennedy School of Government.
His personal awards include the Defense Superior Service Medal, four
Legions of Merit, four Meritorious Service Medals, three Coast Guard
Commendation medals, two Coast Guard Achievement Medals, and various
other personal and unit awards.
Current Assignment
08/2016 to present Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area/Director DHS
Joint Task Force--East (JTF-E)
Assignment History
06/2014-07/2016 U.S. SOUTHERN COMMAND, Director of Operations (J-
3)
07/2012-06/2014 Commander, Coast Guard District Eleven
01/2010-06/2012 Director, Governmental and Public Affairs (CG-092)
09/2009-12/2009 Acting Director, Governmental and Public Affairs
(CG-092) and Chief: Congressional and
Governmental Affairs (CG0921)
07/2008-08/2009 Chief, Congressional and Governmental Affairs
(CG0921)
07/2006-06/2008 Commander, Coast Guard Sector Miami, FL
08/2005-06/2006 National Security Research Fellow, Harvard
University--Kennedy School of Government
07/2003-07/2005 Commanding Officer, USCGC VENTUROUS (WMEC-625)
06/2000-06/2003 Congressional Liaison Officer, U.S. House of
Representatives
07/1999-05/2000 Liaison, Department of State, Bureau for
International Narcotics and Law Enforcement
Affairs (INL)
07/1996-06/1999 Commanding Officer, USCGC ACACIA (WLB-406)
06/1994-06/1996 Assignment Officer, Military Personnel Command
(OPM-2)
01/1993-05/1994 Evaluations Branch, Military Personnel Command
(OPM-3)
08/1991-12/1992 Duty under Instruction (DUINS)--University of
Connecticut
06/1989-07/1991 Commanding Officer, USCGC FARALLON (WPB-1301)
06/1987-05/1989 Rescue Coordination Center Controller/Law
Enforcement Duty Officer, Seventh Coast Guard
District Command Center, Miami
06/1985-05/l987 Executive Officer, USCGC PETREL (WSES-4)
06/1983-05/1985 Operations Officer, USCGC GENTIAN (WLB-290)
Educational Summary
1979-1983 U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Bachelor of Science--
Civil Eng.
1991-1992 University of Connecticut, School of Urban and
Pub1ic Affairs; Master of Science--Public
Administration
2005-2006 1-yr Research Fellowship in National Security
Studies--Harvard University, John F, Kennedy
School of Government
Military Personal Awards and Significant National Recognition or
Achievement
2016 Defense Superior Service Medal
2014 Legion of Merit
2012 Legion of Merit
2011 Legion of Merit
2008 Legion of Merit
2005 Meritorious Service Medal
2003 Meritorious Service Medal
2000 Coast Guard Commendation Medal
1999 Meritorious Service Medal
1996 Coast Guard Commendation Medal
1995 Coast Guard Achievement Medal
1994 Commandant's Letter of Commendation
1991 Coast Guard Commendation Medal
1989 Coast Guard Commendation Medal
1987 Coast Guard Achievement Medal
Significant Current Professional Credentials or Recent Activities: N/A
Senator Wicker. Well, thank you very much. And we certainly
appreciate your testimony and we appreciate your service.
Let's talk about national security cutters first, Admiral.
A 2014 Inspector General report found that the declining
readiness of the Coast Guard's high endurance cutters continues
to pose significant challenges to mission performance. During
his ``State of the Coast Guard'' address last year, Admiral
Zukunft stated that there were 580 events, drug or migrant
movements, last year that we were aware of but could not
target. This is an issue of capacity according to Admiral
Zukunft. There are seven national security cutters in operation
today.
I understand that the national security cutters already in
service have yielded record results in drug interdiction
numbers. What capabilities does the national security cutter
bring to the mission that other assets are not able to meet?
And understanding that there are other legacy assets that need
to be modernized as well, what effects would additional
national security cutters have on your ability to combat drug
and migrant smuggling threats?
Admiral Schultz. Mr. Chairman, thank you for the question.
The national security cutters built at Huntington shipyard are
truly proving to be incredibly capable assets. They are
contributors and end users of national security, national
intelligence. They have had record successes on the front lines
of the campaign of drugs, illicit drug transshipments out of
the Indian Ridge into Central America. The National Security
Cutter JAMES, homeported at our Charleston, South Carolina,
showed its flexibility and adaptability during this past fall's
hurricane season, first in the eastern Pacific when we pulled
back a large number, almost just about all the ships that were
doing counterdrug patrols to support the Nation's hurricane
responses. The JAMES remained in the eastern Pacific and
essentially took over the role of Joint Interagency Task Force
South, obviously not at the same level of fidelity that JITF
South could do, but they were able to manage the counterdrug
mission from the sophisticated capabilities that the JAMES, a
national cutter, national security cutter, brings to the table.
Furthermore, the JAMES came through the Panama Canal, and
we sent her into Puerto Rico following the passage of Maria,
and the sector command there, that's our command and control
node, in San Juan, essentially suffered catastrophic damages.
It took all the capabilities down to zero. The national
security cutter sailed into the harbor, sat on the anchor in
San Juan Harbor, and essentially took over the command and
control capabilities and allowed us to respond to the needs of
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, sir.
Senator Wicker. I assume you subscribe to the statement of
the Inspector General about the declining readiness of the
Coast Guard's high endurance cutters continuing to pose
significant challenges.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, the HECs, the high endurance
cutters--and we have just a couple left--they were declining in
readiness. Those ships were built in the 1960s, early 1970s.
The national security cutters are a fantastic replacement for
that. We appreciate the support of the Congress in the 2018
Omnibus that provided funding for the tenth and an eleventh
national security cutter, sir, and we look forward to welcoming
those ships to the fleet.
Senator Wicker. Thank you for pointing that out. It must be
frustrating, Admiral, for the Coast Guard to be aware of as
many as 580 events going on out there that you're simply not
able to respond to.
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, down in the Joint
Interagency Task Force joint operating area, on average, we
have awareness of about three-quarters of the drug events that
transpire on a day-to-day basis. We have the capacity to action
target about a third of those, 25 to 33 percent of those. Of
those cases that we have the resources to go after, we have a
very high success rate, somewhere north of 80 percent.
Is it frustrating? It's a choice. Capacity is always a
choice for the Nation, sir. With more capacity, we're able to
take a bigger bite out of that threat. But our men and women
are fully engaged, sir, and welcome the challenge of that
mission. And I think we've proven our success on that front.
Senator Wicker. I'm going to take a second round since I
have to preside, and I'm going to yield back my time right now
and let other members ask questions, sir.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Senator Nelson.
Senator Nelson. And, likewise, Mr. Chairman. I'll just ask
one question so we can get the rest of the Committee in it.
Admiral Zukunft's ``State of the Coast Guard'' address said
that the Coast Guard needs at least a 5 percent annualized
increase in its budget for maintenance, and at least $2 billion
additional to make necessary purchases to modernize the fleet.
In your testimony, you stated that increased sophistication and
capabilities of the Coast Guard's new platforms are
considerably more expensive to maintain and operate. Does the
administration's budget for 2019, does that provide the Coast
Guard with the funding it needs to do its job?
Admiral Schultz. Ranking Member Nelson, thank you for the
question, sir. Sir, the 2019 budget for the Coast Guard under
the revised or elevated caps provides the Coast Guard a
tremendous level of support. It maintains momentum on our PC&I,
our acquisitions and recapitalization funding. That includes
$750 million for the first heavy icebreaker replacement. There
is money in there for the second offshore patrol cutter built
down at Eastern Shipbuilding, sir, as well as long lead-time
material for the third OPC.
On the operating and support side, sir, that's the location
of the budget where, since the enactment of the Budget Control
Act of 2011, we've been funded at or below that budget control
level, and that's--with all the tremendous capability and
assets of Congress to support us, that is a part, as I talked
about readiness, where I think we're going to have to pay our--
you know, pay keen attention in the coming years.
Senator Nelson. OK.
Admiral Schultz. So I don't think we're in a dire
situation, but that is the part of the budget that you'll
probably hear my voice of advocacy.
Senator Nelson. Right.
Admiral Schultz. The Commandant has talked about 5 percent
increase each year, and I think that would be a pretty good
target, sir.
Senator Nelson. That readiness includes the maintenance and
operational costs of your newest assets, which you're concerned
about.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Nelson. All right. So what additional resources do
you need?
Admiral Schultz. Well, sir, Commandant Zukunft has talked
about that 5 percent operations and support. That's the ops and
management side of the budget. I think that's a good number.
What we saw here in the 2018 Omnibus gives us about a 4 percent
increase on the operating side of the equation, a big increase,
as you know, on the acquisition side. If we could propel that
type of growth forward, I think that would keep us on a good
trajectory, sir, to sort of deal with some of our readiness
challenges we've had and put us on a trajectory for success on
that front in the future.
Senator Nelson. Do you want to comment on what continuing
resolutions, instead of a full year of appropriations, does to
you?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, continuing resolutions are
problematic from any Federal agency. First and foremost, you
know, we have about 7,000-plus civilian employees who deal in a
great degree of uncertainty. Many of those frontline civilians
work in our command centers in other locations. Sir, major
acquisition projects, new starts, as we call them, have to put
on hold when we have a continuing resolution. So there are
challenges. Our pay accounts get stressed given the
uncertainty.
So I would say, sir, a predictable normal order on the
appropriations front is much easier for a Federal agency to
deal with.
Senator Nelson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Nelson.
Senator Klobuchar.
STATEMENT OF HON. AMY KLOBUCHAR,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MINNESOTA
Senator Klobuchar. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
And thank you. Congratulations. I think you know that the
Coast Guard has operations in Minnesota from Baudette to Duluth
to Minneapolis, and these offices play a really important role
in keeping shipping channels on the Great Lakes open and
securing our northern border. And you're also active on inland
waterways, like the Mississippi. So we're the ``Land of 10,000
Lakes,'' and you're probably not on every one of them, but
you're certainly on our biggest ones, so thank you for that.
So my first question is about the Great Lakes, Vice
Admiral. As the number one tonnage port on the Great Lakes, the
Port of Duluth help ensure commodities like iron ore and grains
make it to and from market. Keeping waterways on the Great
Lakes open for commerce is critical. I think you know about the
harsh winters that we've seen. If you just turned on the news
this weekend, you could have seen the 2 feet of snow we
suddenly had in Minnesota in April. And that's why the Coast
Guard's icebreaker operations are so important. Does the U.S.
Coast Guard have the necessary resources to maintain shipping
and navigation channels in more severe winter seasons?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, thank you for the question. The
short answer to the question is I believe yes. We did have an
early onset in heavy ice into this winter season. I'm a Great
Lakes sailor previously in my career, having sailed in and out
Duluth Harbor before. The Great Lakes are obviously a national
treasure, ma'am, on many, many fronts.
We have 640-foot WTGB icebreaking tugs. We are going
through a service life extension for those ships that will
propel us forward to get another decade-plus of service out of
them. The Coast Guard Cutter MACKINAW is a tremendously capable
ship. We have a very vibrant, well-functioning, well-oiled
arrangement with the Canadian Coast Guard on breaking ice,
ma'am.
So I think that I can confidently tell you I think we're in
solid shape on our capacity on the Great Lakes to enable that
critical vital commerce you speak to, ma'am.
Senator Klobuchar. Thank you. I mentioned the inland
waterways as well. There's a fleet of 35 inland river tenders
that help facilitate the transit over 4.5 trillion in commerce
that goes annually through inland waters like the Mississippi.
We certainly have a lot of business in Minnesota, big companies
like Cargill, all our ag business that we have.
The average age of these vessels is 52 years old, nearly
twice their planned operation of life. How would you plan to
ensure that the fleet of inland vessels stays safe, efficient,
and possibly gets updated?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, I am truly appreciative of
that question. One of my priorities here in my last 2 years at
Atlantic Area was to sort of propel the recapitalization of
these western river cutters, tenders, forward, and the 25
million on top of the 1 point million budget request here
recently in the 2018 appropriation I think is a terrific
catalyst to keep us moving forward on that. The old----
Senator Klobuchar. So as you look at your total budget, the
inland ships will continue to be a priority then.
Admiral Schultz. Ma'am, that is a priority, and I think
this 25 million is accelerating our ability to deliver that
ship. We are working with the Army Corps, who has a platform
out there that can maybe allow us to draw some best--best
learning from, and put that on a trajectory to start fielding
those ships in the not too distant future.
Senator Klobuchar. OK. As I mentioned, we have a long
history with our lakes of recreational boating. And ensuring
operators know how to safely maintain and operate their boats
is important. I know that's one of your goals. Do you see any
opportunities to improve the reach of the Coast Guard's boater
safety educational resources?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, boating safety obviously is
important to the Coast Guard. A lot of our boating safety work
has been delegated to our Coast Guard Auxiliary, the 24,000-
plus volunteers that assists us on the waterfront, that assists
us in many, many different traditional and non-traditional
missions.
Boating safety, as a former district commander, a sector
commander, is something that we will continue to serve as a
priority. Increasingly sophisticated technology drives down the
risk to the mariner, but that is a place where, you know, we
save thousands, tens of thousands, of lives on an annual basis,
and how we prevent those accidents on the front side is
important to how many cases we respond to on the back side.
Senator Klobuchar. And this really isn't in your--this is
an Army Corps issue, and maybe Senator Peters would be more
well versed on it than me, but I was just meeting with some of
our steel people and some of the locks on the Great Lakes.
There are issues that we want to see some upgrading there, and
they were talking to me about how important that is. Do you
have any views on that?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, my only view would be there is a
lot aging infrastructure, particularly in the heartland states.
And I think that, you know, accessing the Navigation Harbor
Fund and things is important. I would probably defer to my Army
Corps colleagues on that, ma'am.
Senator Klobuchar. Of course. Well, we may be working with
you in the future because I was surprised as they talked about
some--we've gotten some TIGER grants and other ways that we've
upgraded, like the Port of Duluth and other things, but I know
that if we have issues with shipping, it affects everyone, and
I would assume it would affect your fleet as well.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we work on a daily basis with the
Army Corps, other State partners, local partners, high water,
low water, fast-moving water on the western rivers. That is a
true partnership. We work through our sector commanders, our 35
field commanders, that are the pointy end of the spear for that
interface. And we have a terrific working relationship, ma'am.
So I think if you have interest there, we can certainly circle
back and would be partnered on enabling that 4.6 trillion of
commerce that you speak to.
Senator Klobuchar. Very good.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Klobuchar. Thank you. I like that you remembered
the number. Thanks.
Senator Wicker. Senator Klobuchar, thank you, and
congratulations on getting in a lot of topics in a very short
amount of time.
[Laughter.]
Senator Wicker. I'm impressed.
Senator Klobuchar. When you have 10,000 lakes, you really
get it, you reach.
[Laughter.]
Senator Wicker. Senator Hassan.
STATEMENT OF HON. MAGGIE HASSAN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE
Senator Hassan. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
And good morning and congratulations, Admiral Schultz, and
congratulations to your wife and family, too. Service like this
is a family affair, and we are very, very grateful to you. And
I want to thank you as well for meeting with me in my office
last week.
I'll kind of add to what you're hearing from a number of
the members. When we met last week, I raised the need for
increased funding for our facility in New Castle, New
Hampshire. We discussed what to me was a very startling fact,
that until recently, the Coast Guard had a $1.6 billion backlog
in shore facility construction and maintenance. A small portion
of that backlog was addressed thanks to funding in an emergency
supplemental appropriations bill, but the Coast Guard's
backlog, as I understand it, is still sizable and grows every
year.
This shortfall in funding is alarming especially when the
Coast Guard's sister services in the Department of Defense have
a dedicated military construction bill that funds military
construction in the range of $8 billion to $10 billion every
year. Obviously, Congress plays a central role in funding this
backlog, and this Committee should take up that cause.
However, can you detail for us what steps you will take as
Commandant to try to address this backlog? Also, if Congress
doesn't address the backlog, what impact will it have on the
Coast Guard over the long term?
Admiral Schultz. Senator Hassan, thank you for the
question, ma'am, and the opportunity to meet with you. We do,
in fact, have about a $1.6 billion backlog, and the
supplemental funds, there's about a 100 million bite taken out
of that. So there's plenty of opportunity to get after that.
Healthy organizations generally recapitalize at the rate of
about 2 to 3 percent a year. We're less than 1 percent, so we
have some challenges there.
Your facility is in New Castle. I go up to the Great Lakes,
Station St. Ignace. They're borrowing some DOT space for their
boathouse to actually do repairs on their boat. So there's a
backlog of projects.
My commitment, ma'am, would be to press into that. We have
an unfunded priorities list that we provide to the Congress
each and every year. That list provides a rich listing of
opportunities if Congress had the propensity and the interest
to help the Coast Guard get after some of that backlog, that
list will show us ideas.
The omnibus had $34.2 million. That was our highest
priority, housing issue up in Alaska. That will allow us to
site the offshore patrol cutters or fast response cutters. So
the Congress has been very supportive, ma'am. It is very
difficult to make up a $1.6 billion backlog quickly. Admiral
Zukunft has talked about that 5 percent that Senator Nelson
alluded to. He has talked about a $2 billion capital investment
program or acquisitions account. He's talking about $300
million on an annual basis, sustained basis, to support shore
infrastructure. That $300 million would really get after some
of that $1.6 billion, ma'am.
Senator Hassan. Well, thank you for that very complete
answer. And I look forward to working with you on that. At the
end of the day, deferred maintenance doesn't help any of us.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we appreciate your interest and
support, ma'am.
Senator Hassan. Well, thank you. You'll also recall from
our discussion that New Hampshire is dealing with a deadly
opioid epidemic resulting, particularly in our state, from
overdoses of fentanyl. According to the most recent public
reporting, illegal fentanyl is coming into the United States
via the mail system and through smuggling efforts across our
land borders.
However, as I'm sure you know, drug trafficking
organizations have increasingly adapted their tactics in order
to evade narcotics detection and interdiction efforts.
Therefore, while relatively little fentanyl appears to be
trafficked across our maritime borders right now, I worry that
as we strengthen the security of our land borders and crack
down on opioid shipments in the mail system, drug traffickers
will increasingly take to the seas to smuggle fentanyl into the
United States.
In anticipation of this, can you share how you will ensure
that the Coast Guard is ready to adapt and evolve its
counternarcotics detection and interdiction efforts to protect
against maritime fentanyl trafficking?
Admiral Schultz. Yes, Senator. Thank you for the question.
The opioid crisis I think is exactly that, an epidemic, a
crisis. The number of fatalities every year are growing, it's
north of 10,000, and it's very troubling.
Currently, as you noted, we don't see much movement of
fentanyl in the maritime because it is so easy, I think, to
ship it through the mail.
Senator Hassan. Right.
Admiral Schultz. An individual sitting in his or her
basement with a laptop essentially is a cartel of sorts.
Senator Hassan. Yes.
Admiral Schultz. One small Equal-size package is hundreds
of hits of fentanyl. So large bulk quantities like we deal
with, with yesteryear on the marijuana transshipment, now on
the cocaine, is very different when you're talking about the
fentanyl and the opioids, ma'am. We understand the Dominican
Republic is a bit of a node for the same transnational criminal
organizations that have moved cocaine and marijuana in recent
years, they're shipping through there. So we're keenly
interested in that.
We work--one of my hats I wear as the Atlantic Area
Commander for the Secretary is the DHS Joint Task Force East.
Senator Hassan. Right.
Admiral Schultz. So I think what I can commit to, ma'am, is
the Coast Guard will be part of that whole-of-the-Department,
whole-of-government solution to the evolving opioid response.
Senator Hassan. Yes.
Admiral Schultz. We need to have a whole-of-government
effort from treatment to interdiction and all points in
between. And I think it's going to take the best and brightest
minds. I'm going to participate in an event on Capitol Hill
tomorrow, ma'am, focused on opioids. So you have my commitment
that we will push the Coast Guard into the space to the extent
we can be effective----
Senator Hassan. Well, I thank you for that. And I just will
note that part of the evolution that we're seeing with fentanyl
is also that other drugs are being laced with it, like cocaine,
which obviously has historically been one of the things that
has been trafficked over maritime borders. So I continue to
look forward to working with you on that. Thank you.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you.
Senator Hassan. And thank you, Mr. Chair.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Hassan.
Senator Sullivan.
STATEMENT OF HON. DAN SULLIVAN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ALASKA
Senator Sullivan. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And, Admiral, congratulations. Thanks for your wonderful
service, to you and your family.
A couple quick questions. You talk about readiness. How
important is it that we pass the Coast Guard bill that it looks
like we're going to be bringing up to the floor this week?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, the Coast Guard authorization
bill, I assume that's the bill you're speaking about, sir.
Senator Sullivan. Yes.
Admiral Schultz. There is generally, there's--not
generally, there are always provisions in there that are
important to the Coast Guard. I know the Coast Guard
authorization bill often becomes a vehicle for some broader
maritime issues that are often very difficult.
One of the issues I understand has been around is the
ballast water, you know, the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act
provisions. And, you know, clearly leadership guidance from
Congress on how the Nation should proceed there is helpful. We
remain----
Senator Sullivan. I'm talking about your troops. How
important is it to pass the Coast Guard bill this week? Do you
want to have the Coast Guard bill passed this week?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, the Coast Guard bill being passed
this week would be helpful.
Senator Sullivan. Does it help on readiness? You talk about
readiness. Does it help on readiness?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, yes, it helps on readiness.
Senator Sullivan. OK. It's good that you're advocating for
the passage of the Coast Guard bill.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I didn't mean to imply that I
wasn't advocating for that, it's just that we've gone many
years in the past sometimes with a 4- to 7-year gap without an
authorization bill, and while that's not ideal, the work of the
Coast Guard does go forward. But the enabling legislation, sir,
is always appreciated and helpful.
Senator Sullivan. Let me ask, as the Chair of the
Subcommittee on the Coast Guard, you and I talked about kind of
the recapitalization. And do you commit, if you're confirmed,
to work with this Committee, not just on the recap, but the
laydown of the forces that are part of that recapitalization in
terms of our oversight responsibilities?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we--you have my personal
commitment to always work with our oversight committees on
those issues that are important to the U.S. Senate and the U.S.
House of Representatives. We would welcome a dialogue that
allows us to understand your requirements, your political
interests, and we would offer you where we think the best
utilization of those assets provided by the Congress are. And I
think there's a space in there where we can hopefully do the
best by the Nation.
Senator Sullivan. OK. It's something we do on the Armed
Services Committee, on all the committees, right? It's an
important role. So we are going to be very involved in that,
and hopefully the Coast Guard, if you're confirmed, will be
receptive. That's a big part of our job.
I'd like to talk about my state. You know, Senator
Klobuchar talked about 10,000 lakes. My state has more
coastline than the rest of the country combined.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Sullivan. We certainly view the Coast Guard in
light of what you do for Alaskans every day, which is heroic
efforts, remarkable.
I have--and you and I have talked about it--I've been a
little concerned about some of the future planning operations
giving that whether it's the Arctic, whether it's receding ice,
whether it's opening transportation, surface transportation,
whether it's fishing--you know, almost 60 percent of all
seafood harvested in America comes from my state's waters.
When you and I met earlier, you expressed the importance of
a maximum patrol boat coverage for Alaska. Can you commit to me
to the 2112 homeporting model for the fast response cutters?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, yes, I can.
Senator Sullivan. And I think you and I have also talked
about the community of Petersburg, Alaska, and it's losing a
110-foot Island-class patrol boat. I'm concerned about the
Coast Guard's ability to meet the needs of southeast Alaskans,
especially in the nearshore and inside passage areas, where you
know there's an enormous amount of cruise ship traffic. Can I
get your commitment to work with me and my team on my concerns
that I've raised with you with regard to what's going on in
Petersburg, Alaska, as well?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, you have my commitment. We talked
potentially about some 87-foot coastal patrol boats to possibly
fill some of those localities that you're keenly and other
members of the Alaska delegation are interested in. So the fast
response cutters are programmed for 2,500 hours, replacing an
aging 110-foot Island-class patrol boat that's currently
programmed at 1,800 hours, and we're not getting close to that
across the numbers.
I think you'll see about a 20 percent increase in capacity
with the fast response cutters, sir, but the door is open for
that conversation about those 87 coastal patrol boats rounding
out the Alaska patrol boat laydown.
Senator Sullivan. OK. I would like to again get your
commitment to--my view is what's going on in Alaska with the
Arctic, with the fishing, with the rescues, is there is a
dramatic increase in the need----
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Sullivan.--for coverage, and as part of the
recapitalization effort, I think it's imperative that at the
end of the day we have more assets up in the great state of
Alaska, which covers an entire strategic area for the country,
the Arctic and other areas in the northern Pacific.
Let me ask one final question. I know my time is very
limited here. But you mentioned to me the Coast Guard has
recently committed to support the Navy's 7th Fleet in the South
China Sea. I'm on the Armed Services Committee, a number of
Members here are on the Armed Services Committee. I couldn't
agree more with the importance of the South China Sea and the
Navy. We're trying to build a 355-ship Navy. I do get
concerned, though, to be perfectly blunt, about combatant
commanders looking at more platforms saying, ``Hey, I need a
Coast Guard cutter here,'' in CENTCOM or in AFRICOM or
somewhere else. Can I have your commitment to work with us? And
this is both Members--there are a lot of Members who are on
this Committee and the Armed Services Committee.
I get a little worried about we have a lot of needs for the
Coast Guard. My state has enormous needs for the Coast Guard.
The Great Lakes has enormous needs for the Coast Guard. And I
just get a little concerned when I hear, you know, that PACOM
now wants some cutters to do patrols in the South China Sea.
I'm worried about that. And, look, we need more assets. That's
why we're building a big Navy, but I'm not so sure that's the
best use of the Coast Guard. Do you have any thoughts on that
right now?
But, hey, can we get your commitment to work on a
bipartisan way to make sure we're not sending the men and women
of the Coast Guard, who do great work, we love them, but out to
places where I'm not sure I would call that primary mission
running patrols in the South China Sea. Do you have any
thoughts on that?
Admiral Schultz. Yes, Senator. Thank you for the question.
If I can go back just briefly on the last question about the
patrol boats. One aspect there, sir, would be, I think as you
know and as we discussed, siting any platform in Alaska is
challenging. We are committed. The housing money is helpful.
Getting that right so it enables our men and women on the
frontlines to do the missions, getting the right support
facilities, we just welcome the continued support of the Alaska
delegation there. Sir----
Senator Sullivan. We would have that, but I want to remind
you it's challenging, but I get frustrated when I, you know,
meet with Coast Guard officials who say, ``Well, it's too
costly.'' It's too costly? No, it's not. You've got a job to do
to cover this part of America, right?
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Sullivan. And put it in your budget what you're
going to need, and we will support it. But, I mean, the notion
that the bean counters are constantly saying, ``Oh, it's too
costly. We can't do--,'' you can do maintenance there. I was
just in a Vigor shipyard in Ketchikan. You can do plenty of
maintenance there.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Sullivan. So we need to kind of change this mindset
a little bit here where if you need to cover a part of America,
which is my state, then that's what you should be requesting,
not bean counters are saying, ``No, we've got to keep everybody
in the lower 48 because it's too costly.'' It's not too costly.
It's part of the mission. And I've been hearing that too much
from the Coast Guard, Admiral, and to be honest, you know, I'm
going to need strong commitments from you on this where that
kind of thinking is frustrating to me.
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I appreciate your frustration. You
have my commitment to work with you in that space, to go on
budget for our asks.
Sir, if I can, I'll pivot to your question about the
national security cutters. There is a demand for Coast Guard
services across the globe, sir, and a large proportion of our
day-to-day force laydown, about 40 percent of our major
cutters, our maritime patrol aircraft, our helicopters,
particularly our Airborne Use of Force helicopters, support the
combatant commanders, whether it's on the front line on drugs,
other niche capabilities.
Sir, we bring some unique authorities, unique capabilities.
For 2019, the Commandant has pushed into the global force
management process the availability of the national security
cutter. I recognize your concerns. It's a zero-sum game. There
are competing national security interests. We have--my
colleague, the new PACOM Commander, is having a hearing today.
I will certainly engage Admiral Davidson, pending his
successful confirmation, about how he views the Coast Guard
roles there, sir, and we will have that appropriate
conversation about national homeland security and the
appropriate niche role for the Coast Guard in that.
Senator Sullivan. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Sullivan.
Senator Peters.
STATEMENT OF HON. GARY PETERS,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MICHIGAN
Senator Peters. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And, Vice Admiral Schultz, it's wonderful to have you here
before us today. Thank you for your service and your
willingness to take on this added responsibility. It's always
good to follow my friend Senator Sullivan, who I know reminded
you of the coastline of Alaska. So I'm going to certainly
remind you that second to Alaska is the state of Michigan in
terms of the amount of coastline we have. So the Coast Guard
provides incredibly valuable services to my state, and I want
to thank you for your service and all the men and women who
serve in the Coast Guard, the great work they do in Michigan.
You and I have spent some time in my office. And if I could
also say publicly, I appreciate your statements about how much
you enjoyed your service in Michigan earlier in your career,
and the fact that your wife loved Michigan as well. So I
appreciate those comments.
I also appreciated our follow up yesterday regarding the
investigation into an incident that has just recently occurred
in the Straits of Mackinac. You know, as we discussed, the
incident involves an anchor strike on an electric transmission
line leading to the spill of about 600 gallons of mineral oil.
And I know the Coast Guard is leading the unified command
response to that spill.
We've also learned that potentially the same vehicle that
struck the transmission lines may have struck the Line 5 oil
pipeline, which has experienced some denting. And as you know,
and we discussed, the prospect of an oil spill in the Straits
of Mackinac would be absolutely catastrophic. And given the
weather event that we just had this past weekend with seas in
excess of 12 feet and approaching higher ones, it also could
cause a situation where it is very difficult, if not
impossible, to clean up a spill. In fact, in a briefing that I
had with the Coast Guard prior to this weekend, I was informed
that the skimmers in the Straits of Mackinac would be
ineffective in seas greater than 3 feet.
So we definitely had a situation with a damaged pipeline
where we didn't have eyes on that pipeline, even though it's
been a couple weeks that we weren't sure if something happened,
we could actually clean it up. The company shut down the
pipeline temporarily, but has now reopened it.
My question to you, though, Are we still on track for
underwater visual inspections to be conducted today?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, my understanding as of an update
this morning is that the remote-operated vehicle and side-
scanning sonar operations may be delayed a couple days during
weather. My understanding is as soon as they have the
appropriate weather, we're going to put--you know, deploy those
capabilities, and that will be done. So, again, this was about
a 9:30 update, they told me we may be sliding a couple days to
the right. But we ensure your commitment to get eyes onto the
pipeline, the cables down there, to fully understand what's
going on, sir.
Senator Peters. So because of weather, another couple days?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, potentially a couple days. I think
they will put the capability in the water as soon as the
weather window allows that to occur.
Senator Peters. But the ROVs are onsite.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Peters. They finally arrived. My understanding--
well, we know it has taken at least 2 weeks for that to get up
there. That seems to me unacceptable to get the equipment up
there. Obviously, weather delays it further, but they could
have been in the water sooner.
How can we get these assets to a critical place like the
Straits of Mackinac a whole lot quicker?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, these remote-operated
vehicles, there's a finite number, they're an expensive piece
of gear. They are sited, you know, many times in the Gulf of
Mexico supporting the offshore industry down there in different
locations, research locations. I know you have some interest in
some type of center up there, oil spill type center. That could
be a venue potentially for that.
Again, I won't commit to--you know, most of those ROVs are
owned in the private sector, so how they're allocated, what
their business cost share models are, I'm not expert on that,
sir, but, you know, the center, as you advocate, could be a
place.
Obviously, a center like that, we'd want to tie the work of
that center to an R&D center which is doing work on oil spill
and specifically some tar sands-like oil spill research. We're
doing some work in Kalamazoo in the river, we're doing some
work in Lake Huron, and a third site later this summer. We've
got a report due out probably summer of 2019 here that will
talk about our findings on that oil spill research that our R&D
center is doing, sir.
Senator Peters. Well, as you mentioned, we have language
for a National Center of Expertise for freshwater oil spill
cleanup in the Coast Guard reauthorization bill. And I
certainly appreciate it and I hope I have your commitment to
work with the creation of that center so that we learn more
about freshwater cleanup. We know a lot about saltwater cleanup
with oil spills. My understanding is we don't know anywhere
near the same amount when it comes to fresh water, and having a
center that brings the Coast Guard expertise as well as our
academic institutions and private sector could bridge that gap
and also have pre-positioned equipment in a critical area.
Would you agree?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I think that is a space that we
can continue to look at mutually and understand your views on
that and where you see that going, and bring our expertise to
that, sir.
Senator Peters. It is--is it still the case of the
transmission lines and the Line 5 are being handled as two
separate incidents with the unified command working to deploy
one ROV to inspect the transmission lines, and Enbridge, the
company that operates Line 5, they are going to send their own
rented ROV craft to inspect the line? Is that correct?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I don't have that level of fidelity
on the multiple ROVs. I think the pipeline falls under the
Pipeline Hazardous Safety Management Agency as a peer Federal
agency. We are on-scene as the Federal on-scene coordinator for
the spillage from the cables, worst case scenario, up to 800
gallons. We've been responding to that. We're part of the RP
with the state of Michigan, with ATC, the responsible party
there, sir.
So there is a little bit of a splitting of functionalities
across the two Federal agencies involved, sir. If they're
specifically using a different ROV on the cables versus the
pipeline, I don't have that fidelity, sir, on the details. I
apologize for that.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Peters.
Senator Lee.
STATEMENT OF HON. MIKE LEE,
U.S. SENATOR FROM UTAH
Senator Lee. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thanks for being with us, Admiral Schultz, and for all you
do. I want to talk to you for a moment about the Coast Guard's
work in the Arctic. As you know, our territorial sovereignty
extends 200 nautical miles offshore. And I just wanted to talk
to you a little bit about the Arctic and what the U.S.
interests are in the Arctic and what threats there might be to
our sovereignty in the Arctic.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, thank you for the question. The
Arctic, sir, is a fascinating location, sir. We have national
security interest in the Arctic, science interest in the
Arctic. There is increasing human presence in the Arctic,
expeditionary cruises. A couple of years back, Shell had
invested billions of dollars up there to potentially extract
oil from relatively shallow water locations. The energy
situation in the Nation has changed a little bit, and that's
been pushed to the right there. But, sir, there are many
interests. There are rich minerals below in the seabed there.
And all that rolls up into importance for the Nation.
Russia, China, are increasingly asserting their presence in
the Arctic here. And from a national security standpoint, sir,
I think the Arctic is a place we absolutely have to be
represented. The Coast Guard has been an appropriate de facto
lead agency for what's going on in the Arctic, sir.
Senator Lee. Commercial shipping in the Arctic, is it
changing a lot?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I think the prognosis for commercial
shipping through the Arctic is going to be interesting to see.
That will obviously be driven by how they view the economy
there, sir, the economics of that. I think you will anticipate
further shipping across the Arctic. Exactly how much, I think
north of Russia, northern sea routes, Russia sees that as an
income generator for their society here in the Arctic, the U.S.
portion of the Arctic, sir. I think TBD a little bit in terms
of how much shipping we'll actually see there, sir. But there
is clearly more expeditionary type cruise vessels up there,
which brings hundreds of people to the Arctic, and there's not
much in terms of capacity where there is need for some rescue.
We're up there seasonally in our Arctic Shield operations from
summer to about mid-fall, late fall, on an annual basis.
Senator Lee. One of the things that always comes up when we
talk about the Arctic involves icebreakers. Questions arise
with regard to how big our fleet needs to be, what the mix
should be in terms of heavy versus light icebreakers, how we
should acquire the ship, whether it should be leased or bought
outright.
And, of course, one of the main challenges that we have to
face involves U.S. law. Federal law generally restricts the
Coast Guard from acquiring vessels from foreign shipyards,
either the vessels themselves or major components thereof.
There are some suggestions that we could reduce the costs of
these vessels if we were to ease some of the restrictions
imposed by U.S. law. So do you think there is any truth to the
suggestion that we ought to at least consider utilizing foreign
shipyards at least among our NATO allies in order to save
money?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I would tell you first and foremost
we appreciate the support of the administration and the
Congress on moving forward with the recapitalization for our
POLAR STAR, a 1970s been--1970s version, 1970s built
icebreaker. That's the one heavy icebreaker in the U.S.
inventory. We have a medium icebreaker in the 1970s--or the
1980s rather--the Coast Guard Cutter Healy.
Sir, I think building that ship domestically, if we look
back to the High Latitude Study, it talks about the need for
three heavies, three mediums, as maybe a baseline. There are
other views on that. The National Academy of Science has talked
about four heavies and maybe a little different mix there at
the end of the day. I think if American shipbuilding sees the
opportunity to build more than one, maybe buildup to three,
four, potentially more icebreakers, you know, then there's a
different conversation about costs and economies of scale
potentially block-buy contracting opportunities.
Sir, I'm going to sort of shy away from whether we want to
look to foreign shipbuilders or not. We will inform the design
of our heavy icebreaker with the best that industry has, and
that's in from the international community, not just domestic.
We have not built an icebreaker here in this country, a heavy
icebreaker, since the POLAR STAR and the POLAR SEA in the
1970s.
Senator Lee. I want to thank you for all of the help that
you provided hurricane victims in the last few months. As you
know, the Trump administration has recently waived the Jones
Act in order to help some of the relief efforts in Puerto Rico.
In your experience, does the Jones Act increase the price of
shipping goods between U.S. ports?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, thank you for that question. Sir,
the Jones Act has been on the books for more than 100 years.
Specifically, if you look at the waiver of the Jones Act, I
think it's for about 10 days during the hurricane response
period. I think a lot of folks were pushing into this space
saying the Jones Act was inhibiting the movement of cargos to
Puerto Rico to provide relief to the citizens of the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
My sense on the ground and from looking at this from my
vantage point at Atlantic Area was that was not the case. There
were available ships, Jones Act-certified ships. The problem
was once the cargo reached Puerto Rico, it was jammed up in the
shipment down there, whether that was related to the roads or
it was related to the port infrastructure.
So I think the Jones Act is subject to the judgments of the
Congress. Customs and Border Protection is the primary agency
that oversees the implementation of the Jones Act. I would tell
you, Senator, during the hurricane fall response, I don't think
the Jones Act was an inhibiting function to our ability to
respond to the citizens of Puerto Rico.
Senator Lee. Fair point. My time is expired. Thank you.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Lee.
Admiral, you have two icebreakers, is that right?
Admiral Schultz. We have one medium and one heavy; yes,
sir.
Senator Wicker. How many do you need?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I would defer to the High
Latitude Study. The Commandants--the last three Commandants
have talked about the need to recapitalize. I think the
conversation right now is----
Senator Wicker. And so what does that say?
Admiral Schultz. Three heavies, three mediums, is probably
a good place to perpetuate the conversation forward, sir.
Senator Wicker. OK. Thank you.
Senator Blumenthal.
STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL,
U.S. SENATOR FROM CONNECTICUT
Senator Blumenthal. Good morning. Congratulations to you
and thank you to you for your service, and to your family--Dawn
Marie, thank you--and to your mom, if she is watching, and if
not, I hope you'll give her a call after we're done here. She
ought to be very proud of you, as should the Coast Guard, for
your service. And I'm proud that you're a native of East
Hartford and hope that you will visit often at the Coast Guard
Academy and at the site of the soon to be built Coast Guard
Museum. I feel that I probably don't even need to ask you, but
I hope that you will sustain and enhance the commitment of the
Coast Guard to the museum. And I can pledge to you that for
myself and for I think all of us in the delegation, we are
strongly committed to do anything and everything to make that
museum a reality.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, as you know, we're the only armed
service without a national museum. I think there is a need to
tell the Coast Guard's story, sir. And we will certainly work
for--look for opportunities, continue to work with the
congressional delegation, the State of Connecticut, on the
ability to field and get that museum open in the coming--coming
year, sir.
Senator Blumenthal. It is an awe-inspiring story, and it
needs to be told, and it will be an extraordinary contribution
to all of our armed services to have that museum. And there is
good news in Connecticut, the Bond Commission has approved, in
fact just this last week, on Friday, $19.5 million to complete
a pedestrian bridge and link with the National Coast Guard
Museum plan for downtown New London. That's an essential
commitment from the State of Connecticut. We worked for it and
advocated it. And I hope that the private sector, as well as
the Federal Government, will hold true to that commitment.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Blumenthal. I want to follow up on the question of
icebreakers because I just came from a confirmation hearing for
General O'Shaughnessy for NORTHCOM, and made the point to him,
and I'm going to reiterate it to you, that compared to the
Russians, we are at a severe disadvantage in the Arctic. We
have two icebreakers there. They have 40, with another 11 in
development.
Maybe you can explain to the American public, I think you
and I know, why icebreakers are so important in that part of
the world, particularly with climate change reducing the ice
cover.
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, as I mentioned earlier here
to Senator Lee and Senator Sullivan, the Arctic is an important
region, and the Coast Guard has clear statutory
responsibilities there. It's an important region from a
national security and maritime security needs, sir. It's
important from increasing human presence up there and ties to
our statutory roles, sir.
The science is important there. I think--I am not a
scientist. I think it's hard to argue that--you know, and
Admiral Allen, one of our former Commandants, used to say he
was agnostic to the science, but there's water where there
didn't used to be water.
I think, sir, the U.S. needs to pay attention to what's
going on in the Arctic. And we're very excited that our 2019
budget provides a $750 million line item to move forward with
potentially a second icebreaker. We've been working in an
Integrated Product Office with the United States Navy, the SCN
office here, on the first icebreaker. With the support of
Congress, we've had some incremental funding. The 2018 budget
included another $150 million funding.
So I think we're on a good trajectory to close that gap,
but as the previous questions talked about, you know, there is
a need for multiple icebreakers to maintain a year-round
presence in the high latitudes.
Senator Blumenthal. Focusing on the Coast Guard Academy for
the moment, there have been recent allegations about racial
discrimination. There have been some incidents that perhaps
merit investigation. Probably every incident and every
allegation deserves investigation. Will you commit to
scrutinize and make sure that there are no credible claims of
discrimination at the Coast Guard Academy?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, absolutely. I just spent a few
days at the Coast Guard Academy last week for their Eclipse
Week activities, which is about diversity and inclusiveness,
and my sense is the superintendent, Admiral Rendon, is wholly
committed, sir, to investigating each and every situation there
to set a tone here where hopefully there is not a need for
further investigations. But we will take them seriously, sir.
You have my commitment that we will support Admiral Rendon.
And we want to have an environment at the Coast Guard Academy
that is totally inclusive. We've done very well with female
cadets. The corps--the population of the corps that is female
is about 39, 40 percent. Underrepresented minorities are a much
smaller number, sir. I think at some point, when we can
continue to grow those numbers, there's a greater sense of
belonging, involvement. And you have my commitment, sir, to
continue to make our Coast Guard Academy and our service look
more like the Nation we represent.
Senator Blumenthal. I think that's a very, very important
commitment, as is the commitment which I hope that you share to
investigating and stopping all sexual assault that may occur
either at the Coast Guard Academy or within your service, and
obviously that issue is not limited to your service, it's one
that we've raised in our Armed Forces generally and in college
campuses----
Admiral Schultz. Sir, you have my 100 percent commitment.
Until we have eradicated all sexual assault from the services,
we have much work to do.
Senator Blumenthal. Thank you.
Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. The Coast Guard Academy is one of the
finest institutions of higher learning in the country, in the
world, and we certainly want to support them. I just wanted to
add that.
Let me just ask, are we comparing apples to oranges when we
say the Russians have 40 icebreakers and we only have 2?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I think clearly if you just have
a conversation about numbers, it's--you know, it's a dire
conversation. I think the Russian interest, the geography, is
slightly different, the Russians' ties to where they're
extracting resource from the Arctic. But there is a takeaway
there, sir, that we have had very little commitment to the
Arctic in the past. If you look at a non-Arctic nation like
China, who is working on a second icebreaker and pushing their
sovereign interests into the Arctic domain, sir, I think that's
something we need to sit up and pay attention to.
So I would caution the conversation is not wholly about the
numbers, but it's the fact that we have one heavy breaker that
can go to both of the high latitudes. We have a science ship
that can operate in certain times of the year in the Arctic.
That is insufficient, sir, to tend to the Nation's needs here
in that part of the world.
Senator Wicker. Those 40 Russian icebreakers, how many of
them are what you would call heavy?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I would have to get back to you on
the exact number. I think the number of heavies is a number 6
to 10 there. But let me circle back, sir, for the record, with
your staff to make sure I give you the well-informed numbers
there, sir.
Senator Wicker. I think Senator Blumenthal would agree. We
know you're constrained by what you hear from the Budget
Office, and we appreciate their concerns, but do tell us what
you need.
Admiral Schultz. Absolutely, sir.
Senator Wicker. Thank you very much.
Senator Baldwin, you are going to be recognized next. By
rule, Senator Thune would be next, but he is graciously
understanding that you have waited patiently, and so you are
now recognized.
STATEMENT OF HON. TAMMY BALDWIN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM WISCONSIN
Senator Baldwin. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Mr. Chairman,
for that courtesy.
Admiral Schultz, again congratulations and thank you for
your service. I appreciate your recognition of the importance
of Great Lakes icebreaking operations; however, I think we may
have a difference of opinion on whether the Coast Guard has all
the assets it needs to effectively meet its icebreaking mission
in the Great Lakes. I believe that we need a second heavy
icebreaker on the Great Lakes and that the current fleet, as
well as our reliance on Canadian Coast Guard assets, isn't
enough.
A few years ago, we saw more than $1 billion in lost
economic activity and an estimated 6,000 lost jobs due to ice
coverage. These costs far outstrip the cost of a new
icebreaker. And I understand your budget constraints, which
have been mentioned several times, which is why, as a member of
the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, I've helped
secure additional funding above the budget request for initial
survey and design work for the vessel. In other words, this is
not an unfunded mandate for the Coast Guard.
Do you agree that the Coast Guard's icebreaking capacity on
the Great Lakes could be improved by the procurement of a
second heavy icebreaker like the MACKINAW? And, second, what is
the status of survey and design work on this icebreaker?
Congress provided $2 million in Fiscal Year 2017 and another $3
million in Fiscal Year 2018 for these acquisition activities,
and I am concerned that the Coast Guard is slow-walking this
project contrary to congressional intent.
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, thank you for the question.
And your interest and the Congress' interest in additional
icebreaking capacity I think is clearly signaled through the
incremental 2 and then additional 3 million here in the 2018
omnibus. And you have my commitment, ma'am, to work with the
oversight committee on talking about those needs. We clearly--
there is always a finite amount of budget, and we're trying
to--you know, we're lifting national security cutters, offshore
patrol cutters, fast response cutters, aviation needs there. I
guess the conversation is really not, ``Would additional
capacity be helpful?'' the conversation sometimes comes down
to, ``Where would an additional icebreaker for the Great Lakes
fit in the sequencing?'' because the pie is always going to be
of a certain size. And the Coast Guard is an element of the
Homeland Security appropriations, and given your position
there, ma'am, I don't need to--you know that better than I do.
So I would certainly commit to working with you, ma'am, and the
oversight committee regarding the interest on the additional
capacity on the Great Lakes.
Regarding the status of the survey and design and the
initial 2 million that came in previous years, I need to circle
back with your staff on that, ma'am, to make sure we give you
the latest situation with that. And your concerns that we're
dragging our heels, I hope that's not the case. But I will
ensure we circle back with your staff and give you a full
update on where we are with that. And you have my commitment to
pull that forward and make sure we are responsive to the
congressional interest to deeper dive into that.
Senator Baldwin. Thank you. I appreciate that commitment
and will look forward to that follow up.
I am very concerned about our security with regard to both
procurement and the assets that you have, but also the
industrial base domestically capable of providing those. I was
here for the exchange with my colleague on ``Buy America,''
provisions.
By way of an example, I was disappointed to recently learn
that of the more than 700 Coast Guard boats that have outboard
motors, only 91 use U.S. motors, like those made in Wisconsin
by Mercury Marine or Evinrude. In other words, 87 percent of
U.S. Coast Guard small watercraft use foreign-made outboard
motors or engines.
Later this week, I'm going to be introducing a measure
called ``Made In America Shipbuilding,'' which strengthens
``Buy America'' requirements for the Federal Government's
purchase of ships. It does so by expanding current law to cover
all Federal agencies, including the Coast Guard, all classes of
ships, and substantially more shipboard components, including
outboard motors.
To protect against contract disruption and unintended
consequences, there are waivers for legitimate reasons of cost,
schedule, competition, and national security, but this bill
would help strengthen our domestic shipbuilding industrial
base, and it's very much aligned with the President's stated
``Buy American, Hire American'' policy.
So, Admiral Schultz, while I know that the Coast Guard will
always comply with applicable domestic content laws and
regulations, I'd like to know your views on ``Buy America''
requirements for ships and shipboard components. Do you believe
that ships and their components should be made in America?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, thank you for the question. And
as we spoke when we met here a couple weeks back in your
office, we will fully comply with the law and ``Buy American''
provisions of the law. You started the conversation and the
question about the outboard motors on the backs of many of our
small boats, hundreds of our small boats. We are in compliance
with the law there, ma'am, in terms of the intent and the
spirit of the law. And as we field--first, those are on the
backs of safe boats built up in Washington State and Metal
Shark built down in the Gulf region.
As we try to maintain, you know, centralize supportability
for that platform, sticking with the outboards we started with
sort of makes sense for the life of those ships. But I
understand your concern, ma'am, when we have American-made
outboard motor manufacturers. And if the law changes and
tightens up that, we will certainly continue to comply with
that.
Ma'am, in terms of American shipbuilding, I think you heard
my response to Senator Lee, and you referred to that, that
obviously we have an industrial base here. To the extent the
industrial base can meet the needs of services like the Coast
Guard and the Navy and the other Department of Defense
entities, I think that's a good news story for America. It's
consistent with the administration. But ultimately, ma'am, we
will defer to the law. And Fairbanks Morse will be providing
the engines for those offshore patrol cutters that we're
extremely excited to build with the support of this Committee
and the Senate and the Congress writ large.
So I am committed to the ``Buy American'' law, ma'am, to
compliance with that for the agency. And if those laws get
modified, you know, further tightened up, we will certainly
make sure that we're in dialogue and compliance.
Senator Baldwin. Thank you.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Baldwin.
Senator Thune.
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN THUNE,
U.S. SENATOR FROM SOUTH DAKOTA
The Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Good morning and welcome, Vice Admiral Schultz. And again
congratulations on your nomination to be the Commandant of the
Coast Guard. I, like many others that you've heard from today,
appreciate your many years of service to our Nation and your
willingness to accept this new responsibility. And as you well
know, the Coast Guard is vital to both the physical and
economic safety of our Nation, and it isn't just those who live
on our coasts that benefit.
We need a Coast Guard that is able to protect our borders,
project U.S. interests, and ensure the free flow of
international commerce. And I take our Committee's role in
ensuring the Coast Guard has strong leadership seriously. And
looking at your qualifications and past performance, I'm
confident the Coast Guard is going to be in good hands.
I do have a couple of quick questions. Coast Guard
helicopters have repeatedly proven their worth in every
disaster, including last year's three devastating hurricanes.
The current fleet of helicopters is decades old, well past the
design life of these aircraft, and yet there is not a clear
plan to replace them.
What is the recapitalization strategy for the Coast Guard's
rotary-wing assets and when should we expect to receive a copy
of the strategy?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, first and foremost, we are
overdue with that report. That was due here in February. That
report has been routed through the administration. It has left
the Department. It is with OMB. Hopefully, that will be up here
on the Hill here shortly.
In terms of what the contents of that report, I think what
we're looking at is a service life extension for our smaller
Dolphin HH-65 helicopters as well as our Jayhawk or H-60
helicopters, probably pushing the service life of those
helicopters into the mid-2030s. We are very much working in
lockstep with DoD on the Future Vertical Lift program, and that
will best inform that.
We're confident that we can squeeze those additional hours
safely out of those helicopters. We have a tremendously robust
capability down in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, where we can
essentially rework those helicopters, take them down to a bare
carcass, rewire, re-engine. We have engine labs down there. And
we're pretty confident that we'll be in good shape moving
forward into the mid-'30s with the 65 and the 60 and then
informing that conversation with Future Vertical Lift working
collaboratively with DoD.
The Chairman. OK. Thanks. As you may know, Burlington
Northern Santa Fe railroad has sought approval for a new
railroad bridge across the Pend Oreille River in Sandpoint,
Idaho. This new bridge would run beside an already existing
railroad bridge and just slightly apart from an existing
highway bridge, seemingly making the environmental impact of
this new bridge minimal.
As you may also know, this track is an important line for
goods moving between the West Coast and the Heartland,
including for South Dakota grain and other agricultural
products.
I understand that we want to make sure the environmental
assessments are completed, but this bridge will be placed
alongside two existing bridges. It will not add any additional
traffic that's not already flowing, albeit currently more
slowly. When will the Coast Guard provide approval for this
bridge?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, we are--and thank you, Mr.
Chairman, for the question. We are in that space for 51 years
now with oversight of bridges over navigable waters. There are
environmental considerations there, putting those additional
rails alongside existing bridges, and potentially that may lead
to Environmental Impact Statement. I need, sir, to circle back
with our bridge administration folks, and I would offer a
chance to come up here and brief your staff on the details of
that. I am not intimately familiar with the timeline there, but
we can certainly circle back and get your team that information
as soon as possible.
The Chairman. I would really appreciate that. It's an
important transit line for an awful lot of freight that
originates in the middle of the country, including my state.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
The Chairman. I have a letter here, Mr. Chairman, from the
Governor of South Dakota that I would like to insert for the
record.
Senator Wicker. Without objection.
[The information referred to follows:]
State of South Dakota
Pierre, SD, April 10, 2018
Admiral Paul F. Zukunft,
Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard,
U.S. Coast Guard,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Zukunft,
I am writing to express support for the Sandpoint Junction
Connector project. The project will provide the capacity needed for
current traffic volumes and accommodate future growth on movements
along BNSF's northern transcontinental main line, a nationally
significant freight corridor. Of the over 130,000 carloads of
agriculture BNSF hauled out of South Dakota, over half of those
products traveled the northern transcontinental route, making it a
critical transportation route for South Dakota's farmers and
agriculture industry.
South Dakota always has been and will continue to be an
agricultural state. It remains the common thread linking citizens,
businesses, and communities of our state. South Dakota's agriculture
industry has a $25.6 billion economic impact each year and generates 20
percent of our state's economic activity. In 2017, BNSF shipped over
130,000 carloads of wheat, soybeans, corn, sweet beats, beans, and
other agricultural products from South Dakota to plants around the
country for domestic use and to ports for export abroad.
BNSF has invested nearly $2 billion to expand capacity on the
northern transcontinental route since 2013. The one-lane bridge at
Sandpoint remains a critical chokepoint in the network. The proposed
Sandpoint Junction Connector project adds capacity and alleviates that
chokepoint to allow enhanced movement of freight, including South
Dakota's agricultural products.
I am concerned incorrect information about this project and the
type of rail traffic it supports could cause a delay in the project.
Agriculture products and consumer goods are the largest commodity
groups delivered through the Sandpoint project area, both critical to
South Dakota's economy.
This project is in the interest of all communities and shippers
that depend on a robust rail transportation corridor. I am confident
your agency will conduct a thorough review and analysis of the proposal
in a timely fashion.
Sincerely,
Dennis Daugaard,
Governor.
DD:rg
CC:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Chief U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
of Engineers: Walla Walla District
Lt Gen Todd T Semonite Coeur d'Alene Regulatory Office
Headquarters Coeur d'Alene, ID.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Washington, DC.
U.S. Coast Guard
District 13 Bridge Administration
Office
Seattle, WA.
The Chairman. And, Mr. Chairman, I yield back my time, and
I look forward to processing the admiral's nomination as
quickly as possible.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Chairman Thune.
Senator Cortez Masto.
STATEMENT OF HON. CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEVADA
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you.
Admiral, it's good to see you again. Congratulations. I
apologize for not being here for the first part of your
testimony. That's why your written testimony is so important. I
had two other hearings going on, so that's why you see us
bumping in and out of here.
But thank you again for your commitment and everything
you've done on behalf of the country. And I so appreciate you
taking the time to meet with me. That's why it was so
important.
I understand that previously from Senator Blumenthal's
questioning, you made a commitment to address sexual assault at
the Coast Guard Academy as well as racial discrimination. Is
that correct?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I made a commitment that sexual
assault and racial discrimination is intolerable anywhere in
our service, whether that's at our Academy or anywhere amongst
our rank-and-file units all over the country and all over the
world. We want to drive that down to zero incidents because
it's completely inconsistent with our core values of honor,
respect, and devotion to duty. You have my full and 100 percent
commitment, ma'am.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you. And during--I understand
during the conversation that you had with Senator Blumenthal,
you identified the percentage of women at the Coast Guard
Academy being at its highest amongst the service academies, at
38 percent.
Admiral Schultz. Ma'am, I am not sure if it's the highest.
We are at about 38 to 40 percent right now.
Senator Cortez Masto. OK.
Admiral Schultz. That's I think the high-water mark for us,
and I think the women feel completely integrated with the Corps
of Cadets. I'm not sure how that compares with the other
service academies, Senator.
Senator Cortez Masto. OK. Let me ask you this, the
representation of women in the Coast Guard's Officer Corps,
though, is still lower--right?--other than the Marine Corps. So
let me ask you this, what steps would you take as Commandant to
address that disparity and ensure women are represented at all
levels of leadership in the Coast Guard?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, we are currently underway
with a Women's Retention Study under the contract arrangement
with RAND, and we are hoping that will help us inform why women
may not be staying with the service as long as their male
counterparts. You have my commitment to understand the
causative factors that shape that. You have my commitment to
understand--you know, to work on those places where we can
shape organizational and cultural behaviors that possibly are
impediments to women feeling that the Coast Guard can be a
viable career of, you know, whatever duration they so choose
that's compatible with their other life choices.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you.
Senator Wicker. When is that study due, Admiral?
Admiral Schultz. Sir, I have to circle back on the actual
due date. We are doing the listening groups all over the Coast
Guard right now, Senator. So I will circle back with your staff
on the timeline there.
Senator Wicker. And Senator Cortez Masto's staff.
Admiral Schultz. Absolutely, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you. I know the Coast Guard has
been working closely with Colombia and Mexico on drug
interdiction efforts, which you yourself have had a key role
during your time at SOUTHCOM. What is your assessment of those
partnerships? And can they be expanded, or should they be
expanded?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we are, in fact, working with
SEMAR, the Mexican Navy, and other elements of the Mexican
government, and with the Colombians. The Colombians are
terrific partners, maybe the bright spot partnership in Latin
and South America among--on a host of issues.
Can we expand on that? Absolutely. We're currently involved
in an ongoing operation working with SEMAR and the Colombian
Navy, and that we've had success to date on that. You have my
commitment. Admiral Duran, who is now the CNO of the Colombian
Navy, I've known him for many years, Admiral Soberon will be
turning over this summer. But I'm sure we will continue to
enjoy a terrific level of respect and mutual cooperation with
the Mexican Navy.
So I think there are opportunities to build on success and
include their contributions from a trilateral, multilateral
framework to get after this scourge that ends up on American
streets. And it's also destabilizing to their countries.
Senator Cortez Masto: Right. Thank you very much.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Cortez Masto. I understand the Coast Guard is
planning to acquire an unmanned intelligence platform for its
national security cutters. How will a drone capability support
the Coast Guard in carrying out its various missions?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we have been involved with some
testing of small unmanned aerial systems on the back of our
national security cutters. They have proven incredibly capable.
I was talking to one of the skippers, the captains of that
ship, and they don't want to go downrange without that
additional capability. It's that strong and that much of a
game-changer. Hopefully, this fall here we'll actually be
awarding a contract in response to proposals from industry to
actually field that capability on the backs of all our national
security cutters.
Senator Cortez Masto. That's great to hear, particularly
since Nevada is one of the testing sites for these unmanned
vehicles and drones that we see.
So thank you again for your commitment. And
congratulations. And I look forward to working with you once
you are appointed.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Senator. We look forward to
working with you as well, ma'am.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Cortez Masto.
Senator Cantwell.
STATEMENT OF HON. MARIA CANTWELL,
U.S. SENATOR FROM WASHINGTON
Senator Cantwell. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And, Admiral, congratulations on your nomination.
Specifically, the National Defense Authorization Act of
2017 included a provision to expand military family leave
policies. Has the Coast Guard implemented this yet?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, we are working on the policy
aspects of that. We are matching steps with DoD, specifically
the Navy. The NDA language is very favorable for our families,
for our members, and we're very appreciative of the support of
Congress on that front. That will include maternity leave,
paternity leave, adoption leave. It increases the accessibility
of that to our members. And I think at the end of the day, our
members will be well served by that. And I appreciate your
personal commitment there.
Senator Cantwell. So what can we do to make sure that the
Coast Guard leads on this, given the number of mid-career women
officers that you're losing? What can we do not just to wait
for other branches to lead?
Admiral Schultz. Well, ma'am, the wait I think is we're
talking months. We're not talking a long wait here. We are
looking to implement this--anything that regards entitlements
being one of the five armed services, we generally try to do
that in lockstep with the other services because it just makes
sense. We always talk, ``Look what the Navy did or what DoD
did. We're funded below their levels of readiness.'' It's sort
of a parallel construct, ma'am. I don't think we're talking
more than a couple months to get our policy on the street and
start to benefit these Coast Guard families.
Senator Cantwell. But you do probably--do you have more
women than the other branches?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I don't have those numbers to
answer that.
Senator Cantwell. OK.
Admiral Schultz. We have about--our percentage of women in
the ranks is in the high teens. We have opportunity to increase
those numbers, ma'am.
Senator Cantwell. OK. That's overall Coast Guard number or
are the officer----
Admiral Schultz. That is out in our listed ranks, ma'am.
Our officer corps, I've got to circle back with you on that.
Senator Cantwell. OK.
Admiral Schultz. I cited a number before. I think that came
into our Academy were about 40 percent female cadets. Yes,
ma'am.
Senator Cantwell. That's the number I wanted to get at, 40
percent----
Admiral Schultz. Close to that. Yes, ma'am. Just shy of
that.
Senator Cantwell.--which I think is great. That's why we
want to retain it.
Admiral Schultz. Absolutely. And we are doing that, that
retention study, and we want those women to come into the
service and we want them to stay in the service.
Senator Cantwell. I'm pretty sure that's--yes.
Admiral Schultz. We want the service to be compatible with,
you know, with other lifestyle choices they make and families
and things like that.
Senator Cantwell. Yes.
Admiral Schultz. We've got some work to do there, ma'am.
Senator Cantwell. Thank you. Thank you. I also wanted to
ask you about the POLAR STAR, which returned last month
following its deployment to Antarctica. The vessel experienced
engine failure and two major flooding incidents. So a new
icebreaker will not be commissioned and operational until 2023.
Do you agree the Coast Guard needs to keep the POLAR STAR in
service until the new icebreaker is operational?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, absolutely. I think we're looking
at about a $75 million investment of increments of about 50
million a year over the coming 5 years to keep the POLAR STAR
in the game. I anticipate POLAR STAR will probably be heading
to the high latitudes in the Antarctic to break out McMurdo on
an annual basis. But we are absolutely committed to that
bridging strategy until we can field new icebreakers.
Senator Cantwell. So what is that plan for extension? What
does that look like?
Admiral Schultz. Well, ma'am, the ship is in Mare Island
Shipyard today, got there a couple weeks ago. She's getting
ready to--it will be a long projected--protracted maintenance
period. And we're looking at potentially a multiyear vehicle so
it's a little more predictability, we can negotiate, you know,
better stuff there.
There's obviously Federal acquisitions contracting law that
we have to stay in compliance with, but we're working that. But
I think I can report back to you probably in the coming months
here that we will probably have a plan that looks like a
multiyear contract to keep POLAR STAR in service and bridge
that gap until the heavy icebreaker is on the waterfront in
2023.
Senator Cantwell. Great. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Cantwell.
Senator Capito.
STATEMENT OF HON. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO,
U.S. SENATOR FROM WEST VIRGINIA
Senator Capito. Thank you, Admiral, for coming. Thank you
for the visit to my office. And I would like to start off by
thanking you for serving and your long years of service. It's
very much appreciated by many of us.
We discussed in West Virginia, you know, there are a lot of
core functions of the Coast Guard that we all think about when
we think about the Coast Guard. Of course, it's mostly being on
ships protecting the waterways and our waters, but you also
have underpinning functions that a lot of which are performed
in the State of West Virginia. So we have our Operations
Systems Center of the Coast Guard, we have the National Vessel
Documentation Center in Falling Waters, and I think you have
one other facility there as well. Could you speak to the
importance of those functions as an overall part of the Coast
Guard mission?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, thanks for the question and
the opportunity to meet with you a couple weeks back.
Obviously, the Ops Systems Center underpins our computer
capabilities, so that's a critical space for us. Its location
in West Virginia suits our needs very well. And that National
Vessel Documentation Center, we are in that, from our
regulatory roles here, providing mariner credentials at the
National Maritime Center and the National Vessel Documentation
Center for documented vessels. Those are essential roles
enabling functionalities for the maritime nation that we are.
Senator Capito. On the Documentation Center, do you
coordinate with Homeland Security on that? I know it's not a
shared function, but is that something where you're working
together on because obviously that has a lot to do with our own
homeland security.
Admiral Schultz. You know, Senator, being one of the 22
components within the Department of Homeland Security, I'm not
sure of that interface there, but I will certainly delve into
that and circle back with you on that, ma'am.
Senator Capito. I know that you talked about drug
interdiction as a function of the Coast Guard's
responsibilities. This is important to many of us. Obviously,
it's important to our Nation. I think when we talked in my
office, you talked about getting a couple new vessels that
would help with interdiction. Could you talk about that a
little bit? And I think in response to Senator Hassan, you
might have mentioned that fentanyl probably is not coming over
in ships because it would be smaller portions, is that correct?
Could you kind of reiterate that response?
Admiral Schultz. Yes, ma'am. First off, Senator, with the
support of the Congress and the administration, we have been
fielding new assets. We're on a fairly healthy trajectory for
recapitalizing, you know, in some cases, ships that are more
than a half century old here.
The national security cutters, Senator Wicker asked me a
question earlier about their suitability, their capability.
They're fantastic ships. The omnibus here for 2018 included
funding for the tenth and eleventh national security cutters.
That was a program of record of eight ships. So that will
enhance our capacity at the end of the day to get after the
illicit trafficking of narcotics and other commodities at sea.
Regarding the fentanyl, we are not seeing much movement of
fentanyl in the maritime spaces today, ma'am. It's--you know,
the quantities are much smaller. Bulk cocaine, you know,
obviously is moved by--predominantly moved by a small Panga,
it's a go-fast vessel, sometimes through a very small
percentage of fishing vessels, sometimes these semi-submersible
submarines. Fentanyl, you know, a cartel is essentially an
individual in their house with their laptop computer using the
U.S. mail system to deliver very small quantities. I mentioned
earlier, you know, a sugar- or Equal-sized packet is hundreds
of hits of fentanyl.
So to date, we have not seen that in the maritime spaces.
Could it be moved at sea? Possibly. It's so small, we have not
encountered that at sea yet, ma'am. But we are committed to
supporting the Federal Government, the whole-of-government's
response to the opioid crisis. I think we're sort of putting
the brushstrokes on what the Coast Guard's appropriate role in
that mission space would be, ma'am.
Senator Capito. I think you also mentioned that you're
interested in and have room for growth. How are you seeing your
recruitment efforts just in general? Are you planning an
accelerated rate of recruitment to get your numbers up? How are
you looking? Are people joining or are you having to really
beat the bushes to find people that are interested? They don't
maybe understand the future and current mission of the Coast
Guard? How are you all approaching that?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I would say the relevance of the
United States Coast Guard to the safety and security of the
Nation has never been higher. Regarding recruiting, we're
probably bringing in the brightest young men and women that the
service has seen. So it's terrific men and women coming to the
Coast Guard.
Back a short 5, 6 years ago, our enrollment at our single
source of recruiting enlisted members at Cape May was throttled
back to about 1,500 or 1,800 candidates a year, recruits a
year. We're trying to steady the ship at about 4,000 Active
Duty recruits a year, 400 Reserve recruits. We've been meeting
those targets.
We had to--we had made some reductions here in past years.
I talked earlier about the operational side of the budget, and
sometimes you're forced to make choices. We had cut back
recruiting. We have brought recruiters back. We're looking to
get those recruiters back on budget. We are sort of carrying
them as support allowance billets here, but we're going back on
budget for I think it was an approximate number, around 50
recruiters.
So I think our recruitment is at a healthy pace. We are
finding great kids on the streets of America. But if you look
across all the services, if you look at the population, it's
about 25 to 30 percent of the kids are eligible for service
when you look at, you know, weight requirements, mental health
requirements, the level of academic preparation, it's not a
huge number to recruit from, but we are hitting our numbers,
we're bringing great kids into the Coast Guard, and I think
we're in pretty solid shape there, ma'am.
Senator Capito. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Admiral Schultz. Yes, ma'am.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Capito.
Senator Cruz.
STATEMENT OF HON. TED CRUZ,
U.S. SENATOR FROM TEXAS
Senator Cruz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Admiral, welcome.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, good to see you again.
Senator Cruz. Good to see you. Thank you for being here.
Congratulations on your nomination.
Let me just take a minute just to thank you, thank you
personally, and thank the incredible heroes, the men and women
of the Coast Guard. You're called upon to do an incredibly
difficult job each and every day, but it was never more
difficult or more important than during the ravages of
Hurricane Harvey. And the job that the Coast Guard did Texans
saw firsthand. In Texas, over 11,000 people were rescued. Over
1,300 pets were rescued. And not only that, there are over
2,500 coastguardsmen who live in areas of Texas impacted by the
storm. Of them, at least 51 of them suffered catastrophic
damage to their own homes, and 124 others reported property
damage, and yet over and over again we had heroes who their own
home was underwater, and yet I met with one young Coast Guard
pilot who hiked out through waist-high water to a parking lot
to go be picked up by a chopper to go rescue others even though
his own home was underwater.
I've really been blessed to spend significant time with the
Coast Guard swimmers and pilots. And just on behalf of the
people of Texas, I want to say thank you for the extraordinary
job the Coast Guard did during our time of need.
Admiral Schultz. Senator, thank you for that. And it was
good to see you on the ground. We saw too much of each other,
but I think it meant a lot to our men and women that you were
at our facilities, you were on the hangar decks shaking hands
with those, you know, rescue swimmers, those wrench-turners,
the people in the command centers. It was an unprecedented
level of challenge down there. And I'm very proud of the men
and women of the Coast Guard, but it's very reassuring here
that you sort of recognized what a unique set of circumstances
there were. So thank you for your continued support there.
Senator Cruz. It was extraordinary bravery, and the entire
state is grateful for it.
You know, I would ask, looking back now, now that hurricane
is in the past, from your perspective, what were the lessons
learned from Harvey and Irma and Maria? We had a hurricane
season that I hope we don't repeat anytime soon. What lessons
do you think the Coast Guard has learned in terms of how to
handle those challenges even better?
Admiral Schultz. Senator, I appreciate that question. It's
a great question. I think what we realized, we were about 7
weeks in the thick of those four major hurricanes, and that
challenged the organization. We deployed about 3,000 people,
about 2,000 of which are Active Duty Coast Guard men and women
from other locations. In New England, where we normally have a
three-helicopter station, a three-fixed-wing station, and an
air station at Cape Cod, we drew that down to one aircraft. We
took risks there. We closed down seasonal facilities in the
Great Lakes to draw Coast Guard men and women in from that
region. We brought folks from as far away as Alaska and Hawaii
to support the efforts down there.
So we took tremendous risks in other parts of the Coast
Guard. You know, negotiated, thoughtful risks, I was never
uncomfortable, I don't think we put my PACAREA colleague in a
place of discomfort, but had that been a Super Sandy type
series of events that went on--and it has gone on. I don't want
to diminish the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is still
struggling. People don't have power. Our Coast Guard men and
women have challenges. But had that been more Sandy-like versus
an intense 7-week period, I think our 6,200 number Reserve
force would prove inadequate. We're trying to plus those
numbers up.
Our Commandant has talked about needing to grow the
Reservists about 1,100 in the coming years. I absolutely share
that commitment. I think we're at a critical low point. Back
when I used to do legislative affairs work, we were trying to
get to a 10,000 level of reservists. We're at about 8,100. This
was about, you know, 13, 14 years ago. Right now we're
authorized about 7,000. We need to get above that 7,000 level
to be the ready, relevant, responsive force that America needs,
sir.
In terms of social media, you know, we found as the 9/11
system collapsed in use and in the outlying areas, folks were
going to social media to call the Coast Guard, we were able to
adapt and improvise and meet those demands, but we've got to
look at that and what our approach is, you know, not just in
the Coast Guard, but in the emergency support functions writ
large, sort of whole-of-government. We don't have the staffing,
the manpower, all over the country to respond to social media
cries for help. We did there. So we're working on that. We're
working on our internal policies.
So a lot of lessons learned, sir, from that, but it's
ongoing. We're trying to be sure we're ready for this upcoming
hurricane season, which is right around the corner.
Senator Cruz. Well, and I would also point to IT
infrastructure. I know the T-1 line went down----
Admiral Schultz. Yes, sir.
Senator Cruz.--in the headquarters in the midst of that,
and you guys innovated and dealt with it anyway, but it
obviously raises a question going forward of having a backup to
prevent it from going down.
Admiral Schultz. And, Senator, if I could, you were at
Houston. That is a new facility that came from previous years'
supplemental fundings from other hurricane damage, Rita and--I
think it was Wilma and Rita that was the genesis of the funds
there. That's as good as it gets for us. Many of our facilities
would not have endured as well or had the resilience that we
had in Houston to support that level of operation. So that
continued support from the administration and Congress to beef
up our resilience and get after some of these facilities that
are very aged would be very beneficial to our readiness for the
Nation.
Senator Cruz. And, Mr. Chairman, if I could ask one more
question----
Senator Wicker. Certainly.
Senator Cruz.--which is it has been an ongoing concern of
mine, the lack of a reliable backup for GPS. We rely on GPS for
an enormous amount both to defend our Nation and on the
commercial side. How big a concern is the lack of a backup for
GPS? And what do you think Congress should do about it?
Admiral Schultz. Well, Senator, I think the reliance of
where we are today in 2018 on GPS, I don't think any of us
envisioned that. The Coast Guard is one of many stakeholders
working within our Department. DOT, DoD, I think there's an
assessment of the various segments that are reliant on that.
There's ongoing work. There's a National Executive Committee
that's focused on that. We're a contributor to that. I think we
were awarded about $500,000 from the Congress to look at
jamming capabilities that are out there to shut down GPS in the
maritime domain, sir.
So I would say I share your concern. We are an involved
participant and stakeholder to a broader whole-of-government,
that EXCOM, solutions set here that will hopefully figure out a
way forward. And I think the Congress is absolutely in the
thick of that, Senator.
Senator Cruz. Well, I look forward to continuing to work
with you.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, sir. We're committed to working
with you on that.
Senator Cruz. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Wicker. Thank you, Senator Cruz.
Senator Cortez Masto, you don't have any follow-up
questions, do you?
[No audible response.]
Senator Wicker. I can report that Chairman Thune hopes to
place Admiral Schultz on our next markup. That being the case,
we need to modify our normal procedure about leaving the record
open. So we'll only leave the record open through Thursday of
this week, April 19. During this time, Senators are asked to
submit any questions for the record.
And, Admiral, do you think you could get the answers to
these written questions back to the Committee no later than
Monday, April 23?
Admiral Schultz. Chairman, you have mine and Admiral
Zukunft's full commitment to be responsive to that request.
Senator Wicker. Thank you. Very good. And I think it's safe
to say that the prospects of your confirmation are pretty darn
good.
So thank you for your appearance today. I appreciate the
cooperation of so many members of the full Committee. This
hearing is now adjourned. Thank you.
Admiral Schultz. Thank you, Senator.
[Whereupon, at 11:38 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Roger Wicker to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. Admiral Schultz, The Coast Guard's counter drug mission
is becoming much more complex than even just a few years ago.
Transnational criminal organizations are utilizing much more advanced
semi-submersible vessels, as well as remotely operated vessels, that
are able to enter U.S. waters, as well as our largest ports,
undetected.
What disruptive autonomous underwater, surface, or hybrid solar,
wind and electric vessels are you exploring to combat this assault (TCO
drug trade) on our shores and in our ports?
Answer. The FY 2018 appropriation included funding to conduct a
pilot program studying new technologies, such as autonomous vessels, to
improve our maritime domain awareness across our mission sets.
Question 2. Does the Coast Guard currently have the resources to
test, evaluate and integrate disruptive technologies like autonomous
vessels to support the Coast Guard's counter drug mission at the Mona
Passage, off the coast of San Diego and the Gulf of Mexico?
Answer. Given the vast maritime domain and broad mission sets for
which the Coast Guard is responsible, autonomous aviation, surface, and
subsurface assets may be part of a comprehensive solution to combatting
smuggling activity conducted by Transnational Criminal Organizations.
The FY 2018 appropriation included funding to conduct a pilot
program to study some of these technologies.
Question 3. If given adequate resources and funding, would the
Coast Guard benefit from adopting these new technologies to combat the
flow of illegal narcotics across our maritime borders?
Answer. We are currently exploring how new technology can best be
applied to improve our performance across all missions.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Dan Sullivan to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. Have Coast Guard vessel deployments increased to the
Arctic, or are they scheduled to increase? And if not, why not?
Answer. The Coast Guard has increased cutter deployments to the
Arctic for the annual Operation Arctic Shield, focused on promoting
national interests and sovereignty throughout the Arctic. The increased
level of human activity in the Arctic continues to increase the
probability of a maritime incident and requires a heightened Coast
Guard presence to monitor activity, respond to incidents, enforce
regulations and support national interests. The Coast Guard Heavy Polar
Icebreaker acquisition program is the first crucial step to providing
year-round assured access to the Arctic.
Question 2. The closest Coast Guard homeport to the Arctic Circle
is over 1,500 miles away from the operating area. The Coast Guard is on
record expressing a need for a strategic Arctic port. How beneficial
would such a port be for the Coast Guard? And what have your
communications been with the Army Corps of Engineers and others in
transmitting this demand signal?
Answer. A strategic Arctic port would help assure our Nation's
ability to maintain U.S. access throughout the Arctic region to more
quickly respond to current and future national security demands in the
Arctic, to preserve its economic interests, and to exercise U.S.
sovereignty.
Specifically, a strategic Arctic port capable of accommodating USCG
and DoD surface assets would reduce the distance U.S. vessels currently
travel for logistical support; it would increase the time these assets
can perform missions in the Arctic region; and it could serve as a
forward staging base and a hub for missions to advance U.S. national
security interests.
For the development of the Coast Guard's February 11, 2014 Report
to Congress on the Feasibility of Establishing an Arctic Deep-Draft
Seaport, the Coast Guard consulted with the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (USACE) as well as the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Maritime
Administration. This report addressed the feasibility of establishing a
deepwater seaport in the Arctic to protect and advance strategic United
States interests within the Arctic region. Subsequent to that
collaboration, Section 1202(c) of the Water Infrastructure Improvements
for the Nation (WINN) Act directed the Army Corps to ``. . . consult
with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating to identify benefits in carrying out the missions specified
in section 888 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 468)
associated with an Arctic deep draft port.'' The Coast Guard has had
numerous exchanges with the USACE regarding this study under the WIIN
Act, to include the exchange of information related to vessel transits
and automatic identification system data.
Question 3. For a number of years there has been a military housing
shortage in Kodiak. The recently passed Ominbus had funding for Coast
Guard housing. What is the current situation in Kodiak?
Answer. Currently, Coast Guard housing in Kodiak maintains full
occupancy.
Question 4. Where does Alaska writ large stand in line for
additional Coast Guard infrastructure funding?
Answer. Infrastructure funding priorities are based on numerous
factors to include service location need as well as privately owned
options. Future projection shows a possible deficit in Alaska housing.
Currently, my staff is exploring ways to decrease this deficit,
including a phased approach to address both current and future needs as
additional assets are homeported in Alaska.
Question 5. In 2016 the Coast Guard finalized a rule that requires
the use of biometric readers to verify TWIC (Transportation Worker
Identification Credential) cards. It is my understanding that both
industry and Coast Guard have acknowledged this difference and Coast
Guard has indicated to industry and the regulated community that there
would be a delay.
The compliance deadline of August 23, 2018 is fast approaching. And
these facilities, having relied on assurances from Coast Guard itself,
will not be able to comply.
Did the rule that was finalized in 2016 differ from the proposal
put forth in 2013?
Answer. The language in the Final Rule was slightly different than
what was in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and that difference
created some uncertainty in the applicability of the rule.
Question 6. What is the status of the rule implementation? Will
there be a delay? And will industry be consulted before a new
compliance date is made?
Answer. In consultation with DHS, the Coast Guard diligently
considered a host of options regarding the TWIC Reader Rule. We
evaluated all options and ultimately initiated a rulemaking project to
provide clarity to the affected population. The Office of Management
and Budget is currently reviewing the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
Once published in the Federal Register, the public will have the
opportunity to comment on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
Question 7. Is there a training shortfall within the Coast Guard to
provide Coast Guardsmen the needed authorities to conduct maritime
interdiction operations?
Answer. There are no known training shortfalls that would limit our
authorities to conduct maritime interdictions.
Question 8. What are the Coast Guard's approval authorities for
escalation of force?
Answer. Collectively, 14 U.S.C. Sec. 89(a), 14 U.S.C. Sec. 637, and
14 U.S.C. Sec. 2237 provide a triad of authority, indemnification, and
criminal offense designed to support USCG efforts to stop non-compliant
vessel when conducting interdiction.
Question 9. Does the Coast Guard have a training, rank, and/or
experience level problem that would prevent vessel commanders from
making escalation of force decisions on the spot (not including self-
defense)? How can this be addressed?
Answer. No. The Coast Guard does execute many bi-lateral and multi-
lateral agreements that sometimes require legal review and senior level
approval to ensure interdictions are conducted according to those
agreements when operating on the high seas.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Jim Inhofe to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. As Chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee of the Senate
Armed Services Committee, I know that our military was gutted under
President Obama. Under sequestration, Defense accounted for 50 percent
of the cuts, but only 16 percent of spending. As a result, our military
equipment is aging and our base infrastructure requires critical
maintenance and upgrades. We have seen impacts on personnel, pilots are
leaving the military because they are not getting flight hours to
maintain their skills. Today, we are fixing these problems--in large
part because our Senior Military leaders have finally acknowledged
there is a problem. We finally have an Administration that will support
the necessary funding to rebuild our military--and Congress went above
and beyond the President's request in the funding bill to give our men
and women in uniform the resources required to answer the call quickly
and effectively. Now, because the Military will always make it work, it
took a long time before we saw the impact to readiness that I just
described. As you well know, the Coast Guard has a unique
responsibility for both Homeland Security and non-Homeland Security--in
fact it has 11 statutory missions.
How would you characterize the state of readiness for the United
States Coast Guard today?
Answer. The Coast Guard appreciates Congress's support to rebuild
the readiness of our Service. The CG, like the other Armed Forces, has
faced significant challenges under the Budget Control Act caps and
faces challenges associated with degraded readiness. Unfortunately,
persistent underfunding has eroded readiness and forced the CG to
prioritize the most critical near-term operations and direct support
activities at the expense of modernizing, advancing capabilities, and
building capacity to keep pace with the proliferating threats we face
as a Nation. Specifically, we face:
Aging assets with significantly increasing maintenance costs;
Lost purchasing power due to the lack of non-pay inflation;
Deferred maintenance across all asset portfolios and shore
infrastructure;
Strained and undersized workforce;
Emerging requirements (e.g., cyber-security, marine safety
capacity).
Question 2. When your predecessor testified before this Committee,
I asked him about the condition of the Coast Guard's Inland River
Tenders. These vessels maintaining navigation aids and buoys marking
water channels. These channels must be marked for river barges to
safely move grain, fertilizer, steel, and refined petroleum along 600
miles of river from the Port of Catoosa in Tulsa to New Orleans and
beyond. These vessels are old, the Coast Guard vessel responsible for
navigation aids in the Arkansas River was built in 1965. Coast Guard
Reauthorization Act that passed this Committee included my provision
asking the Coast Guard for a report on an acquisition strategy for new
river tenders.
Can you discuss the current acquisition plan and whether there's
any opportunity to accelerate the acquisition of these sorely needed
replacement ships?
Answer. We are incredibly thankful to Congress for the additional
funding in FY18 to accelerate the recapitalization of our inland fleet.
The program entered the ``Analyze/Select'' phase (ADE-1) in December
2017 and is planning to engage with industry and other stakeholders to
find efficiencies that can further accelerate the program. Based on the
additional funding provided in FY18, we are working to accelerate via
the following initiatives:
Accelerating design studies and leveraging existing work with
external agencies (i.e., Army Corps, etc.),
Advancing the completion of critical acquisition milestones and
Alternative Analysis studies,
Hiring necessary personnel to work toward an accelerated
acquisition timeline, and
Engaging with industry to leverage their collective knowledge
and support.
Question 3. Are you working with other agencies, like the Army
Corps of Engineers, to determine if you can incorporate existing vessel
designs to make recapitalization less expensive and time-consuming?
Answer. Yes. The Coast Guard is working with the Army Corps of
Engineers and industry to develop ``indicative'' designs that will meet
the government's operational requirements. These designs will leverage
existing state of the market technology that will provide an affordable
and highly capable material solution to meet the Nation's needs within
the Marine Transportation System.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Todd Young to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. Vice Admiral, on February 15, 2018, Admiral Tidd,
Commander, United States Southern Command, testified before the Senate
Armed Services Committee. During the course of the hearing, Ranking
Member Reed asked Admiral Tidd to confirm what percentage of shipments
thought to be containing illicit material were able to be interdicted
using currently available resources. Admiral Tidd testified that they
were only able to interdict about 25 percent of the vessels
transporting illicit materials.
First, do you agree with Admiral Tidd's assessment?
Answer. Yes. The Coast Guard has significantly increased our cutter
presence in the transit zone since 2014, however, in that same time,
the TCO shipment of illicit material, specifically cocaine, has
increased dramatically.
While we have available intelligence that allows us to know when
many of these movements take place, we do not have the number of assets
available to achieve the interdiction rates directed by national
policy.
Question 2. Second, what role does the Coast Guard specifically
play in the interdiction of these shipments?
Answer. We are the primary agency responsible for interdicting
vessels on the high seas. We are uniquely equipped with Airborne Use of
Force Packages onboard cutters deploying to the Eastern Pacific where
the majority of cocaine is shipped via go fast and low-profile vessels.
Our National Security Cutters (NSCs) are also equipped with organic
intelligence collection capability which further facilitates our
efforts to combat TCOs.
Question 3. Third, what specific assets does the Coast Guard need
to interdict more illicit shipments? (For each additional asset, please
describe how this additional asset would specifically change the
percentage of illicit shipments we could interdict.)
Answer. The Coast Guard's aging Medium Endurance Cutters are an
average of 35 years old, but conduct 40 percent of the interdiction in
the offshore areas. I am committed to the continuing the
recapitalization of the ships with the Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC), in
order to make sure we are able to continue targeting TCOs where they
are most vulnerable--at sea--in the years to come. The FY18
appropriation includes funding for construction of the 1st OPC and long
lead time material for the 2nd OPC.
______
Response to Written Question Submitted by Hon. Bill Nelson to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question. Combined Fiscal Year 2018 and the proposed Fiscal Year
2019 budgets will fund the first two offshore patrol cutters and long-
lead-time materials for a third. These new vessels will replace aging
cutters. How will these new vessels, which are being built in Florida,
allow you to better serve the American people?
Answer. The Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) will be the workhorse of
the Coast Guard's offshore fleet for decades to come; bridge the
capability between the National Security Cutter (NSC) and the Fast
Response Cutter (FRC), and replace the aging Medium Endurance Cutter
(MEC) fleet. OPCs will support the Coast Guard's Western Hemisphere
Strategy and help protect the southern border from dangerous criminal
activity carried out by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) in
the form of illegal narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and illegal
immigration. OPCs will serve as Mobile Command & Control platforms for
surge operations, including hurricane response, events of national
significance and mass migration. Finally, OPCs will support domestic
and foreign policy objectives through defense operations, security,
economic, and humanitarian efforts.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Maria Cantwell to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. The National Defense Authorization Act for 2017 (P.L.
114-328) was signed into law on December 23, 2016. This legislation
included authorities to expand military family leave policies for the
birth or adoption of a child. Specifically, the NDAA authorizes:
An increase of secondary caregiver (same sex spouses,
fathers) family leave, for the birth of a child from 10 days to
21 days.
An increase in primary caregiver family leave for the
adoption of a child from 21 days to 6 weeks.
Elimination of provisions allowing only one member of the
armed forces family leave when two members of the armed forces
are pursuing adoption of a child.
Authorization of 21 days of family leave for secondary
caregivers for the adoption of a child.
In March 2017, I sent the Coast Guard a letter requesting these
expanded benefits be swiftly implemented. More than a year has lapsed
since I sent this letter and the Coast Guard and there has been no
implementation or plan to expand these policies.
What is your timeline and plan to implement these expanded family
leave policies?
Answer. The Coast Guard is preparing to implement the new caregiver
leave policies of the 2017 NDAA. We are in direct coordination with the
Department of Defense--specifically the Navy--to ensure that this
implementation provides parity across the Services and is in alignment
with Title 10 and Title 14 requirements. We anticipate promulgating our
new policy simultaneous to the Navy's.
Question 2. Does the Coast Guard have the authority to implement
these expanded family leave policies on their own or does the Coast
Guard have to wait for DoD implementation before moving forward?
Answer. In accordance with 10 USC 701 and 14 USC 431, the CG will
wait for DoD implementation before moving forward.
Question 3. The Coast Guard operates 52-foot Special Purpose Heavy
Weather boats on the large coastal bars of Washington and Oregon. These
boats were purpose built for the Pacific Northwest, and are all over 60
years old. The 47-foot motor life boat does not have nearly the
operational capabilities of the 52-foot Special Purpose Heavy Weather
boats.
Do you agree that the 47-foot motor life boat is not a suitable
replacement vessel for the 52-foot Special Purpose Heavy Weather boat?
Answer. The 52-foot MLB is a reliable vessel that has served us
well for over 50 years, and it has specialized capabilities, especially
as it relates to towing capacity and seakeeping. There is currently no
plan to take them out of service. When the time comes to replace the
52-foot MLBs, the assets replacing them will meet all of the units'
mission requirements.
Question 4. Does the Coast Guard have a service life extension and
recapitalization plan for the 52-foot Special Purpose Heavy weather
boat?
Answer. The Coast Guard is currently focused on executing a Service
Life Extension Program (SLEP) for the 47-foot Motor Lifeboat (47 MLB)
fleet. The 47 MLBs conduct the vast majority of SAR in surf and heavy
weather conditions throughout the nation, and are approaching the end
of their projected service lives. The 47 MLB SLEP will replace the
engines and other major components, and is expected to extend the 47
MLB fleet's service life by an additional 20 years.
Question 5. If no, when will the Coast Guard develop a service life
extension and recapitalization plan for the 52-foot Special Purpose
Heavy Weather boat?
Answer. We continue to operate and maintain the 52-foot MLBs, and
there is currently no plan to take them out of service. If a
determination is made that a replacement boat is required for the 52-
foot MLB, the Coast Guard would ensure the assets meet all of the
mission requirements for the units.
Question 6. In terms of surface recapitalization priorities, where
is the 52-foot Special Purpose Heavy Weather boat on this list?
Answer. We continue to maintain and operate the 52-foot MLBs, and
there is currently no plan to take them out of service.
Question 7. Maintaining the four 60 year old 52s is becoming a
serious engineering and financial challenge. If you are confirmed, will
you work with Congress to accelerate the acquisition timeline for
replacement vessels for the 52-foot motor lifeboats?
Answer. I understand the importance of providing an asset that is
capable of operating in the extreme conditions of the Pacific
Northwest. When the time comes to replace the 52-foot MLBs, I assure
you that the assets replacing them will meet all of the units' mission
requirements.
Question 8. There are approximately only 200 surfmen in the entire
Coast Guard and only an estimated 50 of those members are certified to
operate the 52-foot motor lifeboat. The Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat
School at Cape Disappointment, Washington does not have a 52-foot motor
lifeboat to use as a training platform. How can the Coast Guard
increase the number surfmen trained and proficient to safely operate
and handle the 52-foot motor lifeboat? What other training resource
gaps would you work to address as Commandant?
Answer. The Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat School provides instruction
pertaining to the skills and knowledge needed to operate a heavy
weather and/or surf capable boat in those conditions. The Coast Guard
Motor Lifeboat School does not qualify or certify students on the 47-
foot or 52-foot MLBs. Specific boat type training, qualification, and
certification on the Coast Guard's surf-capable boats occur at the
individual stations. The Coast Guard is in the process of reviewing its
Prospective Surfman Program to ensure that it adequately supports the
needs of the service.
Question 9. Following the November 2017 Ocean, Atmosphere,
Fisheries, and Coast Guard Subcommittee oversight hearing I submitted
questions for the record to Admiral Zukunft what resources and funding
the Coast Guard needed to support research and technology development
to be better prepared to prevent and more effectively respond to a tar
sands oil spill. The answer I was provided detailed what the Coast
Guard is currently doing but, did not articulate the resources or
funding needed for continued investment.
What specific funding does the Coast Guard need to adequately
invest in technologies to more effectively respond to a tar sands oil
spill?
Answer. Oil pollution research is conducted by various Federal
agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as industry,
international, state and academic institutions. The Coast Guard
coordinates Federal research through the Interagency Coordinating
Committee on Oil Pollution Research (ICCOPR) and leverages the multiple
partners in order to advance the collective body of knowledge to
increase marine environmental response knowledge and capabilities
across all stakeholders. Neither the Coast Guard nor ICCOPR has
conducted an exhaustive analysis to determine what would constitute an
adequate level of investment in technology specific to tar sands
response. Such an investment could encompass a broad spectrum or
technologies and capabilities, many of which the Coast Guard likely
would not own or operate.
The Coast Guard Research and Development Center is currently
undertaking a project that directly contributes to improvements in
understanding ``new oils'' for the purpose of improving prevention and
response capabilities. The overall objective of this project is to
identify best practices to assist Federal On Scene Coordinators'
responses to Oil Sands spills. This project began in August of 2014 and
is expected to continue through February of 2020, and is funded through
an allocation from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund and the Great
Lakes Research Initiative.
Question 10. It is my understanding that the Coast Guard is the
chair of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution
Research (ICCOPR). I am concerned that the ICCOPR lacks necessary
funded to support projects to increase marine environmental response
capabilities and address known research gaps. How can the Coast Guard
improve funding to the ICCOPR? Would you consider entering into
agreements with member agencies on ICCOPR to improve funding?
Answer. ICCOPR itself is not funded, and does not undertake
research projects. ICCOPR serves as the coordinating body for each of
its 15 member agencies to routinely share information, coordinate on
strategic direction, and provide opportunities for member agencies to
collaborate at the project level. Individual project efforts are funded
through each agency's own budget processes, and some member agencies
have entered into interagency agreements. ICCOPR encourages that such
agreements maximize efforts by all member agencies.
Question 11. More than half the time has lapsed for the Fiscal Year
2015-2021 Oil Pollution Research and Technology Plan. What principal
objectives have been completed and priorities been addressed since the
inception of the plan?
Answer. In September 2015, ICCOPR released its FY 2015-2021 Oil
Pollution Research and Technology Plan (OPRTP), which established a
research framework grouped into four broad classes: Prevention,
Preparedness, Response, and Injury Assessment and Restoration. The six
year OPRTP further classified and prioritized research within the
classes into 25 standing research areas (SRAs), representing the most
common research themes encountered for oil spills. Research priorities
were established for each SRA, for a total of 150 priorities. The
Interagency Committee's 2016-2017 focus was to encourage the alignment
of member agency research programs to address identified research gaps
based on these common set of categories. During this period, the first
two years of performance under the current OPRTP, member agencies are
conducting research in 92 percent of the 25 Standing Research Areas.
Further, current member research projects address some aspect of 61
percent of the 150 research priorities identified in the OPRTP. In FY
2018-2019, ICCOPR will analyze any gaps in addressing priorities in
2016-2017, and determine best ways to address the gaps.
Question 12. Will ICCOPR meet all pollution research needs,
priorities, and goals in the Fiscal Year 2015-2021 Oil Pollution
Research and Technology Plan by the end of Fiscal Year 2021?
Answer. ICCOPR does not directly fund research projects, but rather
coordinates research by the member organizations. ICCOPR does not
undertake projects nor meet any research needs, priorities, or goals.
The member agencies of ICCOPR use the oil pollution research and
technology plan (R&T Plan) to provide strategic direction for their own
programs. ICCOPR encourages all entities (e.g., government, industry,
academia, and others) within the oil spill prevention, preparedness,
response, and injury assessment and restoration communities to
capitalize on the strategic direction provided by the R&T Plan (2015-
2021) to shape projects to assist in filling these gaps. ICCOPR strives
to continue to identify emerging research areas in light of the
changing landscape, and publish strategic direction to inform R&D
research agendas.
Question 13. What funding does ICCOPR or the Coast Guard need to
meet all the research goals articulated in the Fiscal Year 2015-2021
Oil Pollution Research and Technology Plan by the end of Fiscal Year
2021?
Answer. ICCOPR is not funded, but provides a coordination mechanism
for joint research and sets strategic direction for the member
agencies. Each member agency funds their research through their own
appropriation process. No ICCOPR member agency has singular
responsibility for all the research goals identified in the plan.
Question 14. Is ICCOPR leveraging research and partnership
opportunities with our National Labs?
Answer. ICCOPR routinely hosts members of National Labs to speak at
quarterly meetings, which has resulted in partnerships on new-start
projects with the member agencies of ICCOPR.
Question 15. If yes, what specific ongoing research projects does
ICCOPR have with our National Labs?
Answer. ICCOPR does not have any ongoing projects as it is an
information sharing body only. Individual member agencies of ICCOPR
have partnered on projects with National Labs. For example, the Coast
Guard just completed a project with Argonne National Lab on development
of material to absorb oil in the water column.
Question 16. In March 2017, there were only two Oil Spill Response
Organizations (OSROs) in Washington state classified by the Coast Guard
as capable of responding to a non-floating tar sands oil spill. What is
the Coast Guard doing to ensure there are enough classified OSROs and
resources capable of responding to a non-floating tar sands oil spill
in Washington?
Answer. The Coast Guard is committed to ensuring that adequate
response capabilities exist to respond to oil spills in the coastal
zone. The physical capabilities brought to bear during a spill response
are primarily from industry sources, whether through the Responsible
Party or under contract to the Coast Guard under a basic ordering
agreement. While tar sands (diluted bitumen) may initially float,
weathering or sedimentation may eventually cause it to sink. The Coast
Guard has classification programs for both floating and nonfloating
oils. Currently, the Coast Guard has approved six nonfloating oil spill
response organizations (OSROs) in Washington. Moreover, eleven
classified oil spill response organizations (OSROs) are capable of
responding to floating tar sands oil in the state of Washington.
Question 17. I secured language in the Coast Guard Authorization
Act of 2015 to extend the high volume port area in Puget Sound to
include Port Angeles and Cape Flattery, Washington to minimize oil
spill response and equipment deployment times. Since this change in
designation has the Coast Guard verified that previously approved
Vessel Response Plans are still sufficient in meeting the new faster
response equipment deployment standards?
Answer. The Coast Guard has verified that approved vessel response
plans meet the new requirements in the high volume port area.
Question 18. If yes, what was the result of this verification? Were
any of the response plans determined inadequate for meeting the new oil
spill response standards?
Answer. In September 2016, the Coast Guard conducted a preparedness
assessment visit in the State of Washington, and evaluated the Marine
Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) and the National Response Corporation
(NRC). These OSROs, and in particular their response resources listed
in the Response Resource Inventory (RRI), were found to be compliant
with the response requirements in the high volume port area.
Question 19. If no, what is the Coast Guard's plan and timeline for
carrying out this verification?
Answer. N/A
Question 20. If a vessel has a Coast Guard approved Vessel Response
Plan that only lists OSROs capable of responding to floating oil spills
and the vessel begins carrying non-floating oils, how does the Coast
Guard retain oversight over the vessel to ensure the current response
plan is updated to incorporate resources and OSROs classified to
respond to a non-floating oil spill?
Answer. When a vessel owner or operator wants to revise or amend an
approved response plan, they must submit it to the Coast Guard for
approval. This includes changes in the types of oil carried onboard
(oil group) that may affect the required response resources.
Question 21. Access to childcare places an unnecessary burden on
Coast Guard families living and serving in these communities.
What specific steps can be taken to address access to childcare
challenges for Coast Guard families? What additional specific steps
could be taken to improve access to childcare for families stationed at
remote Coast Guard stations, such as Coast Guard Station Neah Bay?
Answer. Ensuring the Coast Guard workforce has adequate access to
programs to provide family support is a high priority for me.
Since not all locations offer the same childcare options, Coast
Guard families are encouraged to explore all available childcare
options prior to finalizing a decision.
Question 22. Has the Coast Guard conducted a nationwide assessment
of childcare needs for members? Why or why not?
Answer. The last national assessment of childcare was conducted in
Fiscal Year 2004.
Question 23. What would the Coast Guard need from Congress to
conduct such an assessment?
Answer. The President has recently signed the Fiscal Year 2018
Omnibus Appropriations Act which directs the Coast Guard to conduct and
report on the results of a survey regarding cost and availability of
child care. Approximately $500K would enable the survey execution to be
expedited.
Question 24. What funding does the Coast Guard need to expand its
childcare services it provides to members?
Answer. Upon completion of the directed survey, the Coast Guard
will be better suited to determine what level of additional funding may
be needed to increase access to childcare services.
Question 25. The Coast Guard received $150 million in the Fiscal
Year 2018 Omnibus under the Navy's ship construction budget, to be used
for detail design and construction of a new polar icebreaker, and an
additional $19 million in Coast Guard's Fiscal Year 2018 budget to be
used for setting up the Coast Guard acquisition program of record.
Additionally, the Administration requested $750 million in Fiscal Year
2019 for accelerated acquisition and delivery of a new heavy polar
icebreaker. However, the new icebreaker will not be commissioned and
operational until 2023.
Do you agree that the Coast Guard needs to keep the POLAR STAR in
service until the new icebreaker is operational?
Answer. Absolutely. The availability of only one operational heavy
polar icebreaker does not allow for guaranteed year round access to the
Polar Regions or offer redundancy in the event of a catastrophic
casualty in ice-laden waters. To ensure we can protect our national
interests, assert our national sovereignty, and meet international
commitments the Coast Guard is planning to keep POLAR STAR in active
service until delivery of the second new heavy polar icebreaker.
Question 26. What is the Coast Guard's specific plan for continued
service life extension of the POLAR STAR?
Answer. The Coast Guard is committed to keeping POLAR STAR
operational until at least delivery of the second new heavy polar
icebreaker. We conducted a comprehensive engineering analysis on POLAR
STAR, which identified critical systems that must be recapitalized to
ensure continued operations until delivery of the second heavy polar
icebreaker. With this information, we will be conducting a phased
Service Life Extension Project (SLEP) (executed between annual
deployments) to replace these systems, which will ensure we continue to
meet the Nation's needs in the remote Polar Regions while our new
icebreakers are under construction.
Question 27. What is the Coast Guard's plan for ensuring there is
no gap in polar icebreaker mission support?
Answer. The Coast Guard is committed to sustaining current levels
of heavy polar icebreaking activities until new heavy polar icebreakers
are delivered. To ensure we continue to meet our statutory mission
requirements in the Polar Regions we are planning a phased Service Life
Extension Project (SLEP) on POLAR STAR to recapitalize critical
engineering systems, which will keep POLAR STAR operational until
delivery of the second new heavy polar icebreaker.
Question 28. There is a lot of congressional and administration
support to fund a new heavy polar icebreaker for the Coast Guard. I
want to ensure this momentum continues as we continue to recapitalize
the United States polar icebreaker fleet. What is your plan for
securing a fleet of icebreakers?
Answer. We are fully committed to recapitalizing the Nation's heavy
polar icebreaker fleet. To accomplish this in the most cost efficient
and expeditious manner, we have joined forces with the U.S. Navy via a
highly collaborative Integrated Program Office (IPO) where we are
leveraging the best of industry, DoD, and Coast Guard shipbuilding
practices to acquire new heavy polar icebreakers. On 2 March 2018, we
released the Detail Design and Construction (DD&C) Request for Proposal
(RFP)--nearly one month early--which will allow for the award of a DD&C
contract in FY19 and pave the way for delivery of the first new heavy
polar icebreaker in 2023 and follow-on hulls in 2025 and 2026. We are
as close as we have been in over 40 years to recapitalizing our
icebreaker fleet and continued support and investment will ensure we
can meet the Nation's growing needs in the rapidly evolving and dynamic
Polar Regions.
Question 29. How many vessels does the Coast Guard need in a polar
icebreaker fleet to adequately carry out its statutory missions,
protect sovereignty in the Arctic, and support scientific research?
Answer. To ensure continued performance of our vital missions in
the Polar Regions (e.g., assertion of national sovereignty, defense
readiness, etc.) multiple independent studies have indicated the need
is six new polar icebreakers.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. I continue to have reservations about the efficacy of
using limited Coast Guard resources to halt the flow of drugs into the
United States given the low percentage of successful interdictions over
water, and the high percentage of drugs entering the United States over
land.
How do you measure success in the Coast Guard's efforts to disrupt
cartels and other traffickers in Central and South America?
Answer. We continue to measure both cocaine interdiction rate
compared to known flow. In FY 2017, we removed a record 223.8 MT of
cocaine from the maritime environment, approximately 8.2 percent of the
known flow in that year. Additionally, we improved our record number of
708 suspects detained for further prosecution in FY 2017, and increased
by 28 percent the number of cases referred for U.S. prosecution over
the prior year.
Question 2. Could you please discuss how the Coast Guard's efforts
would be strengthened by a better resourced and staffed State
Department, including its country teams across Central and South
America?
Answer. The Coast Guard works directly with our partners in the
State Department, to facilitate engagements with our Partner Nations in
the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean to develop, enact, and enforce bi-
lateral and multi-lateral agreements. The State Department is integral
to the identification of opportunities for maritime law enforcement
training teams to improve partner nations' maritime governance. In
addition, the State Department is a key partner in facilitating
logistics for our own assets when operating in foreign ports.
Question 3. Can you please explain your view of how the Coast
Guard's counter drug mission should evolve over time, including how new
Coast Guard platforms (e.g., cutters and UAVs) might be able to shrink
the number of resources dedicated to the counter drug mission and give
the Coast Guard more flexibility to meet its missions elsewhere?
Answer. The Coast Guard will continue to explore all the tools
available to conduct efficient, comprehensive, interdiction activity.
The pilot program of the small Unmanned Arial Vehicle on board the
USCGC STRATTON demonstrated that new technology can provide the
potential to increase our ability to monitor the maritime domain.
Question 4. I understand the Coast Guard is looking at ways to
increase its presence in the Western Pacific.
What types of missions does the Coast Guard assess it might be best
positioned to support in the East and South China Seas? And how might
it collaborate with others in the Joint community, such as the Navy, to
support broader national security objectives?
Answer. The U.S. Coast Guard's unique authorities, capabilities,
competencies, and partnerships enable us to meaningfully engage with
our coast guard and navy counterparts in the Asia-Pacific region. We
currently deploy teams, subject matter experts, and liaison officers
throughout the region, including Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the
Philippines, to facilitate U.S. Coast Guard operations, improve the
operational readiness of our international partners, and bolster
regional maritime security. Our unique authorities and partnerships
enable engagement with other maritime agencies to shape maritime
governance, promote regional stability, and ensure national security.
Question 5. What information can you provide about the Coast
Guard's assessment of the costs and benefits of a 1.0 National Security
Cutter presence in the Western Pacific?
Answer. Using standard deployment models common to the Coast Guard
and Navy, it takes approximately three National Security Cutters to
provide a sustained 365 day per year (1.0) presence in our typical
operating locations within the Western Hemisphere, and potentially more
resources for an out-of-hemisphere deployment. National Security
Cutters have conducted single deployments alongside DoD combatants in
the Western Pacific during Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training
(CARaT) exercises. Conducting more joint operations in the Western
Pacific will improve the operational readiness of the partner nations.
Question 6. How is the Coast Guard evaluating opportunities to
increase its presence in the West Pacific through joint patrols, ship
rider agreements, and other collaborations with partners and allies?
Answer. The Coast Guard works continually with our DoD partners to
evaluate opportunities to increase presence in the Western Pacific.
Additionally, the Coast Guard deploys teams, subject matter experts,
and liaison officers throughout the region, including Vietnam,
Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, to facilitate U.S. Coast
Guard operations, improve the operational readiness of our
international partners, and bolster regional maritime security. Our
unique authorities and partnerships enable engagement with other
maritime agencies to shape maritime governance, promote regional
stability, and ensure national security.
Question 7. At this time, what additional resources has the Coast
Guard identified it needs to support a greater forward presence in the
West Pacific? Which of these resources are programmed in the Coast
Guard's budget and which are not?
Answer. Measurable Coast Guard forward presence in the Western
Pacific will be provided by major cutter deployments. Whether the U.S.
Coast Guard deploys a ship to the region depends on U.S. foreign policy
objectives and the operational availability of our largest ships--the
National Security Cutters. This year the Coast Guard will take delivery
of our 7th National Security Cutter, homeported in Honolulu, HI.
Additionally the Fiscal Year 2018 Omnibus Appropriation provided
funding for the construction of the 10th and 11th National Security
Cutters. Personnel and Operations & Maintenance funding for these ships
will be programmed in future budget requests.
Question 8. The Coast Guard has a plan to bring C-130Js to Hawaii
in the mid-2020s, but Air Station Barbers Point needs a new hangar to
maintain them there. When is Air Station Barbers Point expected to take
delivery of its first C-130J?
Answer. With the support of Congress, the Coast Guard was able to
appropriate the 15th C-130J as a part of the Fiscal Year 2018 Omnibus
Appropriation. A 16th C-130J aircraft is required to transition Air
Station Barbers Point from the legacy C-130H to the C-130J. Facility
upgrades at Air Station Barbers Point have been requested in the Fiscal
Year 2019 Presidents Budget and the construction period is expected to
be complete in Fiscal Year 2022. Upon delivery of the 16th C-130J and
completion of these necessary upgrades, the Coast Guard plans to
transition to C-130J operations at Air Station Barbers Point.
Question 9. How is the Coast Guard working with DHS, OMB, and
others in the interagency to ensure that the currently unfunded C-130J
hangar is on track to be constructed so the Coast Guard keeps to the
planned delivery schedule?
Answer. The Coast Guard conducts formal internal reviews to
prioritize major acquisition system infrastructure and will look for
future opportunities to fund a hangar construction project at Air
Station Barbers Point. In the interim, to ensure there is no delay to
the planned C-130J delivery schedule, the Coast Guard has requested
facility upgrades necessary to operate at Air Station Barbers Point in
the Fiscal Year 2019 Presidents Budget.
Question 10. Given the C-130J's mission support to the Joint
community, what, if any, opportunities has the Coast Guard assessed
and/or explored to fund the new hangar requirement from non-DHS
sources?
Answer. As a part of the alternatives analysis for any major
systems acquisition the Coast Guard considers many alternatives
including re-locating to other government properties, alternative
funding sources, or leasing facilities. At this time, the Coast Guard
believes the best location to base C-130Js remains at our pre-existing
air station.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Gary Peters to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. Vice Admiral Schultz, I understand that Unified
Commands are established when the role of the incident commander is
shared by two or more individuals, each already having authority in a
different responding agency,--in this case Coast Guard and PHMSA--and
that they are supposed to help gather information regarding a response
and make decisions on future operations.
When is the ``After Action Report'' from the Unified Command for
the April 2018 ATC incident in Mackinac Straits expected to be
available, and may I have a copy of the report when it is available.
Answer. I will have my staff provide you with the results of the
casualty investigation, once it is complete.
Question 2. In November 2017, I sent a QFR asking to see the report
from the Mar/Apr 2017 Coast Guard's R&D Center's Diluted Bitumen Study
conducted at Ohmsett Lab in New Jersey, to which the answer was that
report was not yet completed.
It has now been a year since that test; please provide an update on
the status of the test and a timeline for the report.
Answer. The report for the bitumen research conducted at Ohmsett
Lab was published on April 2, 2018. The study is attached.
Question 3. During the hearing, there was mention of oil spill
methods and prototypes being tested in Michigan freshwater in April and
May 2018. Vice Admiral Schultz mentioned that reports from those tests
would not be complete until summer of 2019. Why will this report take
more than a year to complete?
Answer. These tests are part of a larger oil sands products spill
response research and development project. Additional research and
testing is planned as part of this effort, and the results from all of
the tests will be analyzed and included in a final report at the
conclusion of the project. The Coast Guard expects to complete this
project and its report by the summer of 2019.
Question 4. Vice Admiral Schultz, I understand the Coast Guard is
looking at buying more light short-range drones for its cutters, as
well as larger drones. The outgoing Commandant has been quoted saying
``we are grossly underutilizing DHS drones, because DHS just doesn't
have enough people to operate them for the prolonged'' and offered the
suggestion that Coast Guard members could aid DHS and CBP in operating
the drones they already have. What do you recommend in order to get DHS
and Coast Guard UAS program up to par with DODs?
Answer. The USCG and CBP established a DHS Joint Program Office
(JPO) to manage the training, operations, and employment of the MQ-9
UAS and associated crews. USCG pilots and sensor operators work side by
side with CBP to conduct joint land and maritime border operations to
prevent the flow of illegal narcotics and illegal immigration. The JPO
is largely modeled after DoD joint operations and is considered a huge
success in DHS joint operations.
In FY18 DoD requested $6.97B for drone-related procurement,
research and development, and system-specific construction. By
comparison, the Coast Guard requested $7.21B to operate the entire
Coast Guard and $6.4M for UAS activities.
Although the Coast Guard UAS program is small in comparison to the
overall DoD footprint, we recently conducted a successful prototype of
a small UAS (sUAS) system aboard CGC STRATTON on three different
patrols.
The sUAS provided surveillance, situational awareness, and tactical
Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance (ISR) over a total of 20+
law enforcement cases; assisting the STRATTON with the interdiction of
illicit contraband in international waters. The Coast Guard recently
released a request for proposals (RFP) to outfit the entire fleet of
National Security Cutters with this significant advancement in
technology/situational awareness. Continued support for this program
will ensure the Coast Guard maximizes use of UAS technology in the
future.
Question 5. How do you see the Coast Guard utilizing autonomy as
part of its missions and operations in the future?
Answer. The Coast Guard is continuously exploring ways to leverage
emerging technology to improve mission performance. Autonomous vehicles
may present opportunities to enhance performance across several mission
areas, particularly with regards to maritime domain awareness.
The Coast Guard is grateful to Congress for the FY 2018
appropriation, which included $5 million to perform a full assessment
of available autonomous systems that can be utilized to improve our
maritime domain awareness, particularly in the Pacific theater.
Attachment
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Acknowledgements
RDC is grateful for the cooperation of Enbridge Pipeline who worked
with the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) to provide
oil for testing. In addition, RDC wishes to acknowledge the assistance
of the Coast Guard ATON/MER Asset Line for providing the DESMI Helix
skimmer and finally the Bureau of Safety and Environmental
Enforcement's National Oil Spill Response Research & Renewable Energy
Test Facility (Ohmsett) for lending the ELASTEC drum skimmer.
Executive Summary
The U.S. Coast Guard (CG) Research and Development Center (RDC)
drafted this white paper to document a test that evaluated the recovery
of weathered diluted bitumen in fresh water. In the past, limited
recovery tests have been performed for response to diluted bitumen in
salt water, but none have been performed in fresh water to ensure that
this environment does not cause unique problems.
RDC collaborated with Enbridge to provide the appropriate oil and
identified a drum skimmer and a brush skimmer that represent two
classes of skimmer commonly found in responders' inventories. The
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement's National Oil Spill
Response Research & Renewable Energy Test Facility (Ohmsett) installed
a separate test tank adjacent to the main Ohmsett test tank and filled
it with fresh water. Ohmsett conducted the test using the ASTM F2709,
Standard Test Method for Determining Nameplate Recovery Rate of
Stationary Oil Skimmer Systems. The oil was weathered to simulate a
spill lasting over 8 days. The recovery efficiency was never below 70
percent for either skimmer, although the recovery rates varied somewhat
due to the skimmer configuration. The data collected during this
evaluation indicates that with care, standard skimmers do not need
special modifications to recover diluted bitumen in fresh water,
especially in the early stages of a spill while the oil is on the
surface. These typical skimmers need to be monitored closely for
rotational speed during the early stages to ensure efficiency. A lower
recovery rate may be acceptable for increased efficiency. More powerful
pumps may be needed during the later stages of a spill involving this
type of product as the viscosity increases.
We recommend that the Coast Guard make this information available
to oil spill responders through training, conferences and Federal On
Scene Commander's guidance documents.
1 Introduction
There has been an increase in the movement of products from the
Canadian Oil Sands in Alberta into the United States. This includes
shipment by rail and pipeline of diluted bitumen (dilbit), which is a
crude oil that is composed of bitumen and added diluents. Although the
characteristics of dilbit are similar to other crude oils, the
combination of heavy components with a lighter crude or condensate
raises questions about its behavior when spilled and the best methods
to use in response to a spill. Earlier research has been done to
address some of these questions. In the United States, the National
Academy of Science (NAS) has done some assessment to identify issues
that need to be addressed during a pipeline spill (NAS 2016). The USCG
Research & Development Center (RDC) performed an initial assessment and
identified some outstanding issues for behavior and response (Hansen
et. al., 2015). Some work on behavior and response to dilbit spills has
been done by multiple Canadian organizations including Environment and
Climate Change Canada, Natural Resources Canada and researcher Merv
Fingas. (Fingas, 2015; Fieldhouse et. al. 2016; Zhou, 2015).
Kinder-Morgan contracted Witt O'Briens and Polaris to determine
behavior and perform initial evaluation for the response options of
mechanical recovery, dispersants, and in-situ burning for dilbit spills
in salt water. (Taylor et. al., 2014 and Witt/O'Briens et. al., 2013).
The two samples tested did not sink during a two-week test in
artificial salt water. Other results from this test indicate that
dilbit may be dispersible shortly after the oil is spilled, and
standard mechanical cleanup equipment can be used in the initial stages
of a spill. In-situ burning may also be useful during the early stages
of a spill of this type as well. However, this work involving response
methods did not address specific issues of spills in fresh water.
All of the efforts described above, occurred after 2010 when a
large amount of diluted bitumen escaped from a pipeline into the
Kalamazoo River (EPA, 2016). Following that spill, there were concerns
about what worked and what did not for response, as well as questions
about where the oil ended up.
1.1 Objective
The primary objective of this effort was to investigate the ability
to recover dilbit spilled in fresh water using two different oleophilic
recovery systems while controlling and monitoring the weathering of the
dilbit. The RDC contracted with the Bureau of Safety and Environmental
Enforcement's (BSEE) National Oil Spill Response Research & Renewable
Energy Test Facility (Ohmsett) to conduct these skimmer tests. The two
skimmers used in the tests were the USCG Helix Dual-DOP skimmer and an
ELASTEC American Marine TDS-118G drum skimmer. Through a Cooperative
Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the RDC, Enbridge
Pipeline arranged to get some Cold Lake Winter Blend (CLWB) for the
Ohmsett tests. Before the test, the RDC believed that the oil
properties, at a currently unknown degree of weathering, may become too
viscous and/or cohesive to recover and transport using mechanical
recovery.
1.2 Background
Previous to this RDC effort, limited data was collected for
recovery options of oil sand products. Table 1, below, summarizes the
data collected in Canadian tests for three different brush skimmers
during temperate summer weather in Gainsford, Alberta, Canada (Taylor
et al., 2014). The participants conducted recovery tests on six of the
ten days that the oil was in the salt water test tanks. There was a
wide range of data for the water content, rate of oil recovery and
percent (%) of oil content in the collection cube after decanting.
There was not adequate discussion to determine the cause for such a
wide range of data. The conclusions in that report were:
No performance shortcomings were observed in the current
inventory of recovery equipment available to Trans Mountain
Pipeline ULC (TMPL) and its contractors;
The more viscous oil encountered on three of the days caused
no skimmer malfunctions including stalls, seizures, or poor
recovery;
Operational adjustments to compensate for increased dilbit
viscosity were no different than field adjustments made to
equipment during actual spill events for most types of oils;
This particular dilbit behaved similarly to any other crude
oil that the participating spill response professionals had
experienced in the past.
The Coast Guard's interest was in determining if any issues related
to dilbit recovery were different when fresh water was involved.
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Notes
- Values were for the oil at the beginning of the test and the oil
came from the common discharge tank. After the modification of the
test, such that the skimmers were discharging to their own tanks, there
was a high and low value from the three tanks.
-- Value is from one tank which had been left for 10 days
undisturbed.
One tank extrapolated values for May 18 not included in
range as curve was outlier.
# Following laboratory analysis, the initial sample jar returned an
anomalous 91.1 percent water content. The results from a second jar are
presented here with confidence that this alternate is more
representative of the product recovered in the test.
2 Testing Setup and Results
2.1 Testing
2.1.1 Testing Configuration
The Ohmsett staff set up a temporary tank in a location called Lake
Zelman, a secondary containment area adjacent to the main Ohmsett test
tank. The configuration included a 4-foot deep, 16-foot diameter tank
(Figure 1, left). Multiple 330-gallon metal blue totes were used for
recovering the oil collected during the tests. The arrangement included
a three-way valve and manifold with a 4-inch Cam-lock inlet to permit
flow to be directed into a ``slop'' tote for initial oil collection
while the system was stabilized and a ``collect'' tote for oil
collected during the timed test (Figure 1, right). As mentioned
earlier, two skimmers were used for these tests, an ELASTEC TDC-118G
drum skimmer and a Desmi Ro-clean Helix brush skimmer. They were
powered by two respective hydraulic power packs. These skimmers
represent two general types normally available in the field during a
response.
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Figure 1. Test area configuration.
2.1.2 Test Oil
Ohmsett received two deliveries of Cold Lake Winter Blend (CLWB).
The first delivery was a 5-gallon batch to conduct some preliminary
weathering trials. The second was a 2,000-gallon batch for the actual
testing. The initial 5-gallon batch was weathered by placing it into a
metal tray just below the deck of the Ohmsett test basin to avoid
direct sunlight. Oil samples were collected on 2 hour intervals during
the first day, at 4-hours intervals the second day, and then every 24
hours after 2 days as the rate of evaporation changed. The Ohmsett
staff measured the density and viscosity of the samples and these
values were used to set up a schedule for weathering the large batch.
The staff placed the full amount of test oil (2,000 gallons) into a
large tank (Figure 2) and a horizontal air sparging system consisting
of a 10-foot pipe with 20 air holes sized at 1/8 inch. Only two of the
four 20-inch manholes were opened at the top of this tank. Air was
initially introduced at 75 pounds per square inch (psi) and 4 cubic
feet per minute (CFM) and later increased to 100 psi and 7 CFM. Almost
immediately from the start, the density/weathering data did not match
the data collected from the preliminary 5-gallons sample. As seen in
Figure 3, the values for the oil in the large tank (pre-test) were
lower than that of the small batch in the pan (preliminary). The staff
installed a second air sparging system with 150 holes sized at 1/16
inch, however, the weathering data again did not match. The data is not
reported because there was no change in the viscosity values. Multiple
weathering attempts using small batches of the oil on trays and in
totes were also unsuccessfully matched.
Finally, Ohmsett staff placed small batches in several of the totes
and installed air sparging systems specifically designed for the totes.
They were run for several weeks before the higher viscosity levels were
attained that matched the values for the small batch that weathered
normally. It appears that the lower temperature in the outdoor tank and
the limited air exchange with the manholes, reduced the efficiency in
the forced weathering effort. Values of over 40,000 centipoises (cP)
were eventually reached.
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Figure 2. Large tank for large batch of oil (2,000 gallons).
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Figure 3. Data for preliminary (small batch in pan) and pre-test
(from larger test batch).
2.2 Test Process
The testers followed the ASTM Standard F2709, Standard Test Method
for Determining Nameplate Recovery Rate of Stationary Oil Skimmer
Systems. This standard recommends a test area at least three times the
dimensions of the skimmer. This area was slightly reduced for the Desmi
skimmer, but for the objectives of this test, the area was adequate.
The general steps followed were:
(1) Collect initial data (temperature and oil samples for density,
viscosity, etc.).
(2) Set rotational speed of skimmer.
(3) Place skimmer into test area, preload oil into test area (Figure
4, left).
(4) Start skimmer and divert first amount into ``slop'' tote. Switch
discharge to ``collect' tote and continue until 1 inch of slick
is recovered (Figure 4, right). Record time and move tote out
for decanting and oil sampling.
(5) Perform final sampling and data collection.
(6) Switch out skimmers and repeat.
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Figure 4. Helix skimmer during oil preload and testing.
2.3 Test Results
A summary of the test data is shown in Table 2 for each skimmer.
The last two columns for efficiency and oil recovery rate are plotted
in Figure 5. The results indicate that efficiency for the first six
tests were close to 100 percent. This shows that these skimmers
performed well when the oil was fresh. The Ohmsett staff noted that
some of the lower numbers for efficiency rate and recovery rate in the
data suggests that the skimmer parameters may not have been set
correctly. The ELASTEC skimmer can be adjusted for the rotational speed
of the drum, and the Helix brushes' rotation can also be adjusted. It
proved difficult to count the rotations and adjust exactly after the
drum and brushes were coated with oil. Adjustments could also be made
for the pumps that move the oil from the collection site into the
storage container for both skimmers. Getting the recovered oil to flow
to the pump in both skimmers was problematic starting at viscosities of
about 14,000 cP, especially for the drum skimmer. In addition, at the
higher viscosities, a large amount of oil attached on the drum and
brush during the first few revolutions and the scrapping mechanisms had
difficulty in clearing the oil for additional oil to attach. At higher
rotational speeds, this was more visually apparent.
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Note: Only full skimmer test results were recorded.
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Figure 5. Skimmer recovery rates and efficiency data from tests.
3 Conclusions
This Ohmsett skimmer test added to the limited data on actual
efficiencies of various skimmers. The results increase the body of
knowldege from the previous tests in Canada and Ohmsett. When this test
is compared to the skimmer tests at Ohmsett during ``Ice Month'' (SL
Ross and MAR 2013), it must be noted that test used a refined product
called Hydrocal with a viscosity of approximately 1,000 cP. The Ice
Month tests were conducted with approximately 30 percent ice. The Helix
skimmer was about 70 percent efficient with recovery rates of 27-42
gallons per minute (GPM) and the drum skimmer was over 65 percent
efficient with recovery rates of over 21 GPM, both lower than the
dilbit tests.
When the dilbit test is compared to the tests in Canada (Table 1),
the viscosities were lower due to the higher temperatures.
Unfortunately, the Canada tests grouped the skimmer performances, so it
is not possible to pull out specific skimmer performance for comparison
from the Canadian data.
The data collected during this skimmer test indicates that with
care, standard skimmers do not need special modifications to recover
diluted bitumen in fresh water, particularly in the early stages of a
spill while the oil is on the surface. While there is a large
variability, the skimmer performance can be refined for increased
recovery rate by adjusting the rotation rate of the collection device
and the collection pump. These types of skimmers need to be monitored
closely for rotational speed during the early stages of operation. A
lower recovery rate may be acceptable when traded off for increased
efficiency. Pumps that are more powerful may be needed during the later
stages of a spill of this type of material.
4 References
ASTM F2709, Standard Test Method for Determining Nameplate Recovery
Rate of Stationary Oil Skimmer Systems
Fieldhouse, Ben, Alaa Alsaafin, Sailly Dave, Caroline Jung, Kevin
Watson and Robert Faragher, ``Results from Effectiveness Testing of
Chemical Countermeasures and Sorbent performance on Oil Sands
Products,'' 2016 AMOP
Fingas, Merv, Review or Properties and Behavior of Diluted
Bitumens, 2015 AMOP
Hansen, Kurt, Mike Sprague, John Joeckel, Mark Rockley, Response to
Oil Sands Products Assessment CG-D-16-15, September 2015
MAR, Inc, ``U.S.C/G R&D Center Testing of Oil Sands Products Using
Skimmers in Fresh Water,'' 2/27/17-5/19/2017.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016.
Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines: A Comparative Study of
Environmental Fate, Effects, and Response. Washington, D.C.: The
National Academies Press.
SL Ross Environmental Research Limited (SL Ross) and Mar, Inc,
``Skimmer tests in Drift Ice: Ice Month 2013 at Ohmsett, prepared for
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement,'' Herndon, VA, August
2013
Taylor, Elliott, Greg Challenger, Jose Rios, Jim Morris, M.W.
McCarthy, Colin Brown, ``Dilbit Crude Oil Weathering on Brackish Water:
meso-scale tests of Behavior and Spill Countermeasures,'' 2014 AMOP, pg
317-337.
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2016, Ralph Dollhopf and
Jeff Kimble, Federal On-Scene Coordinator Desk Report for the Enbridge
Line 6b Oil Spill, Marshall, Michigan, April 2016.
Witt/O'Brian's, Polaris, & WCMRC. (2013). A Study of Fate and
Behavior of Diluted bitumen Oils on Marine Waters. Gainford, Alberta,
Canada. Retrieved from http://www.transmountain.com/uploads/papers/
1391734754-astudyoffateandbehav
iourofdilutedbitumenoilsonmarinewater.pdf
Zhou, John, Heather Dettman and Martin Bundred, ``A Comparative
Analysis of Environmental Behavior of Diluted Bitumen and Conventional
Crudes,'' 2015 AMOP.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Tammy Baldwin to
Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. Congress provided the Coast Guard $2 million in FY17
and another $3 million in FY18 for survey and design work for the heavy
Great Lakes Icebreaker, and I'm concerned that the Coast Guard has been
slow-walking this project, contrary to congressional intent.
What is the status of survey and design work for the heavy Great
Lakes Icebreaker, including the spend plan for funding appropriated in
FY17 and FY18?
Answer. The Coast Guard is reviewing existing analyses and
exploring initiatives to effectively utilize the survey and design
funding for additional Great Lakes capacity to ensure a balanced and
informative strategy going forward.
This includes working towards the development of operational
requirements to best meet our future icebreaking needs on the Great
Lakes, as well as evaluating current icebreaking capability, to include
detailed survey and analysis of existing hull, mechanical, auxiliary,
and electrical systems on CGC MACKINAW to identify gaps and inform
possible future hull and system designs
Question 2. Do you believe that existing Buy American laws and
domestic content requirements, as they apply to the Coast Guard, are
beneficial to: (a) U.S. economic and national security; (b) the
domestic industrial base; and (c) the Coast Guard? If yes, how? If no,
why not? Please provide answers for each of these three subparts. In
your view, what is the relationship among these three subparts?
Answer. Under Federal law, the Coast Guard is required to construct
and repair all vessels in U.S. shipyards and to ensure that all
delivered end products include at least 50 percent of domestically
sourced components and materials.
Congress has enacted several laws to provide preference for
domestically sourced end items. The Coast Guard is committed to
applying these principles under Federal law via our acquisition and
procurement efforts.
The Coast Guard complies with all requirements of the Buy American
Act and all other laws as implemented under the Federal Acquisition
Regulation.
The Coast Guard is committed to delivering assets and capabilities
that best meet mission demands and represent the best value to the
service and the American people. The Coast Guard will continue to apply
all tools available under Federal law to accomplish these objectives.
Question 3. VADM Schultz, based on the Coast Guard's experience and
your own experience as the commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Area,
are you aware of any disciplinary or unit cohesion issues resulting
from the opening of service to transgender individuals on June 30,
2016? If so, can you tell me how they have been handled by unit
leadership?
Answer. I am not aware of any disciplinary or unit cohesion issues
resulting from the opening of the CG to transgender individuals.
Question 4. Admiral Zukunft told the House Appropriations
Subcommittee on Homeland Security on April 17, 2018, that the Coast
Guard is committed to the continued service of the 17 transitioned
Coast Guardsmen. Do you make that same commitment?
Answer. I will continue to treat Coast Guard personnel with the
respect and dignity that they deserve. The CG is complying with
Presidential directions and court orders and I will remained engaged
with Department of Defense with regard to this issue.
Question 5. Have you met with any transgender Coast Guardsmen to
speak with them about their experiences? If not, do I have your
commitment to do so?
Answer. I have not had specific meetings with transgender members
to discuss their experiences.
Question 6. To the maximum extent practicable, the Coast Guard is
directed to utilize components that are manufactured in the United
States when contracting for new vessels. Such components include:
auxiliary equipment, such as pumps for shipboard services; propulsion
equipment including engines, reduction gears, and propellers; shipboard
cranes; and spreaders for shipboard cranes.
As Commandant, how will you interpret and comply with the below
language (from the Homeland Security Explanatory Statement to accompany
the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018) regarding congressional
intent for the Coast Guard to utilize, to the maximum extent
practicable, U.S. manufactured vessel components?
Answer. The Coast Guard will continue to incorporate contract
clauses that mandate compliance with the Buy American Act and the Trade
Agreements Act, including requirements that end products are:
manufactured in the United States (or a designated country);
and,
the cost of domestic end products exceeds 50 percent of the
cost of all components.
Question 7. Does the Coast Guard intend to require U.S.
manufactured components, including those listed in the language, as
part of future vessel acquisitions, including the Polar and Great Lakes
icebreakers?
Answer. In the case of future shipbuilding programs, the Coast
Guard will continue to incorporate contact clauses that mandate
compliance with the Buy America Act and the Trade Agreements Act. To
that end, at least 50 percent of the cost of all components of the end
product are required to be domestically sourced.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Catherine Cortez Masto
to Vice Admiral Karl L. Schultz
Question 1. During your confirmation hearing you mention how
spending caps under the Budget Control Act of 2011 resulted in under
resourcing of recruiting efforts, negatively impacting your ability to
recruit and retain top talent for the Coast Guard. What does the Coast
Guard require from Congress, including funding, to meet its man-power
needs?
Answer. The men and women of the Coast Guard are our Service's most
valuable asset. The FY19 President's Budget request modestly grows the
Coast Guard workforce by providing critical crews and support personnel
to operate and sustain new assets delivered via our acquisition
programs. However, the budget does not provide the capacity to address
workforce gaps created by personnel reductions under Budget Control Act
caps or invest in workforce capabilities, such as cyber security.
Question 2. Are the requirements referenced in Question 1 reflected
in the President's 2019 Budget Request?
Answer. The FY19 President's Budget grows the Coast Guard by 109
positions.
Question 3. During your confirmation hearing you told the Committee
that the Coast Guard, in collaboration with the RAND Corporation, is
conducting a women's retention study. Per Senator Wicker's request
during hearing, please provide the deadline for the completion of the
study, and also provide a copy of any final output to my office.
Answer. The Coast Guard (CG) partnered with RAND Corporation to
identify career and progression barriers possibly unique to CG active
duty women. The study includes a combination of data gathering, cohort
interviews, and comparative analysis (e.g., Department of Defense
(DoD), private industry, & CG men).
To date, RAND has undertaken the following initiatives:
Literature review to examine previous studies conducted by
the CG and other sources.
Trend validation of CG workforce data to begin forecasting
and analysis.
Benchmarking CG data against the DoD and/or the private
sector workforce.
Exploratory focus groups that interview active duty men and
women.
In the coming months RAND will also conduct the following:
Statistical analysis of the gathered data.
Consolidate recommendations to address identified retention
barriers.
The CG anticipates a final written product from RAND Corporation
early in calendar year 2019.
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