[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 152 (Wednesday, November 16, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H10330-H10332]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




AUTHORIZING THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT FOR THE 
   NUCLEAR REFUELING AND COMPLEX OVERHAUL OF THE USS ``CARL VINSON''

  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the 
rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4326) to authorize the Secretary of the 
Navy to enter into a contract for the nuclear refueling and complex 
overhaul of the USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70).
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4326

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. REFUELING AND COMPLEX OVERHAUL OF THE U.S.S. CARL 
                   VINSON.

       (a) Contract Authorized.--Notwithstanding section 1502 of 
     title 31, United States Code, the Secretary of the Navy may, 
     subject to subsection (c), enter into a contract for the 
     nuclear refueling and complex overhaul of the U.S.S. Carl 
     Vinson (CVN-70).
       (b) Fiscal Year 2006 Limitation.--Funds available to the 
     Secretary of the Navy for fiscal year 2006 may be used for 
     the commencement of work on the contract authorized by 
     subsection (a) during fiscal year 2006, but only for 
     obligations in an amount not to exceed $89,000,000. 
     Additional amounts may

[[Page H10331]]

     be obligated for such work for fiscal year 2006 only to the 
     extent to which authority is expressly provided by law, and 
     funds are appropriated by law, for such obligations after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act.
       (c) Condition on Subsequent Contract Payments.--A contract 
     entered into under subsection (a) shall provide that any 
     obligation of the United States to make a payment under the 
     contract--
       (1) for fiscal year 2006 for an amount that would result in 
     the total of the amounts so paid being in excess of the 
     amount specified in subsection (b) is subject to the 
     availability of appropriations for that purpose made in an 
     Act making appropriations for the Department of Defense for 
     that fiscal year; and
       (2) for a fiscal year after fiscal year 2006 is subject to 
     the availability of appropriations for that purpose for that 
     fiscal year.
       (d) Waiver of Prohibition of New Starts Under Continuing 
     Resolution Authority.--The contract authorized by this 
     section may be entered into without regard to section 102(a) 
     of Public Law 109-77 (119 Stat. 2038).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) and the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. 
Butterfield) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann 
Davis).


                             General Leave

  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and 
extend their remarks on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4326, which would 
authorize the Secretary of the Navy to commence the nuclear refueling 
and complex overhaul of USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70). It will also place a 
cap on expenditures while we continue to work through the conferences 
on the defense authorization and the defense appropriations bills. By 
taking this action now, we allow the work to begin as originally 
contemplated by the Navy. The USS Vinson is currently in the Newport 
News shipyard; and with this legislation, the overhaul can begin in 
earnest without needless delay and without layoffs of the highly 
trained and highly capable shipyard workers.

                              {time}  1330

  The Refueling and Complex Overhaul, or RCOH, of a Nimitz-class 
aircraft carrier is the one-time mid-life maintenance availability for 
this class of ship. Consisting of a vigorous 40-month work package, the 
RCOH provides the necessary refueling and ship maintenance to enable 
the aircraft carrier to sail for another 25 years. I think it is 
important to note that the entire work package of over 26 million man-
hours in the RCOH is roughly one-half of the work required to build an 
aircraft carrier from scratch.
  Over this maintenance period of 3\1/2\ years, there are countless 
improvements, modernizations, and renovations to be made in preparation 
for the second half of this magnificent warship's life, and the RCOH 
work represents over 35 percent of the entire maintenance requirement 
for the 50-year life of the Nimitz class.
  While the nuclear refueling is the centerpiece of the work package, 
these ships contain over a billion parts; and the fact is, Mr. Speaker, 
that these parts need maintenance and updating. The Carl Vinson, for 
example, has sailed millions of miles in the 23 years since her 
commissioning in 1982, and this maintenance period is absolutely 
essential to her future service.
  The USS Carl Vinson has served our country remarkably well. The ship 
has participated in operations around the world, most notably in the 
days after September 11, 2001, when the ship launched the first 
carrier-based air strikes into Afghanistan as part of Operation 
Enduring Freedom. In the following months, aircraft launched from the 
USS Carl Vinson flew over 4,200 missions to eliminate terrorist 
strongholds and training camps used by al Qaeda. I cannot think of a 
better way to support our Navy and our military than to pass this 
legislation that will enable the Navy and the thousands of shipyard 
workers at Northrop Grumman Newport News to complete this vital 
refueling and maintenance period.
  In closing, I want to thank Chairman Duncan Hunter of the House Armed 
Services Committee and his staff; Congressman Scott; as well as House 
leadership; and especially Congressman Eric Cantor for their hard work 
on this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for considering this resolution 
today, and let me commend my chairman (Mr. Hunter) and my ranking 
member (Mr. Skelton) for their quick and decisive work on this issue.
  Mr. Speaker, aircraft carriers are the backbone of our naval forces. 
We have seen their profound impact and flexibility in Operation Iraqi 
Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and during tsunami relief 
efforts in Indonesia, and in other locations.
  The bulk of our carrier force is comprised of nuclear carriers which 
must be refueled and refitted every 25 years. This process takes 
approximately 2 years, and carriers are refitted back to back.
  With that said, Mr. Speaker, the minority has reviewed this bill, and 
I rise today in strong support of H.R. 4326. This bill is necessary 
because this Congress, the House and Senate both, have as of yet been 
unable to finish either the defense appropriations bill or the defense 
authorization bill. I regret to inform the House, Mr. Speaker, that 
today, a full 47 days after the start of the current fiscal year, we 
have left the Department of Defense without a budget and without an 
authorization from Congress. This occurs even as the men and women of 
our military are deployed at numerous locations around the world 
fighting a war.
  I mention these facts, Mr. Speaker, because the bill we consider 
today is intended to correct just one of the thousands of problems 
created by our inability to complete our work. The United States Navy 
has long planned to begin the process of refueling the USS Carl Vinson 
this week. The Vinson is a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft 
carrier which has served this Nation with great distinction since she 
was commissioned back in 1982. She is named for a fine Member of this 
body, a Democrat, I might say, from the State of Georgia, who chaired 
the House Armed Services Committee.
  Possibly the Vinson's finest hour came on October 7 of 2001 when she 
launched the first U.S. air attacks in support of Operation Enduring 
Freedom. Over the next 72 days, the Vinson launched over 4,000 combat 
sorties in support of U.S. and Northern Alliance forces in Afghanistan. 
It goes without saying, Mr. Speaker, that these air strikes led 
directly, directly to a very successful outcome.
  Today, however, the Navy finds itself in a peculiar bind. It cannot 
proceed to refuel this ship, which will allow it to operate for another 
25 years in defense of this country, without an authorization from 
Congress. What does this mean? Mr. Speaker, it means that up to 1,700 
workers at the Newport News shipyard in Virginia could be laid off as 
early as next week. To give these workers pink slips would be an utter 
travesty, Mr. Speaker; and for this reason, I urge my colleagues to 
vote in favor of this bill.
  It must be said, however, that the passage of this bill is an 
entirely inadequate substitute for passage of the fiscal year 2006 
defense authorization and defense appropriations bills. As I mentioned, 
there are literally thousands of military programs affected in ways, 
both large and small, by the fact that Congress has not completed its 
work. While I am pleased that we can save many good jobs in Virginia 
today by passing this bill, I cannot be satisfied. At a time of war, we 
owe it to all of the members of our military and we owe it to the 
Department of Defense to see the defense authorization and 
appropriations bills completed.
  Mr. Speaker, as I travel to visit our troops next week, I would like 
to visit our warfighters with the satisfaction of knowing that we have 
passed the 2006 defense budget.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 
such time as she may consume to another

[[Page H10332]]

distinguished member of the Armed Services Committee and my colleague 
from Virginia (Mrs. Drake).
  Mrs. DRAKE. Mr. Speaker, I too rise in strong support of H.R. 4326. 
After 13 historic deployments, the nuclear carrier USS Carl Vinson is 
ready to undertake a large and complex refueling process at Newport 
News, Virginia. The Refueling and Complex Overhaul will provide the 
necessary work for the 2,000 workers standing by at Newport News who 
are simply waiting on Congress to do its job and authorize this work to 
begin.
  Funds are authorized in both versions of the fiscal year 2006 defense 
authorization bill and appropriated in both versions of the fiscal year 
2006 defense appropriations bill. However, delays with both bills have 
created a serious situation. If the Navy is not granted this authority 
to enter into this contract, the result will be the laying off of 
hundreds of shipyard workers in Hampton Roads.
  The ship is currently being prepped for refueling, using fiscal year 
2005 dollars. However, the funding for such preparation runs out this 
Friday. Without this legislation, the workers, materials, and resources 
that have already been assigned to complete such work will have to be 
reallocated, thus costing the American taxpayer millions.
  The passage of this bill will allow the Navy to contract and fund 
this maintenance for 30 to 45 days until the defense authorization and 
appropriations conference reports can be acted upon.
  Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank Chairman Duncan Hunter, the 
staff of the Armed Services Committee, Congresswoman Davis, as well as 
House leadership and Congressman Eric Cantor, for their hard work on 
this legislation.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
my friend and colleague from Virginia (Mr. Scott).
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from North 
Carolina for yielding me this time.
  Mr. Speaker, the USS Carl Vinson was scheduled to commence Refueling 
and Complex Overhaul at Northrop Grumman Newport News last week on 
November 10.
  The authorization and funding for this project was included in the 
President's fiscal year 2006 budget request and was included in each 
Chamber's version of the fiscal year 2006 defense authorization and 
appropriations bills. There is no controversy about these provisions, 
but the defense bills, as we have heard, have not passed, they are 
still being negotiated, and there may be some time before final action 
is taken. Since neither the defense authorization or appropriations 
conference reports have passed, the lack of authorization language and 
funding has prevented the Navy from moving forward with this contract, 
and no work can begin until some legislation actually passes. Some of 
the workers may be temporarily placed on other jobs, but most will 
either be idle or laid off, possibly replaced by less experienced 
workers. Vendor schedules will also be adversely affected.
  Mr. Speaker, this delay will obviously increase the costs of the 
overhaul program. It will complicate other ship construction and repair 
schedules at Northrop Grumman Newport News facilities. H.R. 4326 will 
allow the work to proceed without further delay. It will save money and 
enhance national security by speeding up the return of the Vinson to 
the carrier fleet.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo 
Ann Davis), for her hard work on this bill; my other colleagues, Mrs. 
Drake and the gentleman from North Carolina. We all have shipyard 
workers in our districts. I want to also thank the leadership of the 
Armed Services Committee and the leadership of the House for expediting 
the passage of this bill.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boozman). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4326.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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