[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 156 (Sunday, September 28, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2137-E2138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          EARMARK DECLARATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. KEVIN McCARTHY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Saturday, September 27, 2008

  Mr. McCARTHY of California. Madam Speaker, consistent with House 
Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark 
disclosure for two project authorization requests that I made and which 
were included within S. 3001, the ``Duncan Hunter Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2009.''
  Requesting Member: Congressman Kevin McCarthy.
  Bill Number: S. 3001.
  Account: Military Construction, Air Force.
  Project Amount: $6,000,000.
  Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Edwards Air Force Base.
  Address of Requesting Entity: 1 S. Rosamond Blvd., Edwards AFB, CA, 
USA.
  Description of Request: This funding would complete construction of 
the main base runway at Edwards Air Force Base, CA. The funding will be 
used to complete paved shoulders on the runway and account for extra 
costs in the overall runway replacement project from items such as the 
stabilization of over 41,000 cubic yards of both unsuitable and 
unstable soil.
  The main base runway, which supports almost every flight operation at 
Edwards Air Force Base, as well as space shuttle landings when 
necessary, is over 50 years old and is rapidly degrading as a result of 
Alkali-Silica Reaction (ASR), a reaction between the cement and the 
aggregate that creates map

[[Page E2138]]

cracking, scaling and spalling of the concrete. Emergency Foreign 
Object Damage (FOD) repairs have forced runway closures affecting 10 to 
15 flights for each closure. No other runways at Edwards AFB can safely 
support the current and projected test operations without significant 
test mission delays, and temporary relocation of these missions is not 
feasible; however, many of the current and planned test missions can be 
supported by a temporary runway.
  This project was programmed by the Air Force in 2003 for FY06, and 
was incrementally funded over 3 years (FY06, FY07 and FY08). After the 
project was programmed, the cost of construction materials escalated 
dramatically, eliminating all management reserve and resulting in a 
reduction in the planned scope of the project. Providing the final 
$6,000,000 in FY09 will complete the project as originally scoped, 
avoid contractor demobilization and remobilization, and avoid 
reconstitution of the temporary runway to support this work, saving the 
government over $4,000,000 in cost avoidance on the temporary runway 
alone.
  Requesting Member: Congressman Kevin McCarthy.
  Bill Number: S. 3001.
  Account: Research Development Test and Evaluation, Air Force.
  Project Amount: $1,750,000.
  Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Aerojet-General Corporation.
  Address of Requesting Entity: P.O. Box 13222, Sacramento, CA 95813-
6000, USA.
  Description of Request: This funding will be used for the Hydrocarbon 
Boost Technology Demonstrator program and the increase in funding is to 
return the FY09 funding closer to the planned level at contract 
initiation. This critical, next-generation liquid rocket engine 
development effort run by the Air Force Research Laboratory at Edwards 
Air Force Base will not only provide the highest performing hydrocarbon 
engines ever developed in the United States, but also will provide 
higher operability, lower costs and greater safety with higher 
reliability than any liquid booster engine ever made in the United 
States and perhaps the world. A match is not required for defense 
research projects, but I was informed that during the past eight years, 
Aerojet has invested approximately $30 million in internal research and 
development funding on this technology and intends continued support in 
FY09.

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