Leg. Notice No. 20

June 17, 1997

Expected to be reported from the Senate Armed Services Committee on June 17, 1997. (At press time, the bill was not yet reported, nor assigned a bill number. The Chairman is expected to ask that the committee report be printed in the Congressional Record.)

• While no unanimous consent agreement existed at press time, it is anticipated the Senate will turn to the FY 1998 Defense Authorization Act on Wednesday, June 18, 1997.
• The Committee authorized a total of $268.2 billion in budget authority for this year, which is $2.6 billion above the President's defense budget request. However, this recommended level of funding is still $3.3 billion below FY 1997 in real terms.
• In other action, the Committee: approved a 2.8 percent pay raise for military personnel beginning January 1, 1998; revised the laws relating to the performance of DoD depot maintenance; authorized a net increase of $579 million for theater and national missile defense programs; recommended more than $77 billion in near-term readiness funding, including an increase of more than $1 billion for high priority programs; directed accountability measures on F-22 development; authorized the final funding increment for the Seawolf submarine, and approved the procurement of three Arleigh Burke class destroyers and advanced procurement of future destroyers at $2.8 billion. (See attached chart for details.)
• The Committee did not authorize any future rounds of base closures. However, such legislation likely will take the form of an amendment to the bill.
• An 11-member commission is established to review laws, regulations and practices of gender integration and sexual relations within the Department of Defense.
• The bill authorizes an active duty military personnel end strength of 1,421,379 which is 36,039 below the FY 1997 level and a reserve component end strength of 894,618 which is 16,112 below the FY 1997 level. (See attached chart for details.)

A committee report was not available at press time, and so this Legislative Notice summarizes the press release of June 13, 1997, of Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Strom Thurmond, on the National Defense Authorization Bill for FY 1998.

Personnel, End Strength, and Quality of Life Issues

• To address recent controversial issues of gender-integration and sexual relations in the military, an 11-member commission of private citizens is established to review gender-integrated training and the laws, regulations, policies, and practices governing personal relationships within the Department of Defense. In addition, the Committee established rigorous reporting requirements and time lines for completing investigations into allegations of sexual harassment.

(NOTE: On June 7, 1997, Secretary of Defense William Cohen created two panels to address these issues: one, composed of civilian and military representatives, to review broader policy issues involving sexual relations in the military, and the other, headed by retired Senator Nancy Kassebaum Baker, to study gender-integrated training.)

• The Committee:

- Terminated the Ready Reserve Mobilization Income Insurance Program (which went bankrupt when the fund had to pay out before it had a strong funding base since the enrollment period coincided with the call-up of troops for extended duty in Bosnia); and

- Required the Secretary of Defense to pay all benefits that may have accrued before the termination date, and to refund all premiums paid by reservists who have not received benefits under the program.

• To address problems of retaining experienced pilots, the Committee increased the amount of the aviation officer continuation pay from $12,000 to $25,000 effective October 1, 1997, and increased the aviation career incentive pay for officers with more than 14 years of aviation service, effective October 1, 1998.
• Members of reserve components who served in the Persian Gulf War and now suffer from symptoms of Persian Gulf Illness are authorized to receive health care from the Military Health Care System under the same conditions as members on active duty.
• The bill requires the Secretary of Defense to report the specific actions taken to ensure that deployed U.S. forces will, in future operations, have the benefit of the necessary intelligence support, citing concerns that there was inadequate coordination of operational intelligence on chemical weapons during and after the Gulf War.

Military Readiness Issues

• The bill provides approximately $1 billion in readiness funding for unfunded priorities of the Service Chiefs.
• The Committee revised the laws relating to the performance of DoD depot maintenance to:

- Adjust the 60/40 rule (whereby 60 percent of depot maintenance work is given to the government and 40 percent is allotted to the private sector) to 50/50.

- Adjust the law so that work performed by private companies at public depots will be counted as public sector depot maintenance rather than private sector depot maintenance.

- Require the efficient operations of the remaining public Air Logistics Centers (ALCs) prior to implementation of any privatization-in-place at former ALC locations.

- Require the Department of Defense to preserve a core depot capability that could maintain the types of weapons systems that the war-fighting Commanders-in-Chief identify as "mission essential."

• The bill includes legislation requiring the Secretary of Defense, once he becomes aware, to notify Congress, the President, and relevant agency heads, of any administrative actions proposed by any other agency if those actions would have a significant impact on military readiness. Once Congress is notified, there is a 30-day delay on implementation of those actions.

Military Construction

• The Committee focused its funding priorities on improving quality of life and readiness-related projects for the active and reserve components, and added $700 million to the military construction program. Of these additional funds, more than $218 million is for unaccompanied personnel quarters, child development centers, dining facilities, education centers, and military family housing. Each of the projects included by the Committee in general meets the criteria established by Section 2856 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 1995.

Strategic Forces

• Funding for national, theater, and cruise missile defenses was increased above the requested amounts, as follows:

- $474 million was added for the National Missile Defense (NMD) program.

- The Navy Upper Tier (Theater-Wide) theater missile defense program was increased $80 million.

- An increase of $118 million was authorized for the Space-Based Laser technology program.

- $50 million was added for the Clementine II micro-satellite technology program.

- The Kinetic Energy Anti-Satellite technology program was increased $80 million.

- Cruise missile defense programs and activities were increased by $32 million.

- A net decrease of $203 million from the budget request was recommended for the Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) program. Further, the Committee directed that $340 million be added to the THAAD budget in FYs 1999 and 2000.

• On the NMD policy front, the Committee required the Secretary of Defense to structure and fund the NMD program to achieve an integrated systems test by FY 1999 and to preserve the option of deploying a limited system in FY 2003.
• The Committee prohibited the retirement of certain strategic nuclear delivery systems during FY 1998 unless START II enters into force.
• $11.1 billion was authorized for Atomic Energy Defense Activities, including:

- $4 billion to maintain the reliability and safety of U.S. nuclear weapons;

- $5.1 billion for defense environmental restoration and waste management to maintain the pace of clean-up at DOE facilities;

• An increase of $21.8 million was authorized for B-2 modifications and improvements. Further, the bill includes a provision to end B-2 production.

Seapower

• The Committee approved the budget request of $153.4 million as a final increment of funding for procurement of the Seawolf submarine (SSN-23), and it added an additional $38.3 million for procurement of a spare Seawolf propulsor and $17 million for a Seawolf shock test.
• $2.6 billion (the budget request) was authorized for procurement of the lead ship for a new class of nuclear attack submarines and for advance procurement and construction of future nuclear attack submarines.
• The budget request of $2.8 billion was approved for the procurement of three Arleigh Burke class destroyers and advance procurement for future destroyers. An increase of $720 million was also authorized for the procurement of a fourth Arleigh Burke destroyer, to save $230 million on the marginal cost of the ship.
• A provision is included in the bill which authorizes $345 million to accelerate the advance procurement and construction of components for the next nuclear aircraft carrier, the CVN-77. Accelerating this funding could provide $600 million in cost savings. Further, there was a $17 million increase authorized for research and development to permit CVN-77 to serve as a transition carrier to the next generation of aircraft carriers.
• $632 million is authorized for six V-22 aircraft and advance procurement of additional V-22s, which is an increase of $90 million.
• The Committee added $129.3 million for accelerated development and procurement of the Navy's cooperative engagement capability.
• An increase of $138.3 million was authorized for equipment identified by the Marine Corps Commandant as important to sustaining the Marine Corps' combat capability for littoral warfare operations.
• The Committee did not authorize $651.3 million, as requested, for two strategic sealift ships, citing concerns over cost and schedule overruns and the operational requirement.

Airland Forces

• Funding for the F-22 program was maintained at previously established levels until cost reduction measures are defined and agreed to by both industry and the Air Force in a contract. The Committee also established reporting requirements and cost caps for the EMD (Engineering, Manufacture and Development) program.
• The Committee supported service modernization by adding the following:

- $196 million for three F-15 aircraft and F-15 modifications;

- $150 million for the Army's Force XXI-related programs; and,

- $127 million for procurement of an additional 18 UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters to support active and reserve component modernization shortfalls.

• The Committee added $922 million for reserve component modernization in support of the National Guard and Reserves. Of this, $270 million is for active component procurement programs and $653 million for reserve component miscellaneous accounts.
• Furthermore, an increase of $138 million was authorized for various items of equipment identified by the Marine Corps Commandant as important to sustaining the Marine Corps' combat capability.

Acquisition and Technology

• $125 million was authorized for the Dual-Use Applications program, $100 million less than the requested amount. The Committee also authorized a provision establishing goals for dual-use efforts by the military services in their science and technology programs beginning in FY 1998.
• The Committee recommended a $3.3 million increase to the FY 1998 budget request for the Non-Lethal Weapons (NLW) technology program for research and development of advanced technologies that would provide U.S. military forces with tools necessary to limit collateral damage and noncombatant casualties.

At press time, no Statement of Administration Policy had been released.

Bingaman. To authorize one future round of base closures.

Levin/McCain. To authorize two future rounds of base closures.

Unknown. Related to depot maintenance.