By Emelie Rutherford
Congressional appropriators will have little time when they return to Washington next month to hash out a budget for the Coast Guard’s Deepwater acquisition programs and decide whether to grant a funding cut proposed in the House or increase posed in the Senate.
While the House Appropriations Committee has not yet scheduled a markup session for the fiscal year 2011 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill, its Homeland Security subcommittee (HAC-HS) has crafted its version. The HAC-HS’ bill, approved June 24, would cut President Barack Obama’s $1.1 billion request for Deepwater by $16 million.
The Senate is further along in approving the legislation. The full Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) marked up a FY ’11 DHS spending bill on July 15 that would boost the Obama administration’s Deepwater request by $121 million.
With Congress returning from recess the week of Sept. 12, lawmakers would have only three weeks to pass the bills in the House and Senate and hash out a final version if they want the funding in place when FY ’11 starts Oct. 1. Congressional aides said the timing of the HAC markup and Senate consideration of the SAC bill are unknown.
The SAC is proposing boosting the administration’s Deepwater request for Maritime Patrol Aircraft by $9 million, unmanned aircraft systems by $2 million, and the National Security Cutter by $110 million. Details are not available on the HAC-HS’ proposed Deepwater cuts.
The once over-budget and behind-schedule Coast Guard modernization effort was previously overseen by a Northrop Grumman [NOC]-Lockheed Martin [LMT] lead-system integrator (LSI) called Integrated Coast Guard Systems.
Deepwater now is a grouping of more than a dozen ship and aircraft modernization programs no longer steered by a Lead System Integrator. It includes plans for 91 new cutters, 124 new small boats, and 247 new or modernized aircraft.
Congress continues to have concerns about ensuring Deepwater is on the right path after well-publicized problems in 2007.
A recently updated report on Deepwater by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) notes continuing congressional oversight in particular of Deepwater surface ships.
The CRS report cites three potential options for Congress regarding Deepwater: continuing to track the Coast Guard’s management and execution of the acquisition programs and implementations of reforms; modifying reporting requirements for the programs; prohibiting the obligation of some FY ’11 funding until DHS makes some Deepwater certifications; and passing further legislation to codify already-announced reforms.