▶ 0:08:48Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation will come to I ask unanimous consent that the chairman be authorized to declare recess at any time during today's hearing. Without objection, so ordered. I also ask unanimous consent that members not on the subcommittee be permitted to sit with the subcommittee at today's hearing and ask questions. Without objection, so ordered.
▶ 0:09:14As a reminder, if members insert a document into the record, please also email it to documents.ti@mail.house.gov. I now recognize myself for the purpose of an opening statement for 5 minutes. Today the subcommittee meets for our latest hearing in the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's America Builds series to review the Coast Guard's modernization efforts.
▶ 0:09:40I'd like to welcome our witnesses, Vice Admiral Tom Allen, acting deputy commandant for operations, and Heather MacLeod, director of justice and homeland security programs at the US Government Accountability Office, who is accompanied by Shelby Oakley, director of contracting and national security acquisitions at the United States Government Accountability Office. That was a mouthful.
▶ 0:10:06Thank you all for being here Every day the Coast Guard is called upon to save lives, respond to emergencies, protect the environment, enforce our laws, secure the maritime border from drugs and illegal immigrants, and maintain the flow of maritime commerce. The brave sentinels who carry out these missions should be supported by reliable ships, helicopters, and airplanes, but instead members of the Coast Guard at times find themselves on vessels and air assets that should have been retired long ago.
▶ 0:10:37The Coast Guard's ability to do more with less has unfortunately encouraged years of underinvestment and ever-increasing mission demands that have pushed the service to the breaking Today the Coast Guard faces a $7 billion shoreside infrastructure backlog with barracks, hangars, and docks that are literally crumbling, leaking, or both. The service's medium endurance cutters are increasingly unable to carry out their missions.
▶ 0:11:07Our icebreaker fleet is unable to protect project our nation's sovereignty in the Arctic, and flight mechanics are performing miracles to keep the Coast Guard's aging aviation assets in the air. While the Coast Guard is well into a multi-decade modernization plan that has seen fast response cutters and national security cutters come online, progress on other programs remain dangerously behind schedule.
▶ 0:11:36Since the subcommittee last examined the Coast Guard's modernization efforts in June, the polar security cutter program continues to crawl forward, and we need to continue to see meaningful progress. The subcommittee is encouraged by the Coast Guard's past statements highlighting the importance of the acquisition, and we expect you to continue to prioritize this critical Concerns with the offshore patrol cutter program remain as we prepare for the lead ship to be delivered at the end of this year.
▶ 0:12:06Four years late. With a host of non-compliant parts. In addition, new problems have developed with the last hulls in the national security cutter program, and we could receive one ship less than what Congress has At the same time, efforts to modernize the service's aviation fleet have taken steps back with MH-60s and C-27s being phased out earlier than planned.
▶ 0:12:34Failure to successfully acquire new surface and air assets and the shore infrastructure required to support them is a true crisis for the Coast Guard. Without them, the service cannot carry out its missions. Failure to appropriate adequate funds year after year is a significant factor contributing to this problem. But it's not the only one. Broken contracting uh process and inadequate planning and review efforts have dug the Coast Guard deeper into the hole.
▶ 0:13:04To encourage proper oversight, Congress requires yearly capital investment plans and major acquisition reports. These plans are not optional. They are required by law. Yet, the Coast Guard fails to produce them, and this is As chairman of this subcommittee, I'm committed to reviewing the Coast Guard's contracting and planning efforts and working with the service to improve I also applaud the president for strong vision in helping us our shipbuilding industry back on track.
▶ 0:13:33In his speech last night, he said a clear leadership vision for investing in American shipyards through the establishment of a shipbuilding office to strengthen our domestic capacity, our local economy, and local workforce. Vice Admiral Allen, I am eager to hear your plan to right the ship so that we can get the uh men and women of the Coast Guard the assets they need to carry out their missions. Director McCloud and Ms. Oakley, I look forward to you both bringing a dose of reality to the Coast Guard's plans.
▶ 0:14:04Thank you all for being here today, and I look forward to our discussion. I now recognize um Ranking Member Mr. Carbajal for an opening statement for 5 Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will yield uh to our Transportation and Infrastructure Ranking Member uh Representative Larsen. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Thank you, Chair, as well, and Ranking Member Carbajal.
▶ 0:14:27Today's hearing provides an opportunity for this subcommittee to take a closer look at how the Coast Guard is balancing its asset needs across mission sets and the budget crisis impacting the Coast Guard. It further provides an opportunity to discuss how this administration views the future of the service as well. For instance, under Admiral Fagan's leadership, the service boldly advocated for a 20 billion for $20 billion in funding by 2030. When Admiral Fagan took the helm, the Coast Guard was experiencing major recruiting shortfalls.
▶ 0:14:56Just prior to her ouster, the Coast Guard announced that it fully reversed the trend and surpassed recruiting goals and set in place a foundation to continue continue meeting those goals. And I'm concerned that recent actions by the administration will undo that progress. Admiral Fagan also inherited from former Coast Guard leadership a disaster of accountability and trust in the form of Operation Fouled Anchor.
▶ 0:15:19Instead of pointing fingers, she conducted the accountability and transparency review, which included a comprehensive path toward addressing sexual assault and sexual harassment in the Coast Guard. This administration has the opportunity to build upon that strong foundation that Admiral Fagan left, and I expect today to hear that plan, especially with regards to the issue at hand. The Coast Guard is underway on multiple major acquisitions, including the National Security Cutter, Offshore Patrol Cutters, Polar Security Cutters, and Waterways Commerce Cutters.
▶ 0:15:49I'm forcing every one of these acquisition programs has experienced significant delays and budgetary issues. Since our last hearing, the service now projects the first Polar Security Cutter will not be delivered until 2033 and may cost three times more than the original contract award. As the Coast Guard continues to work with Bollinger Shipyards to chart a path I am interested to hear how we can leverage the ice packed agreement to cut those costs and reduce the timeline.
▶ 0:16:16The HC-130J aircraft has been an essential asset to Coast Guard aviation, providing better range, speed, and technology than its predecessor. Unfortunately, the program has stalled at 19 frames due to the lack of funding, even though the program of record calls for 22. coupled with the unplanned retirement of the C-27 fleet and reduction of the lifespan of H-60 helicopters, creates a significant gap in Coast Guard aviation This gap will continue to grow if we have aircraft diverted away from essential missions.
▶ 0:16:46Recent executive orders have diverted Coast Guard personnel and C-130s in the southern border to relocate migrants from California to Texas and move people and cargo to Guantanamo Bay. I'm concerned that the Coast Guard is making haphazard operational decisions without regard to impact on its other As Congress funds the construction of assets, we need to ensure appropriate funding for shoreside infrastructure. This includes piers, workstations, housing, healthcare, and childcare.
▶ 0:17:13People are the Coast Guard's greatest asset, and their experience in the service, of Coast Guard must prioritize their experience in the service. In 2019, the GAO reported that the infrastructure project backlog was nearing $3 billion. Six years later, that backlog has grown to $7 billion. Without immediate investments, the problem will worsen. Now, I have visited, as many of us have, visited numerous Coast Guard stations across the country.
▶ 0:17:42I've seen firsthand the unacceptable living and working conditions. And no service member should be asked to live with mold or asbestos, nor should they have to work with a tarp over their head. They all deserve better. I understand that additional funding for the Coast Guard is under consideration in the reconciliation package. While I support giving the Coast Guard additional funding, I won't support that funding that comes at the cost of everyday Americans.
▶ 0:18:08We can and we should fund the Coast Guard while also supporting all American The Coast Guard is facing pivotal moment. Its budget and workforce are strained, acquisitions are delayed, assets are aging, and infrastructure is So, I expect to hear today how the Coast Guard will move forward and build upon Admiral Fagan's work to create a legacy for years to come. I want to thank Chair Ezell and Ranking Member Carbahal, and I yield back. Gentlemen, yields. I now recognize Mr. Carbahal for his 5 minutes.
▶ 0:18:40Thank you very much, Chairman Ezell, and thank you to our witnesses being here The United States Coast Guard has been undergoing a significant recapitalization effort for almost two the largest of its kind since World War Congress's attention on this issue is timely and imperative to the future success of the Coast Guard.
▶ 0:19:03Unfortunately, before I can move on to the topic of the hearing, I must address a serious concern I have with recent decisions. The Coast Guard has decided to gut internal programs in the spirit of canceling initiatives promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. what they've actually done is limit the service's ability to promote leadership, honor, respect, and camaraderie. As a veteran myself, I know the importance of these programs.
▶ 0:19:33The Coast Guard has decided that even though they have exceeded their recruitment numbers this past thanks to the former commandant's outreach to minority communities, is no longer important. This administration seems more interested in scoring political points instead of taking care of the people who drive the boats, fly the planes, and run the command I'm very concerned that recent actions and ongoing uncertainty is going to affect recruiting and
▶ 0:20:04retention. Turning to the matter at hand, over the past 5 years, and in almost every case, procurement efforts have been over budget and over We must address the ongoing production the service's long-term planning, and the consistent underfunding of programs to ensure timely and cost-effective The offshore patrol cutter program has essentially stagnated, suffering significant delays
▶ 0:20:35and cost overruns, including a bailout to a shipyard which the Coast Guard could never truly The incredible lack of foresight and planning for these issues leaves us with more bills instead of ships. At this point, there is still no real beginning in sight for the polar security cutter.
▶ 0:20:55With respect to air assets, the Coast Guard operated a fleet of almost 200 helicopters and 47 fixed-wing aircraft in January 2024. Currently, the Coast Guard is in the process of phasing out the short-range MH-65 helicopters in favor of the medium-range MH-60 helicopters.
▶ 0:21:21At the same time, the Coast Guard also reduced the service life of the MH-60s and reduced the overall fleet to 127. We seem to be going backwards here. Further still, due to the lack of support from appropriators, the service has ended the program to missionize 12 C-27s With the administration's excessive focus on diverting and overtaxing Coast Guard resources
▶ 0:21:51for maritime border security, I fear the Coast Guard's aging assets are going to fail at an exponential pace with no fallback plan. This affect This will affect the Coast Guard's ability to execute missions, including search and rescue, across the country.
▶ 0:22:10Just last week, the Coast Guard testified in the Senate hearing that while underway, a 42-year-old cutter conducting maritime security operations was actively taking on water through a rusted hole in the hull. How is this acceptable? To risk the lives of our Coasties and those they serve in ways that are completely preventable.
▶ 0:22:32The Government Accountability Office issued a report that estimated the Coast Guard's $7 estimate for the shore-side infrastructure backlog is actually Over 200 projects still have no cost estimates, and none have been adjusted for inflation. The shore-side infrastructure backlog directly impacts Coasties and their We must do better.
▶ 0:22:57I have said before, and I will say it again, we must fund the Coast Guard at levels significantly higher than requested and appropriated in recent years. I fully support the services push to be a $20 billion agency, including the need to more than double the procurement, construction, and improvement account. Congress and Coast Guard leadership owe it to the personnel to deliver this. With that, I yield back.
▶ 0:23:28Gentlemen yields. Briefly, I'd like to take a moment to thank you all for coming here today, and I'm going to explain the lighting system to you. Uh there are three lights in front of you. Green means go, yellow means you're run out of time, and red means start concluding your remarks. I ask unanimous consent that the witnesses full statements be included in the record.
▶ 0:23:53Without objection, so I ask unanimous consent that the record of today's hearing remain open until such time as our witnesses have provided answers to any questions that may be submitted to them in writing. Without objection, so ordered. I also ask unanimous consent that the record remain open for 15 days for any additional comments and information submitted by members or witnesses to be included in the record of today's Without objection, so ordered.
▶ 0:24:23As your written testimony has been made part of the record, the committee asks that you limit your oral remarks to 5 With that, Vice Admiral, you are recognized for 5 minutes for your Good morning, Chairman Ezell, uh Ranking Member uh Larson, and Ranking Member Carbajal, distinguished members of the subcommittee. I'm pleased to be here today to update you on the Coast Guard's acquisition programs.
▶ 0:24:49Every day, the Coast Guard men and women answer the call to support national priorities in service of the American Our unique skills, capabilities, and authority support the national imperative to control our borders and maritime approaches, control the nation's ports and waterways, and conduct military operations to defend the nation. One of the nation's most critical acquisitions and the Coast Guard's number one priority is the Polar Security Cutter.
▶ 0:25:19The Polar Security Cutter is being built by Bollinger Mississippi and the United States has not built one of these multi-mission heavy polar icebreakers for over 50 years. The heavy icebreaker is technically sophisticated and demands talented craftsmen across all trades to build this 23,000 ton ship.
▶ 0:25:40I'm proud to say we are now meeting our milestones to deliver this icebreaker that will provide assured year-round access to the polar regions in support of critical and emergent activities protecting US interests. This past December, we received continued authority to build out up to 16 of 85 sections of that Polar Security Cutter. We increased design maturity above 90% and we are nearing a decision by DHS for full production.
▶ 0:26:10To meet immediate needs, we recently also acquired a commercially available port a polar icebreaker, the only one in the nation. It will sail in Alaskan waters this summer. Simultaneously, we are working to deliver the offshore patrol cutter, more commonly known as OPC. There are five OPCs currently in The old The lead OPC from stage one is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026.
▶ 0:26:39And the stage two contract will deliver its first OPC in fiscal year 2027. In addition to a ready cutter fleet, we continue our efforts to deliver robust aviation capabilities critical to the Coast Guard's ability to meet mission demands in a constantly changing global maritime environment.
▶ 0:27:00Our MH-60J Jayhawk helicopters fleet will continue to play an even larger role in our mission as the MH-65 Dolphin platform approaches its service end of We established a program baseline to extend the service life of our MH-60 fleet and to equip more of our air stations with this capable asset.
▶ 0:27:20Separately, we are pursuing a program of record of 22 HC-130J's to enhance the Coast Guard's airborne presence, incident response, and maritime patrol Earlier this year, we took delivery of our 18th C-130J 2 months ahead of schedule. These aircraft are the sole providers of heavy lift capability for DHS. Every Coast Guard mission begins and ends at a shore facility.
▶ 0:27:47An investment in the Coast Guard shore infrastructure portfolio is critical to maximizing the effectiveness and utility of our new, highly capable assets. Coast Guard facilities are steadily declining due to lack of maintenance resources, and many of our new assets require support that Coast Guard legacy infrastructure is simply designed not designed to provide.
▶ 0:28:11We continue to carefully direct our limited resources to our most critical needs to provide mission-ready home ports, air stations, maintenance facilities, and housing. But, we need your support to significantly increase funding for survey and design, as well as construction of vital infrastructure to base our critical assets and The demand for Coast Guard capabilities and presence is only growing, and we look forward to continuing to serve the But, we need your support for continued investment in the Coast Guard,
▶ 0:28:41our service and aviation capabilities, infrastructure, and personnel. While conducting operations today, we must also develop the capabilities and personnel required to meet tomorrow's maritime security challenges. I appreciate the subcommittee's continued bipartisan support, and I look forward to our continued work together on advancing vital acquisition programs important to in delivering Coast Guard support to the nation. Thank you, and I look forward to your questions. Thank you. The gentleman yields. Thank you. Uh Ms.
▶ 0:29:11McCloud, you are recognized for 5 minutes of your testimony. Chairman Ezell, ranking member Carbajal, ranking member Larsen, and members of the subcommittee. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today to discuss GAO's recent work on the condition and management of the Coast Guard's infrastructure.
▶ 0:29:29My testimony today includes information from our work on these issues and Coast Guard's progress in implementing our related Coast Guard infrastructure assets are vast and include more than 20,000 facilities at over 2,700 locations. These include piers, runways, and buildings from which it carries out its operations. Good management of these facilities is critical to the success of Coast Guard operations.
▶ 0:30:00However, our work has raised concerns related to the Coast Guard's increasingly costly backlog of shore infrastructure projects. Three years ago, I testified before this committee that the backlogs totaled over $2 billion. dollars. GAO's updated analysis shows that these backlogs totaled at least $7 billion at the end of last year.
▶ 0:30:25And almost half of Coast Guard shore infrastructure is beyond its service These shore infrastructure backlogs include items ranging from sinkholes at the Coast Guard yard, training facilities at Coast Guard Academy and Cape May, and housing units where service members and their families live. In the past, Coast Guard estimated that it would take hundreds of years to address this backlog.
▶ 0:30:52And current funding levels are only adequate to address the most pressing needs, which tend to be unplanned This is particularly concerning, not only because of the estimated funding needed to address the backlogs, but because of other potential impacts.
▶ 0:31:10For example, we have identified that deferring maintenance can lead to higher costs in the long term, while also posing risks to safety, security, readiness, and mission In our prior work, GAO made six recommendations to improve the Coast Guard shore infrastructure management Coast Guard agreed with all of these recommendations, and in some cases has taken steps towards addressing them.
▶ 0:31:39For example, Coast Guard developed new way to standardize facility condition assessments, and issued guidance to prioritize critical infrastructure. These are promising steps, and the Coast Guard could further improve management of its infrastructure with additional action in the following four areas.
▶ 0:32:00First, the Coast Guard must find ways to report shore infrastructure information more completely and accurately in congressionally required plans and budget requests. This includes providing supporting details about competing project alternatives and trade-offs. Doing so could help Congress prioritize funding to address the Coast Guard shore infrastructure backlogs.
▶ 0:32:27The Coast Guard should employ models to help prioritize investments across its shore infrastructure portfolio. The Coast Guard should complete efforts to align mission needs with shore infrastructure assets. By doing this process, the Coast Guard may identify and be able to dispose of unnecessary assets. This could lead to cost savings.
▶ 0:32:51And lastly, the Coast Guard needs to develop baselines and goals to be able to track the effectiveness of its maintenance and repair efforts. In closing, Coast Guard has taken some positive steps, but could do more to improve the management of its vast and aging infrastructure.
▶ 0:33:10Fully addressing GAO's recommendations will help the Coast Guard to better manage its resources, identify cost savings, and provide Congress with better information to address shore infrastructure challenges. GAO will continue to follow up with the Coast Guard on these issues. This completes my prepared statement, and I'll be happy to respond to any questions you may have. Thank you, Ms. McLeod. Thank you both for your testimony. We will now turn to questions for the panel.
▶ 0:33:40I recognize myself for 5 minutes for questioning. Vice Admiral Allen, in order to ensure Congress is able to carry out its oversight functions, we require you to provide a yearly capital investment plan, a bi-annual report on major acquisitions, and a quarterly acquisition brief. You have never provided this committee with a major acquisition report.
▶ 0:34:06You have not provided a capital investment plan since FY '23, and even that was a year late, sir. And we have not received an acquisition brief since quarter three of last year. Given the challenges with the Coast Guard's acquisition efforts, why does the Coast Guard refuse to follow the law and produce information that you are required to provide for us? Sir, thank you for the question, and we need to get better. Uh Three things I'll promise to you today.
▶ 0:34:37We will deliver the capital investment plan to you 60 days after the president budget is delivered to the The second thing we'll do is before April 1st, I will ensure that your staff gets a quarterly acquisitions brief. We are streamlining that brief to provide it in a more succinct manner, but to answer all your questions because we see you as a very important part of us being able to move forward.
▶ 0:35:01And then third, we are we are working on an aviation strategy that you also asked us to do and we commit that we will get that to you before the end of April in a brief to make sure you understand where we are in our aviation strategy and where we're going. Very good.
▶ 0:35:19The Coast Guard plans to acquire larger cutters and aircraft over the next But it appears a lack of detailed plan on where those new assets will be based as well as a plan to build out the required infrastructure needed to operate them. These projects take years and if you don't start now, you'll be running into serious problems when the new assets come online.
▶ 0:35:45As you know, the committee asked for a plan and we were provided with a short document document which I'm displaying on the screen now that lists future ships without plans for home ports. This is not acceptable response. Does the Coast Guard have a long-term plan of the shore side capital investments needed to home port new cutters and aircraft that it plans to bring online over the next decade?
▶ 0:36:11And if so, can you commit to providing the committee with a detailed schedule and cost projections for these projects? Sir, thank you for that question. This is this is important decision for us too. Where we put our cutters, where we put our assets to make sure they're best used. I will tell you one of the biggest things we hate doing is traveling with you or other members to talk about a cost of a project that we're going to do to execute to put something there.
▶ 0:36:39And those numbers are based based upon back of the napkin calculations. As Ms. McCloud talked about, we need to do more on surveying design. We need to look into those projects and we need to develop that so that we give you a clear understanding of what the cost is, what's going to be provided, and where it's going to be. At this point, we have a lack of funding within our surveying design.
▶ 0:37:03We would appreciate the ability to work with you to increase surveying design so that we can get after the things that you're looking for because we're interested in them as well. Thank you. The Coast Guard has long maintained the full rate production of offshore patrol cutters two per year is necessary to prevent a catastrophic loss of mission capability.
▶ 0:37:23Coast Guard continues to project that OPC full rate production will begin in fiscal year 2026, less than 1 year from Is the Coast Guard confident that DHS and OMB support a 2-year production, and what is your plan if they do not? Sir, thank you for that question. I've always appreciated this committee cuz you always asked us to come and tell you what we need. Yeah, we need OPCs out in the field now.
▶ 0:37:48We're watching our MECs as we just talked about in some of the opening statements take on flooding, take on water, and not being able to do their mission. So, it's very important for us to go to two now. We continue to say that the Coast Guard is a $20 organization operating on a $12 budget. We need to get that at $20, and part of that $20 needs to be $4 in future force money.
▶ 0:38:17What I would say, sir, is that we are interested in there. We need to get there, so I'm going to continue to tell you what we need and then we're going to look for the best way to get there. Got Is the Coast Guard confident that the two this that the stage two OPCs will have attained a level of design maturity and construction maturity by fiscal year 26 that the service will be able to certify those cutters as ready to move to full rate production? Yes, sir. We visited them in November. They are moving right along.
▶ 0:38:47They have a uh 2D and 3D design maturity and they will be ready to Thank you and a year back I'll come back with some more questions later and I'll give some extended time if we need it, but I now recognize Mr. Larson for 5 minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chair. First question's for Ms. Oakley and thanks for joining us. I understand you do specific Coast Guard procurement acquisition.
▶ 0:39:16So, you just heard Admiral Allen. Have you have you what's Geo's view of the procurement process now at the Coast Guard? Can they achieve this? What's your evaluation of of the process? I'm sorry. I'm a little tongue-tied now. hear what you said there. I don't think people are protesting the Coast Guard today. So, I don't worry about it. But um what Sorry.
▶ 0:39:41Um what's your evaluation of the Coast Guard's procurement process today and can they achieve it? If you gave them money and we'd like to, can they achieve this these goals? Yeah, I think there's a lot of challenges with the procurement process. I mean, we see this across the board with committing to overly optimistic schedules and cost estimates and therefore also signing contracts that are overly optimistic for the level of risk that are associated with the programs that they're undertaking.
▶ 0:40:11You know, for example, we're kind of talking about all these risks on PSC you now. We haven't built a PSC in what 50 years, we have a lack of expertise, all these things that were known um at the beginning of the program, but that weren't adequately factored in through that procurement process.
▶ 0:40:29And that's exactly the kind of thing that needs to get better at the beginning of the process so that everybody goes in eyes wide open knowing and understanding what the risks are and what the outcomes will be such that we're not always um continually disappointed as baselines slip and as costs increase. So, I've uh few of us have served on the Armed Services Committee and I'm not I'm not lifting up the Navy shipbuilding process as the ideal.
▶ 0:40:57It's better than the Coast Guard's process, but it's not ideal. Um also, we've got the lessons from uh Deepwater um the Is it Deepwater? The the the massive procurement in the 2000s um and learned some lessons from that. Are those Any of those lessons being applied as the Coast Guard, in your view, being applied as they think this procurement um over the procurements over the next 10 years?
▶ 0:41:24Yeah, so first let me say um the Navy has its own problems and it has a lot more resources to hide its problems um than the Coast Guard does and I think that's part of the challenge. Um but I think that, you know, when you kind of you know, the state of the industrial base and what we're dealing with from a shipbuilding perspective, that's a national issue.
▶ 0:41:51And so, when you kind of think about has the Coast Guard gotten even if they've implemented changes around the margins to improve, for example, getting even close to 70 97% design stability on the Polar Security Cutter is a lot better um than prior decisions that have been made. Um I think the status of the industrial base really challenges these programs to be able to continue to make progress on these shipbuilding programs over and over again.
▶ 0:42:20And we just issued a report last week on the Navy shipbuilding and ship repair industrial base where the themes and issues that we identify that are affecting the outcomes on those programs are extremely similar to what they're challenged with in the Navy in the Coast Guard programs. Yeah. I don't think they have a problem outfitting any of these ships with avionics or you know, the radars and all that. It's actually building the platform to get stick these things on. Yeah. Seems, yeah.
▶ 0:42:48I want to switch gears a little bit for Ms. Cloud. As recently as yesterday, the acting commandant of the Coast Guard had informed me that the accountability and transparency review implementation is proceeding as planned. Is that what you understand from the Coast Guard as well? We have work underway on this issue looking at sexual misconduct in the Coast Guard and follow-up actions related to Operation Foul Anchor and the ATR.
▶ 0:43:19We have an outstanding request for a meeting that dating back a few weeks, if not months, at this point on an update on progress related to the ATR and whether the actions outlined still apply today. An outstanding request for a meeting with the Coast Guard? Okay, excellent. That's good to know. We can help you with that. I think.
▶ 0:43:45Um Admiral Allen, so as we look forward and we're looking at reconciliation and some of the numbers being tossed around by the Senate and the House or so on, a little bit different but certainly Can we expect the Coast Guard to continue to advocate for the larger annual budget regardless of the reconciliation amount and even if you got a larger number, you still need to stay engaged and not like celebrate one year. We need to celebration's going to take place long after you and I are gone.
▶ 0:44:13Um so what what are you thinking in put in place so that you have a consistent effort to chase those dollars at the in the regular budget process? Yes, sir. Thank you for that question. I I think as we've talked to OMB, as we've talked to DHS as they're coming in and we're talking about this reconciliation, they have talked about the need to catch the Coast Guard up in many of the acquisition ports, but they are still looking at keeping their foot on the gas.
▶ 0:44:41What they told us is they need to have us at a $20 billion organization by the end of this president's term. That's that's great and achieving Admiral Fagan's goal 2 years ahead of time, that'd be wonderful. With that, I yield back. Gentlemen yields. Chair now recognize Mr. McDow for 5 Thank you, Chairman, and thank you to the witnesses for being here to testify before us today.
▶ 0:45:08Uh Vice Admiral Allen, why was the between the president's budget request for fiscal year 2025 and the amount authorized in the Coast Guard reauthorization bill so large? Thank you for that question, sir. So, uh I think when we go through the budget process, there is always a a top line and I think when we start looking at the top line and we look at how the Coast Guard competes within DHS, it's been a hard uh place for us to be.
▶ 0:45:38We often come up to these committees and talk to the committees about how we can go into unfunded priority lists and and and many cases our our top line raises there. Uh we are heartened to see the current administration making it a priority for us to move from our current budget to a $20 billion budget. Thank you.
▶ 0:45:58Uh just a follow-up, what would be the the consequences for the Coast Guard if they continue to receive inadequate funding to support the Thank you for that question. I would say it's what we're seeing. We're seeing vessels that are out operating and and become old and and are taking on water and have to go off that mission.
▶ 0:46:22It's the morale of the people that are living in buildings that are not adequate for them to do command and control of our assets offshore to sleep in overnight or the housing that they need. It's for the assets that we have to be cut at 19,000 hours and have seven of those tied up on the ground because we don't have the dollars to replace them. Well, sir, it seems to me that a hole in a boat is a problem uh that we should we should address.
▶ 0:46:52Uh I'd like to pivot briefly to to talk about the Coast Guard's mission to enforce maritime law uh and to secure our ports of entry. This administration has taken divisive and swift action to secure our southern and northern border. Uh but we can speculate that once we do that uh drug traffickers, human traffickers, they're not going to just stop.
▶ 0:47:18Uh they're going to continue to uh to to to come into our country from one way or the other and that that would point to you all and our our west and east. Uh and so as as our southern borders become increasingly locked down, what actions is the Coast Guard taking to ensure that that our east and west coast ports of entry are equipped for for any diverted illegal activity and what specific support would you need to continue to carry out your responsib-
▶ 0:47:49responsibility to countering illicit smuggling, human trafficking, and drug interdiction? Thank you for that question. Uh when when Congress built the Coast Guard they they they provided us with a lot of authorities, a lot of broad authorities. It doesn't make us do only one mission at time. We can quickly switch between search and rescue, alien migration, fisheries, border control, and we're doing that right now.
▶ 0:48:14To to this point since January, we have taken and and interdicted almost 348 aliens. We've uh um taken over a thousand tons of drugs off the water, and and we are working to do that more.
▶ 0:48:34Because of our authorities and because of our placement across the country, we have the ability to maintain that and the Commandant Admiral Monday, the acting Commandant, has asked us to make border sustainment a priority as we do this while we continue to keep our eye on the other missions to make sure that we don't let those fall because those all have that we need to Well, thank you.
▶ 0:48:58As a member of Congress that represents North Carolina, the North Carolina 6th District, which you know, our state was hit hard by by recently, and it's important to me that that the federal government is ready to to be able to rapidly assist with natural disasters. How could funding the Coast Guard's C-130 fleet help with inland disaster response?
▶ 0:49:24Sir, the C-130 is the only heavy lift capable aircraft within the DHS Right now, we are using that to support other DHS components along the southern border to move assets and and people. We have a program of record of 22, plus we have eight C-27s. Those C-27s will be sunsetting in 2028 because of uh, our ability to support them.
▶ 0:49:52We're just not getting the parts or the ability to do that. Um, so we'll we'll be down. Our ability to build more C-130s or another like aircraft to the C-27 is needed for us to continue to do the operations and and support that uh, country expects. Thank you, sir. And I I yield back, Chairman. Gentleman yields. Chairman now recognizes Mr. Carbajal for 5 minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Admiral Allen, Coast Guard housing is an ongoing concern of mine.
▶ 0:50:21In my district in Santa Barbara, housing is incredibly expensive. So, Coasties often rely on Coast Guard Unfortunately, like many other places around the country, Coast Guard housing in Santa Barbara is with mold, collapsing floorboards, and persistent water issues. How does the Coast Guard prioritize housing projects given the systemic nature of the issue?
▶ 0:50:50Sir, uh, our people are most important asset and we've got to treat them like that. We don't always do that when it comes to funding. We've got a $24.7 plan value of of the the infrastructure that we have at the Coast Guard. We think we need about 2 to 4% every year to be able to maintain that at standards if we had had those standards and that funding from the beginning of those uh, facilities. We we are getting about half of that.
▶ 0:51:17What we would say is right now, uh, what we are doing is trying to do tiger teams. When we see problems, especially with housing, we're going into those areas, we're doing immediate remediation, we're putting in humidifiers, we're trying to get after standing water. I know the facilities that you're talking about specifically. We're going to continue to work with those residents so that we make sure we understand when or if that mold comes back, that we are modifying those to make sure that they live safe and uh, comfortably in those houses. Thank you.
▶ 0:51:48Well, many of those issues still persist in my district, so I do hope that you can give that your undivided attention. Uh Admiral Allen, DHS has recently terminated the membership of the federal advisory councils. For the Coast Guard, those councils are critical to providing input from industry to ensure safety in keeping mariners and passengers safe. What was wrong with the membership of the advisory councils? Many of which the composition is mandated by statute.
▶ 0:52:18And when does the Coast Guard plan to reconstitute them? Sir, thank you for the question. Uh you know, as as a Coast Guard officers, you know, we're we're going to continue 235 years of uh tradition of following the orders and and directives of the commander in chief. That's that's what we do.
▶ 0:52:35Um for this case, I think what we did was a lot of these were signed with uh the uh approval of the executive branch, and we are going to work to re add people to these because these committees are important. I know that the administration sees these as important. Um and and they're working to put those onto their work list for for moving forward. Thank you.
▶ 0:53:01Admiral Allen, what is the cost per flight to transport migrants on Coast Guard C-130s versus commercial option costs? Are there any discussions with the department on whether the Coast Guard will be reimbursed for those expenses? Sir, uh every year we uh provide a certain level of hours that we commit to our C-130s uh for different missions. Right now, we are re uh prioritizing our missions that those C-130s will uh conduct.
▶ 0:53:30C-130s are more expensive than commercial, and as you know, um it depends on the commercial uh provider and and what you're using to do that. Uh the department continues to pay attention to those costs and and to look at how to best do this. Uh, as usual, the Coast Guard is always available when there's an emergency and there's immediate need and we'll continue to fill that immediate need until the the administration prioritizes otherwise. Are you aware if these costs will be reimbursed or not?
▶ 0:53:59Sir, I'm not aware that these will be reimbursed. I think that is currently part of our Thank you, Admiral Allen. With that, Mr. Chair, I yield back. Gentlemen, yield. Chair now recognize Mr. Begich for his 5 minutes of Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
▶ 0:54:17Uh, my question is to uh, Vice Admiral Coast Guard has announced plans to uh, home port US Coast Guard Cutter Storrs in Juneau, but infrastructure upgrades, including shoreline facilities and housing, will take several years. The vessel was acquired to enhance Arctic capabilities while awaiting new polar security cutters. The timeline for home porting preparations remains uncertain with formal budget requests expected after design assessments are completed.
▶ 0:54:47Given the vessel's role in Arctic operations, prioritizing infrastructure in Juneau is critical to ensuring mission readiness. My first question, what is the current planning phase for home porting the US Coast Guard Cutter Storrs in Juneau and when can Congress expect a formal budget request for necessary infrastructure modifications to support the vessel? Sir, thank you for that uh, question and we're very excited to be adding the Storrs to our inventory.
▶ 0:55:15Uh, providing presence up in the Arctic is something that this nation needs and deserves, especially as we push back on malign state actors that are that are up there already now. For the for the home port, uh, we are have announced and will be putting Storrs into Juneau. Uh, as you know, we need to first get the pier ready, have buildings on the pier that will be able to support um, the stories and then housing because housing in in Juno is limited. So we are looking to put that together.
▶ 0:55:43Again, as we kind of discussed at the beginning, we don't have survey and design money to be able to carry that out. So we'll be looking for that money to be able to start the process. In the meantime, we'll be sailing the stories into Alaskan waters this summer. It will be going through Juno and it will be temporarily berthed in Seattle where we have our other polar security cutters up until the time that we can complete the facilities in Juno. I appreciate that and I I appreciate the institutional support for that infrastructure investment in Juno.
▶ 0:56:14Couple additional questions. Vice Admiral, so with respect to the Seward fast response cutter home porting and the Sitka fast response cutter home porting, can you give us an update on the status of the of those of those home porting Sir, as you know in Alaska, we're making some major investment. We got over 10 projects, $571 million that we are executing over the next few years.
▶ 0:56:41Both of those for the FRCs in Seward and Sitka are high priorities. Right now we have two that are sitting in Kodiak that will will be there in the meantime. I I will get back to you, sir and and and if you would like, we'd love to give you a complete overview on all the projects that we're doing in Alaska. I just don't have that off the top of my head on when we'll complete those two.
▶ 0:57:05I I would I would love to get that briefing and as you're preparing that briefing, if I could get information on anticipated timelines for full operational capabilities as well as you know, what what plans you have in order to secure the remaining funds necessary in order to complete those home porting exercises. Yes, sir. We have all that information. I'll be glad to head to even sit down with you personally and go through that. now. Vice Admiral. With that, I yield back. Gentlemen, yields.
▶ 0:57:35Chair now recognizes Ms. Strickland for 5 minutes. Thank you, Chairman Ezell and Ranking Member Carbajal. I represent Washington state, as you know, that has a large military and maritime industry. The Coast Guard provides critical capabilities to our national security and economy, and I'm deeply concerned, like all of my colleagues, about the repeated delays in modernization and the failure to get a Coast Guard Authorization Act across the finish line last Congress.
▶ 0:58:00Um I want to ask specifically about the icebreakers, three of which are supposed to be at the in Seattle. Um one is scheduled, as you showed on your chart, 2030, 2031, and 2033. As we look at some of the challenges we have with our shipbuilding capability, can you talk a bit about having a skilled workforce, having the facilities to build, and then the supply chain, and how that may affect our ability to build these very, very important vessels? Yes, ma'am. Thank you for the question.
▶ 0:58:27The polar security is are just our number one acquisition, and I think vital to the country. It It always I appreciate it was coming to this committee because I always listen to the committee talking about an industrial base and how it is failing to keep up with our ability to build ships. One thing we know in the Coast Guard is we will not be able to fix the industrial base one contract at a time for each cutter. Every time we do that, we see design delays, we see delays in the workforce as we try to bring them on.
▶ 0:58:55I am heartened by what's going on at Bollinger, Mississippi, uh shipyard for the polar security cutter. They are at 90% uh over 90%, 91.75 to be exact, uh 2D design maturity. That's a great thing. We're also got through the uh department ability to do prototype fabrication assessment on many of the um parts that are going to be doing. And when I say parts, these are giant parts, all right?
▶ 0:59:22These are uh 16 prefab, and what we've learned is as we put those together, how we're going to weld, how we're going to treat the the the steel to make sure that that the welds are are part. And and we are at a point where if we put those pieces together, we are actually greater tonnage than a 270-ft Coast Guard cutter. So, we're making progress. To your point though, we need a stable workforce.
▶ 0:59:46So, signaling and continuing to fund so we not only get PSC number one, but PSC number two and number three will keep that workforce engaged and delivering those ones that we need. All right. Thank you, Vice Admiral. I want to pivot now to a quality of life issue that happened. Um the same week a GAO report came out urging the Coast Guard to take cybersecurity threats to our maritime transportation system more seriously.
▶ 1:00:10We all know that our two adversaries, Russia and the Chinese Communist Party, represent our biggest Um the service date the service actually suffered a data breach that delayed pay for over 1,000 personnel. What actionable steps is the Coast Guard taking to meet the cyber threats both to take care of its own people and protect our maritime infrastructure? Ma'am, thank you for that question. And I'll tell you I was one of those 1,000 people that didn't get my paycheck.
▶ 1:00:37Um when when you do that and just as as a Vice Admiral, no one cares if I'm getting paid or not, but we know what the impacts are to a E4 that's not getting their pay, that has a wife, that has a kid, and is expecting it. Two things that I was very proud of the service on this. We know what noticed this on Thursday, we locked down the system to make sure there wasn't any additional data, and in almost every those 1,000 people were paid the next day on a Friday. So, one, keeping trust with our people.
▶ 1:01:05Two, there are some serious cyber deficits that we have and we are looking to address it. For this system, we're we're putting additional safeguards in for how you log in, especially for those that had have the ability to manipulate that system, and we'll be done with that by March 14th. While we do that, we've got our cybersecurity teams that provide an overwatch of that particular system to make sure we do it.
▶ 1:01:31That said, we've got a lot of other systems that we continue to work that because cyber is so important not only in in our our our ability to get on the computer, but to operate our cutters and to make sure we work with industry. Oh, absolutely. And I just want to editorialize a bit and say that, you know, telling Russia to stand down saying that we're going to stand down against cybersecurity against Russia makes no sense. We know that it's a threat to our national security, it's a threat to our utility grid, and actually can be a threat to our comms grid.
▶ 1:02:00So, thank you for that testimony. I yield back, Chairman. General Loudermilk yields. General recognizes Mr. Van Drew for 5 minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So, you always got to have a lighter side to things for a minute, right? I just happened to think when you said nobody cares whether a vice admiral gets paid, I imagine that's probably true. We share something in common, all of us up here. Nobody gives a damn if Congress gets paid. Let me tell you. They probably wonder why we do sometimes.
▶ 1:02:29on a serious note, um we've kind of danced this dance some of it before. All of us, you know, we've spoken before and just some of the same subjects I want to bring up. We and I'm going to state the obvious, what we know. The Coast Guard faces a growing mission demands but suffers from serious shortfalls in assets. We know it. Infrastructure, recruitment, and long-term planning are still a problem. Despite ongoing modernization efforts, delays and cost overruns have left the service struggling.
▶ 1:02:58And they're struggling to meet operational needs, as we know, putting us at a serious disadvantage on the global stage. And as you've heard from me before, and I think from members on both sides of the aisle on this, by the way, this is bipartisan, really upset about it, really want us to do better. We need to do better. Uh Uh, and, you know, the polar security cutter program is critical. We know that. We know we only have two icebreakers. My colleagues on both sides of the aisle have mentioned it already, compared to Russia's 55, I believe, 55.
▶ 1:03:28Far short of the least eight or nine more that we need for core missions, for core missions. Our aviation fleet's under strain. Our helicopters are slow. Uh, we haven't transitioned to new models quickly So, let me just ask you this question, and you've answered it before, but I think it's good for some of our new members to hear and others.
▶ 1:03:48Um, Vice Admiral, how is the slow procurement of the fleet impacted, and this is partic- Let me get particular to my district for once, uh, the mission readiness of Air Station Atlantic City? Sir, when when we when we talk about mission readiness, it's all those things. It's our ability to maintain our our assets. It's the ability to, uh, provide the facilities and housing to our our crews that are going to, uh, uh, need to operate within them.
▶ 1:04:15And then it's ability to build new things to support the newer assets that have greater demands than some of our old. So, in all those cases, sir, uh, without the proper amount of money, we're we're having problems doing that. I think everyone in here has had a car that they maybe held onto just a little bit too long, and you start looking at all those costs associated with maintaining it as opposed to spending the money to buy a new one.
▶ 1:04:37We are in a part where we are maintaining old cars that take a lot And I think you're right, and I think we have to focus on this, and I know we've And hopefully we are going to push forward. There's other examples I could give, other examples we could talk about. You know them, I know them. I think the committee and the chairman knows them. But, this is what I'm thinking. I think we need a clear long-term strategy. I think most people agree with that. One that defines where the assets are going to be in the next five years, 10 years, 20 years.
▶ 1:05:07The plan's got to be realistic. There is only so so money, but we really need a realistic plan, a forward-thinking plan for shipbuilding, aircraft procurement, recruitment goals, infrastructure improvements, and backed by some kind of sustainable funding levels that are So, this is something I'm looking at legislation, looking to work with I know I've spoke to John Garamendi on the other side of the aisle, some other folks on this side of the aisle to set
▶ 1:05:38Benchmarks at least so we know where we should be instead of and I'm not blaming you. You again, I've said this many times. I love you guys, you know, Kate May does, we're on board. But we just need to instead of having every year and every session, every 2 years having the same conversations, try to move forward, at least set out in a significant, substantive way what our goals are.
▶ 1:06:06Even if we fall short sometimes, we know where we fell short, we know what they are instead of having and again, our bad, just as I'm not blaming you. But just having these vague conversations where we go back and forth and say, "Hey, we're not up to snuff, we're not doing what we should do and we're competing with others that are." So, I'm going to work on that. I don't know where it's going to leave me, but we've been working on that already. We've spoken to ledge counsel, we're drafting legislation. I don't know if it'll be in the form of a resolution, we'll see.
▶ 1:06:36And I look forward to members on the other side and our chairman and others really working on this. I'd love to get down to it, you know, I I don't you know, if hopefully I'm here 2 years from now, I don't want you sitting there and me sitting here and saying, "Remember when we talked about this in the last session and the session before and the session before that, you know?" Um so, that's my goal. Do you think this is something the Coast Guard could appreciate some some sort of plan like Sir, yes, I think I I we would love that.
▶ 1:07:05Just as we like GAO kind of looking over our shoulders telling us you got $24 billion of shore infrastructure. You need to be spending 2 to 4% to maintain that and we're not doing that. We should look at the depreciation of our shore infrastructure and most of it's been depreciated a long time ago and it's well past the service life. We think those benchmarks can help you understand, help us understand where we need that investment, that $7 billion in infrastructure, where we need those new cutters and why we need them sooner than later. Yes, sir.
▶ 1:07:35I'm going to yield back, but I would say there's probably some more waste in the Department of Defense that we could use in the Coast Guard, but that you can't comment on that. I understand that. I yield back, Chairman. Gentleman yields. Chair now recognizes Ms. Scholten for her 5 minutes of Thank you. Appreciate you holding for me. Going to I was at three different hearings this morning, so getting getting use out of my heels this morning. Mr.
▶ 1:08:05Ezell, thank you so much and Ranking Member Carbajal, we we appreciate this hearing. Vice Admiral Allen and Ms. McCloyd, it is great to see you both back here again. We appreciate your service. I would be remiss not to mention that we are under 10 days away from a potential government shutdown. During the first Trump administration, we experienced government shutdown in history and unfortunately, the Coast Guard was left But we didn't forget about them.
▶ 1:08:35That is why I recently reintroduced my Pay Our Coast Guard Parity Act with my colleague from Michigan, Representative Tom Barrett, to ensure that all Coasties are paid on time during a lapse in federal funds. I welcome my colleagues to join me in supporting this critical bill. Question one, I am always proud to represent Coast Guard City USA along the shore of Lake Michigan.
▶ 1:08:59However, uh coming off a significant winter back home, we still have a lot of ice uh on the big lake. Uh I am disappointed that the acquisition of a new ice uh ice breaking asset is continuously delayed. This includes the acquisition of a new heavy Great Lakes icebreaker and the recapitalization of a seriously aged 140-ft icebreaking tugs.
▶ 1:09:23Vice Admiral, I know we share a common goal of uh giving our Coasties the resources they need to do their jobs well and keep our waters safe. Does the Coast Guard have an updated timeline for acquiring both types of new icebreakers on the Great Lakes? Ma'am, thank you very much for for that question and uh thanks for going out with the crews and doing some ice training yourself. We appreciate that. They really appreciated that.
▶ 1:09:47Um what I would say is when we start talking about the Great Laker Great Lakes icebreaker, I I think this is the way that that people are asking to do this. They want us to go out and figure out the design, how we're going to do it, and then once we have that design, go to shipyards and have it built. We are in that process, so we've uh we've done the requirements. We're looking for $25 million in fiscal year '25 for long lead time material, and then we're looking for another $35 million in fiscal year '26 to complete analysis and down select that.
▶ 1:10:17That is a lot of time, but when you design new ships, we think that's what we need to be able to tell you this is when it's going to be delivered, this how long it's going to take, and this is where it's where it's going. And and is is continuing to fund uh at last year's dollars or even less under a under a continuing resolution, is is that significant and appropriate? So yes, ma'am. We anytime we have a full year CR, it it it makes it a little bit more difficult.
▶ 1:10:43We appreciate the opportunity for anomalies as Congress allows us to do that. Thank you. Um on to question two, Michigan's third congressional district is home to an incredible domestic manufacturing base including Michigan Wheel, a 100-year-old company that makes propellers and rudders for the Coast Guard's fastest response cutters. I had the honor of touring with my sons. They were so impressed.
▶ 1:11:09Vice Admiral Allen, can you please touch on the importance of effectively run sustainment programs, especially for fleet workhorses like the FRC? Additionally, talk about how the Coast Guard ensures that maintenance and repair activities are properly funded, scheduled, and supported by companies that provide original components. Ma'am, thank you for that question. I really appreciate it. I I would like to tell you that we have broken the code on how we make sure it's adequately funded.
▶ 1:11:38Right now, for our surface fleet, we think we have a $500 million per year deficit in what we need to fund it. So, we are making trade-offs within asset classes. What I will tell you is for the FRCs, for the fast response cutters, those continue to be, as you said, our workhorses. They're our number one priority as far as our small crafts. So, we are doing everything to keep those up, maintained, and operating because they are able to fill a lot of holes for the Coast Guard all across the Thank you.
▶ 1:12:07I'm going to get to question three very quickly, and I'm coming to you, Ms. MacLeod. I've I've previously talked a lot about how an extended shutdown would take a toll on our service members in the Coast Guard. However, the majority and the administration have failed If they fail to act, we will see major impacts to the Coast Guard's service. Even if we see leadership pursue another continuing resolution, we are still limiting the Coast Guard's ability to plan ahead. Ms.
▶ 1:12:33MacLeod, when the government shuts down or passes continuing resolutions, what's the impact on shoreside infrastructure investments and long-term procurement? During a continuing resolution or shutdown, no no progress is made, and our analysis across the federal government has shown that even a short shutdown can have a long-lasting effects months down the road for just a single day of a shutdown. Thank you.
▶ 1:13:03I I I I I yield back. Uh that that was it. We we got it in. Appreciate the additional 16 seconds. Thank you, Mr. Ezell. The gentle lady yields. Uh I have a few more questions that I'd like to ask and if anybody else would like to bring anything up after I finish, you're welcome to.
▶ 1:13:20Uh Admiral, what is the Coast Guard's assessment of the technical risk associated with a change to a propeller and shafting supplier between stages one and two OPC and how will the Coast Guard manage to interchange ability between stage one and stage two cutter propulsion systems? Sir, that's a great question and thank you for asking it cuz I think that we we have a good approach to that. So, one, the design is not going to change for those shafts and those propellers.
▶ 1:13:51Uh what we did have was a change from the manufacturer. So, Rolls-Royce used to manufacture those point those parts and now it's being done by another As that other company is doing it, what we as the Coast Guard need to do along with our shipyards is to ensure the quality of those same designs, so it's not a different design, those same designs are met and delivered as we put them into our OPCs. Thank you. Ms. Oakley, it's so good to see you again. Thank you for being here.
▶ 1:14:21What are your thoughts on the design maturity and propulsion system changes between stages one and two? Yeah, so as I understand it, the biggest impact is that OPC one is not representative of what the ship will be and therefore initial operational test has been moved to OPC two and that's why you see such a huge delay between the ships.
▶ 1:14:47And so, that becomes a bit of a challenge because then you have to go back and retrofit stage one which I understand they do have a plan for but that does not stage one OPC one which I understand they do have a plan for but that just takes additional time and I would continue to indicate that you know progress on OPC two is very very slow right now pretty much a most of the resources have been shifted to OPC one and so with that focus I think you can continue to expect to see additional delays
▶ 1:15:17on that program. Thank Admiral the Coast Guard and Navy are working to build and maintain at least three polar security cutter heavy to conduct missions in the Antarctic and the Arctic. Can you update us on the progress that's been made in moving the program forward? Yes sir, it's one of my favorite things to do right now because we are moving So when you talk about the polar security cutter and where we've been there's been a a trail of sorrow but we are we are getting there.
▶ 1:15:48We are 91.75% on our design maturity. We've got seven out of 18 prefab units that are complete and we're continuing to build. Bollinger Mississippi is bringing on more and more workers to maintain a steady state so they can not only build one polar security cutter but they can build number two and number three that we so desperately need.
▶ 1:16:13And we've just recently agreed to some more things that brought them out of breach as they sought to fix the contract that they inherited when they bought the the shipyard and we're expecting DHS to give us full production design authority in the third at the beginning of the third quarter of this fiscal year. So a lot to be happy with in fact the commandant is down there today with OMB and uh, Mr. Plenkey.
▶ 1:16:42They're taking a look at that uh, shipyard and I'm pleased to have them do that because there's some great workers down there. They're going to show what they're doing. Thank you. Uh, when do you expect the first hull to be delivered and when will you require additional funding? And will you require additional funding for the program? Yes, sir.
▶ 1:16:59We expect uh, right now um, uh, while we are are are are dotting the eyes and crossing tees, but we think the first one will be delivered in 2030 and then with additional funding we can deliver uh, number two and number three on two-year centers. So, so think 2032, 2034. Did the Coast Guard and Navy require significant design changes to the PSC program after the current shipbuilder acquired the yard from VT Halter?
▶ 1:17:29Did delays in providing government-furnished information and equipment contribute to the delays? And if so, how will you incorporate the lessons learned into subsequent Sir, what I would say is the the biggest issue with designing the Polar Security Cutter is that we are one of the only countries in the world that are designing and building a heavy icebreaker that has multi-mission capabilities. That's the biggest problem.
▶ 1:17:59It's very technically difficult to build and we had to uh, do a number of different designs even from how we're operating Polar Star. Uh, it was it was great to see Halter Mississippi bring in the right engineers, the people with expertise and backgrounds into this and to watch how fast that design matured when we had the right people on the job. Does the Coast Guard have any concerns with S.
▶ 1:18:23216, the Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendment Acts that was recently ordered reported from the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation? Sir, uh, we uh, uh, with with anything that we think will will help uh, the Coast Guard and nation, we are we are behind and we are happy to provide any thoughts or comments that you would see Mr. Perclod, the Coast Guard is confronting a costly backlog of shore infrastructure projects.
▶ 1:18:54GAO recently updated its findings to reflect that the backlog is 7 billion. And nearly half the Coast Guard's shore infrastructure is beyond its life service. This backlog is exacerbated by lack of budget transparency. Can you detail your main Can you detail your main takeaways and recommendations following GAO's study on shoreside Certainly, thank you.
▶ 1:19:22So, the Coast Guard recently took steps to address one of our recommendations, for example, by acquiring a modeling system that will help them assess the costs. And so, that is one tool that once it has the information in it, we'll be following up with them to make sure that they're using that modeling tool to make the decisions and trade-offs.
▶ 1:19:47Another aspect is you know, a lot of the projects that we're talking about in terms of shore infrastructure have not been updated since their original estimates, nor have they been adjusted for inflation. And so, we suspect the backlog is actually much higher and better information related to the actual cost of the black backlog is something we'd like to to see from the Coast Guard.
▶ 1:20:15In your opinion, what can this committee do to help the Coast Guard overcome these issues and provide more detailed and accurate information to Congress? I'm sorry, I missed the first part. In your opinion, what can this committee do to help the Coast Guard overcome these issues and provide more detailed and accurate information to Congress.
▶ 1:20:38So, the Coast Guard does have a shore infrastructure report that it shares that it could provide to Congress. In addition to that, greater detail about the tradeoffs that the Coast Guard is making when when it's putting forward the Knowing the risk level of the projects, are you going forward with one project related to an ongoing maintenance issue as opposed
▶ 1:21:08to a necessary pier for a new acquisition. Those are the types of details we'd like to see in the information they're providing to Thank you. Mr. Carbahal, do you have anything you'd like to? Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do have a question. Um The GAO has stated that its infrastructure backlog is 7 million 7 billion dollars and that an annual increase of up to 1 billion would be necessary to keep up with annual maintenance.
▶ 1:21:39Included in the bipartisan infrastructure law were necessary funding for Coast Guard shoreside The Coast Guard has confirmed that the remaining not yet obligated funding is under consideration for rescission under the Unleashing American Energy Executive Among them are child development centers in Kodiak, Alaska, Astoria, Oregon, Mobile, Alabama, housing in Seward and Kodiak,
▶ 1:22:10Alaska, and New York, maintenance in Ketchikan, Alaska, and pier and infrastructure work in Pensacola, Florida. Admiral Allen, have those projects been completed and does the Coast Guard no longer need this Sir, uh I'm not I'm not familiar with what you're talking about specifically. I will tell you in all those locations we have ongoing projects and we very much need that infrastructure.
▶ 1:22:40So, if with your permission, I'd like to get more details and then be able to answer that question on the record. Okay, and again it's specifically to the executive order that would rescind that funding that's already been approved and uh uh unobligated but appropriated. Uh with that uh Mr. Chair, I'll yield back. Thank you. I've one more.
▶ 1:23:03Uh the Coast Guard has not budgeted for nor executed congressionally mandated actions included in the FY 22 US Coast Guard Reauthorization Act, which directed the Coast Guard to bring commercial, surface, autonomy, and computer vision solutions to the operational components of the Coast What is the Coast Guard's plan to budget for and execute this technology project this fiscal year
▶ 1:23:34and to continue to expand upon in the following fiscal years, Admiral? Sir, thank you for that question. I will tell you as we look at those technologies, we see those as ones that increase our maritime domain awareness, provide us better ability to use the assets we have, but don't replace any of We are looking at the ability to add those things onto our assets and figure out how we're doing it.
▶ 1:24:01I will tell you right now we are in tradeoffs where we are looking to fund the bare necessities and not the extras. So, we we are looking at those. Our our uh our our R&D center is looking at those. We would enjoy the opportunity to take advantage of those those, but right now the tradeoffs are not allowing us. Very good. Thank you. Thank you. And everybody yields back. Are there any further questions from any members of the subcommittee who have not been recognized?
▶ 1:24:33Seeing none, that include that concludes our hearing for today. I would like to thank each and every one of you for being here today and for providing us with this important testimony. The subcommittee stands adjourned.