House Armed Services Committee Releases Defense Authorization Earmarks

May 23, 2007 | 5 min read | Print Article

posted by Laura Peterson, May 23, 2007

With little fanfare, defense earmarks made their public debut in the House Armed Services Committee report that accompanied the fiscal year 2008 National Defense Authorization Act passed by the House last week. The defense budget produces by far the largest amount of earmarks. TCS analysis found that 30 percent of the approximately $64 billion in earmarks passed in fiscal years 2005 and 2006 was for the Department of Defense. Under House rules passed in January, representatives are required to provide a written statement identifying the purpose of the earmark and intended recipients while certifying they have no financial interest in them. The report reveals that lawmakers are still full steam ahead on earmarks. TCS will release a comprehensive database of the bill’s earmarks in the next week, but in the meantime, here’s a quick look at some highlights:

Twenty-five members signed on to spend $294 million for General Dynamics Land Systems to produce additional Stryker Brigade Combat Teams. The House bill cut back on Strykers in favor of the newer—and reportedly more effective—Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles. Five Oregon representatives signed a joint letter in favor of sending the brigades to the Oregon National Guard, and 10 representatives from Michigan pointed out that since the Stryker is primarily manufactured there, the proposed cutbacks “would have a very negative effect” on the state’s economy.
Seven lawmakers, including Missouri representatives Todd Akin (R), Kenny Hulshof (R) and Russ Carnahan (D), directed $2.4 billion to Boeing for 10 additional C-17 Globemasters, a perpetually endangered airlift aircraft that is that is primarily assembled in St. Louis.
Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC) sponsored $480 million for Rolls Royce North America Inc. of Indianapolis for F-35 strike fighter engines. North Carolina is one of eight states being considered by Rolls Royce for new potential facilities.
Seven representatives—including Jo Ann Davis (R-VA), Thelma Drake (R-VA)and Robert Scott (D-VA)—earmarked $588 million for an additional Virginia Class Submarine, produced at various locations in Virginia, Indiana, Ohio and Connecticut.
Ranking Member Duncan Hunter (R-CA) directed $30 million to L-3 Communications in his San Diego district for an “affordable weapon system.” Hunter, a border security aficionado, also inserted $8 million to continue building 14 miles of fence on the San Diego/Mexico border and construct “at least 10 miles of double fencing” at the Marine Corps Station in Yuma, Arizona.
Representatives Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) and Jerry McNerney (D-CA) added $30 million for the “national ignition campaign,” an element of the nuclear stockpile stewardship program at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The laboratory is located in McNerney’s district, but closely abuts Tauscher’s. Tauscher also inserted $5 million for “National Nuclear Security Administration laboratories and participating universities,” which would include Lawrence Livermore and its operator, the University of California.
A coalition of eight representatives from Maine, Connecticut, Oklahoma and Georgia handed $29.4 million to Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies of East Hartford, CT, to upgrade the engine of the F-16 for the Air National Guard. The engines are built and maintained in facilities located in Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.
Representatives Robert Andrews (D-NJ) and Jim Saxon (R-NJ) earmarked $22 million for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense Signal Processor, manufactured at Lockheed Martin’s Moorestown, NJ plant.
Representative Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) inserted $68 million for B-52 bomber upgrades at Minot and Barksdale Air Force bases in North Dakota and Louisiana.
Mark Udall (D-CO) obtained $3.5 million to develop a “Contextual Arabic Blog and Slang Analysis Program.” The program would be developed by and Acxiom Insight, an information technology company in Broomfield, CO, and its subsidiary Harbinger Technologies Group Inc. of Virginia.