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March 21, 2013

Year-end fed budget could boost defense work

Washington lawmakers are expected to pass a resolution today that finances federal spending through the end of this fiscal year, which includes appropriations for the Department of Defense and the U.S. Navy to purchase numerous ships that could be built at Bath Iron Works. Some of that spending, however, remains subject to automatic federal cuts, or the sequester.

U.S. Sen. Angus King announced in a press release Wednesday the 73-26 passage of the resolution that caps Congress's annual discretionary spending at $984 billion.

King reported that resolution includes appropriations for over $4 billion for the U.S. Navy to purchase three DDG-51 class destroyers in fiscal year 2013, contracts for which BIW might compete. The resolution also contains some advance procurement funding for seven of those ships from 2014 to 2017, and $669.2 million to support construction of three DDG-1000 destroyers previously approved for construction at BIW.

The DoD appropriation could also mean some relief for workers at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, where 4,200 civilian workers are demonstrating today. The workers received notices that they will need to take 22 unpaid furlough days in the next year. Pentagon officials told Military.com that an appropriation in the continuing resolution might allow some DoD furloughs to be reduced.

The New York Times reported that the House is expected to pass the measure as soon as today, which eliminates any immediate threat of a government shutdown this year.

Separately, BIW on Wednesday received an $18 million contract modification to an existing $3.1 billion contract for the company's work on DDG-1000 class destroyers, according to a press release.

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