During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing earlier this month, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) questioned Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro about undersea warfare and submarine production.
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 for undersea warfare.
00:04 If I were to propose an amendment to the NDAA
00:07 increasing the number of submarines
00:10 for fiscal year '25 to two instead of the one,
00:14 would you oppose it?
00:16 I wouldn't oppose it, Senator, but I certainly
00:19 would be hopeful that the resources aren't
00:20 taken away from other critical programs
00:22 that we're trying to execute on right now as well.
00:24 Well, would you agree with me that the best way
00:27 to increase the number of submarine production from one
00:31 to 2.3 is not to cut, but to send a signal to the Defense
00:40 Industrial Base, including suppliers,
00:42 that we're going to be making real steps
00:46 toward that goal of 2.3?
00:48 I think we need to help industry by making the investments
00:51 that you have made in the submarine industrial base
00:53 to the tune of $15 billion.
00:55 We have currently 11 additional submarines
00:58 that are in construction, three additional ones under contract,
01:01 in order to get the production rate up.
01:03 But if we can't deliver those submarines on time,
01:06 that also presents opportunity costs,
01:08 where in a year where we're fiscally constrained,
01:11 we basically won't be able to do other things that
01:13 are critically important to the enterprise as well.
01:16 Well, I think you appreciate that the suppliers,
01:20 the Defense Industrial Base, take a very strong signal
01:23 from that cut.
01:24 I'll give you an example.
01:25 Collins and Jewell in Basra, Connecticut,
01:29 is a critical supplier of structural welding fabrication.
01:32 Before the FY '25 budget release,
01:36 they were preparing a $2 million investment
01:40 with Micro Precision, another critical Connecticut supplier,
01:43 to expand their facilities in the state.
01:45 So they could hire more workers from the manufacturing pipeline
01:50 initiative in the state of Connecticut.
01:53 After that budget release, on hold.
01:58 Hillary Company in Groton, they specialize
02:00 in solid modeling software for advanced design fabrication,
02:06 metal welding, and joining.
02:07 They plan to upgrade their water jet in order
02:10 to increase capacity to serve production at Electropo,
02:15 on hold.
02:17 I could name--
02:19 So that's exactly what the resources in the Submarine
02:21 Industrial Base investment are designed to do,
02:24 to actually help those companies.
02:25 I'd be happy to reach out to those companies
02:27 and see where we could actually provide them with funds
02:29 to make the CapEx investments that they need to make.
02:31 Well, they need a signal that we're
02:33 moving from one submarine this year to two submarines
02:39 so they can plan.
02:42 They need dollars.
02:43 They don't need words from me or, with all due respect,
02:48 from you.
02:49 But I'm not just providing words.
02:50 I'm providing resources in the Submarine Industrial Base
02:53 of $15 billion.
02:54 Well, they need purchase orders, is what they need.
02:57 They need purchase orders that come
02:59 from Electric Boat, which are using dollars that come
03:03 from the United States of America.
03:05 But we have 11 submarines that are actually
03:07 under construction right now.
03:09 We have three additional submarines
03:10 that are under contract.
03:12 14 submarines is an enormous investment
03:15 in what we need for the future.
03:18 If the production rates had been--
03:21 and if the industry actually had invested more of their own
03:23 money as well, too, in the CapEx investments
03:26 and other investments they need to make to get the production
03:29 rates out, we'd be in a better place overall.
03:31 I see no plan.
03:33 I see an explanation for why we're behind, but no plan.
03:37 We're working--
03:38 --to cover.
03:38 We're working very-- there is a plan, Senator.
03:40 We are working very aggressively with all those vendors
03:43 and with the primes as well.
03:45 Can you give us a plan?
03:47 Absolutely, sir.
03:48 We have plans in place.
03:49 And we'll show you exactly what we're
03:50 doing with the entire submarine industrial-based investment
03:53 that you've been so helpful to us in providing.
03:56 Let me ask you about the Xavier Sander Act.
04:00 It's named after a young man from Connecticut
04:03 who committed suicide because he was on the USS Washington,
04:09 which was under repair in maintenance.
04:13 He was confined to the ship.
04:16 Or he was on the ship living there
04:21 while it was under maintenance.
04:22 And we passed a law that provides
04:30 that base allowance can be provided to enlisted men
04:34 when they are on ships that are in maintenance.
04:38 Maybe you or Admiral Franchetti can update me
04:42 as to what progress is being made in implementing that law.
04:45 Yes, sir.
04:48 Yes, sir.
04:49 We have basically want to make sure
04:52 that our sailors have a separation from their work
04:55 and their life space.
04:56 So when they are on the ship in the shipyard,
05:00 we've given the flexibility to move them off the ship
05:04 to have housing outside of the ship
05:06 and when it is not habitable.
05:08 My time has expired.
05:09 But I would appreciate in writing
05:12 an update from you elaborating on that answer.
05:17 Yes, sir.
05:18 Thank you, Senator Blumenthal.
05:19 Senator Schmidt, Billings.
05:20 Thank you, Secretary Del Toro.
05:22 I have a question.
05:23 So do you believe recruiting is down 20% last year?
05:29 So far, it's on pace.
05:30 It's down 30% this year.