To express the sense of the Senate regarding the funding of the Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise under the National Shipbuilding Research Program of the Navy.

SA 3233. Mr. LOTT (for himself and Mr. Graham of South Carolina) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2400, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2005 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for the Armed Services, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table, as follows:

On page 35, between lines 6 and 7, insert the following:

SEC. 232. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING FUNDING OF THE ADVANCED SHIPBUILDING ENTERPRISE UNDER THE NATIONAL SHIPBUILDING RESEARCH PROGRAM OF THE NAVY.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:

(1) The budget for fiscal year 2005, as submitted to Congress by the President, provides $10,300,000 for the Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise under the National Shipbuilding Research Program of the Navy.

(2) The Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise is an innovative program to encourage greater efficiency in the national technology and industrial base.

(3) The leaders of the United States shipbuilding industry have embraced the Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise as a method for exploring and collaborating on innovation in shipbuilding and ship repair that collectively benefits all components of the industry.

(b) Sense of the Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate--

(1) that the Senate--

(A) strongly supports the innovative Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise under the National Shipbuilding Research Program as an enterprise between the Navy and industry that has yielded new processes and techniques that reduce the cost of building and repairing ships in the United States; and

(B) is concerned that the future-years defense program of the Department of Defense that was submitted to Congress for fiscal year 2005 does not reflect any funding for the Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise after fiscal year 2005; and

(2) that the Secretary of Defense should continue to provide in the future-years defense program for funding the Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise at a sustaining level in order to support additional research to further reduce the cost of designing, building, and repairing ships.