Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I submit the following earmark disclosure and certification information for seven project requests I made included within the text of H.R. 2638, the ``The Consolidated…
Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I submit the following earmark disclosure and certification information for seven project requests I made included within the text of H.R. 2638, the ``The Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2009.''
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: Regional Counter Drug Training Academy.
Project Amount: $2.5 million.
Account: 01 Operating Forces Drug Interdiction and Counter-Drug Activities.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Regional Counterdrug Training Academy.
Address of Requesting Entity: 219 Fuller Road, NAS Meridian, Mississippi 39309.
Description of Request: NGB identified an FY2009 unfunded requirement of $24.2M for Counterdrug Schools. Funding for NGB Counterdrug Schools is essential. Current Counterdrug (CD) Schools funding status impacts their ability to support DoD and Law Enforcement/Community Based Organization training and CNNTF support. Inconsistent funding has prevented CD schools from developing long-term training plans to maximize their capabilities. In FY2006, non-availability of funds forced one of the five Counterdrug schools to shut down. Failure to correct this unacceptable trend will increase the Nation's ability to field an adequate number of law enforcement professionals dedicated to combating drug trafficking at the national, state, and local levels. With appropriate funding, CD Schools will also be better positioned to provide counter narcotics-based training programs critical to domestic law enforcement against Narcoterrorism.
The RCTA Meridian budget has shown little growth since FY2000, yet the costs associated with training law enforcement officers have increased by approximately 20%. The requested funding would restore training opportunities to the FY2000 level of approximately 5000 students per year.
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill.
Project: Fitness Center Addition.
Project Amount: $6.34 million.
Account: Military Construction; Navy & Marine Corps.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Naval Air Station, Meridian.
Address of Requesting Entity: 255 Rosenbaum Avenue, Meridian, Mississippi 39309.
Description of Request: This project would add to the existing fitness facilities in order to ease overcrowding. It will also upgrade mechanical and electrical systems, reduce maintenance costs, and provide space for military water survival training.
The Fitness Center is required to support 4078 active duty and reserve military, DoD and Contract personnel. The existing fitness facilities are incapable of meeting the present DoD Fitness Standards. Additionally, some of the facilities such as the gymnasium have significant roof leaks which contribute to maintenance, mold, and mildew problems.
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: MQ-5B Hunter Tactical Unmanned Aircraft (UAS).
Project Amount: $5 million.
Account: Op;A Other Procurement, Army; Tactical Unmanned Aerial Sys (Tuas)Mip.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: UAS Project Office, Redstone Arsenal, PM Tactical Concepts, UAS Project Office, SFAS-AV-UAS.
Address of Requesting Entity: Redstone Arsenal, AL.
Description of Request: The MQ-5B Hunter units provide Army Warfighters with real-time Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA) and Strike (Armed Reconnaissance) employing the Viper Strike munition.
The Hunter has now flown approximately 60,000 flight hours and nearly 30,000 hours in the OIF theater. The system has proven a proactive platform in winning the IED fight by providing ``eyes'' over the U.S. Army's main supply routes in OIF. Demand for the MQ-5B Hunter's day/ night and Strike capability will remain high even as overall troop levels in a theater of action draw down.
Funding will (1) provide four new production or eight retrofit MQ-5B Air Vehicles to replace `A' configuration Air Vehicles deployed with the 1st Armor Div Combat Aviation Brigade in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and (2) support another unit scheduled for employment in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: Simultaneous Field Radiation Technology (SFRT).
Project Amount: $2.3 million.
Account: RDT & E, Defense-Wide; Advanced Concept Technology Demonstrations.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: U.S. Navy, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command.
Address of Requesting Entity: U.S. Navy, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, North Charleston, South Carolina 29419.
Description of Request: Early research of Simultaneous Field Radiation Technology (SFRT) has provided initial findings that strongly indicate the potential for significant improvement over conventional antenna technology. Research conducted in 2006, and validated by SPAWAR, resulted in the transitioning of SFRT from a pure theoretical model and conceptual prototype. Preliminary tests with the National Guard and Coast Guard have generated a keen interest within DoD for assessment of SFRT in a multi-dimensional operations environment of networked manned and unmanned tactical and wireless systems.
The FY09 request is intended to provide the means to incorporate the technology baseline of SFRT with emerging technology as a new generation of advancements could significantly reduce antenna size and weight, minimize the negative effects of required antenna vertical polarity, and measurably enhance the performance of robots and unattended ground sensors.
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: Silicon Carbide Power Electronics for More Electric Aircraft (MEA).
Project Amount: $3.2 million.
Account: RDT & E, Air Force.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Air Force Research Laboratory, Propulsion Directorate AFRL/PRPE.
Address of Requesting Entity: Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright- Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio 45433.
Description of Request: The Joint Strike Fighter Program has documented that Silicon Carbide (SiC) power electronics technology reduces weight and expense in technology for the MEA program. This technology is a key to the Air Force's high-temperature power electronics planning, as presented in the Air Force's planning chart. This project provides a strong base of funding to develop the core SiC high-temperature power electronics needed for the high-temperature engine and flight actuators on JSF and other platforms. SiC based power electronics have been identified as a critical technology to achieve high-speed Mach 2 and Mach 4 aircraft where temperatures required can be up to 350 degrees Celsius, twice the capability of conventional power technologies. This capability will enable improvements in the More Electric Aircraft program and provide substantial benefits for Long Range Strike aircraft programs, ensuring that the United States is able to protect itself quickly, and with improved safety for the war fighter.
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: F/A-18 Expand 4/5 Upgrade for USMC.
Project Amount: $7.6 million.
Account: Aircraft Procurement, Navy; F-18 Series.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Naval Air Systems Command.
Address of Requesting Entity: Patuxent River, Maryland 20670
Description of Request: FY09 funding will provide radar upgrades for 15 Marine Corps APG-73-equipped F/A-18s. Expand 4/5 allows for very high resolution radar maps to provide long range, all weather target recognition and precise target coordinate generation needed for precision weapons employment.
Requesting Member: Congressman Chip Pickering.
Bill Number: FY 09 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Project: Silicon Carbide Electronics Material Producibility Initiative.
Project Amount: $4.8 million.
Account: RDT & E, Air Force.
Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Air Force Research Laboratory-- Materials and Manufacturing Directorate Survivability & Sensor Materials Division (AFRL/MLPS).
Address of Requesting Entity: Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio 45433
Description of Request: FY09 funding will enable significant reductions in the size and weight of a vast number of military electronic platforms and dramatically improve capabilities and performance at significantly lower costs. The program will accelerate semiconductor technology integration and development of a domestic second source of production capacity for silicon carbide (SiC) based materials and devices. These devices are required for high performance and high frequency power components for critical next-generation Department of Defense (DoD) systems. These systems include solid state power substations (SSPS) for future all-electric warships with Integrated Power Systems (IPS); hybrid electric military vehicles (HMMWV); high power naval surface radars for DD(X) and CG(X); and airborne radars for F22, F35, tactical UAVs, AWACS, JSTARS, and TPS-75.
