WASHINGTON — The U.S. House is poised to throw cold water on plans to increase the rate of submarine building at Electric Boat. That’s because a defense spending bill the House hopes to vote on Friday does not contain language or money that would allow the Navy to purchase the next block of Virginia-class submarines and increase a two-a-year production rate to three.
Joe Courtney
Joe Courtney, a Democrat, has served as the U.S. representative for Connecticut’s second congressional district since 2007.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
U.S. House votes to block Plum Island sale
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bill that would block the sale of Plum Island — a strip of land in Long Island Sound — to the highest bidder. The voice vote on the bill was a substantial win for environmentalists, conservationists and Connecticut lawmakers who want to preserve the island as a natural habitat — but only if the Senate follows suit.
Posted inTransportation
Feds drop Old Saybrook-to-Rhode Island bypass from final rail plan
WASHINGTON — Bowing to local pressure, the Federal Railroad Administration has dropped plans for a controversial new rail line along the eastern Connecticut shore from its ambitious project to overhaul the railroad system in the Northeast corridor.
Posted inNews
Coast Guard strained by budget constraints
WASHINGTON — When the USS Fitzgerald collided with a container ship off the coast of Japan last month, resulting in the deaths of seven American sailors, the U.S. Coast Guard was dispatched to investigate the incident. That’s an example of the service’s widening mission, which has not been matched by an increase in personnel or resources, leaving its leaders to question whether they can fully accomplish their missions.
Posted inNews
Navy says sub ramp-up ‘viable’ and desirable
WASHINGTON — The Navy gave Electric Boat good news on Friday with a report that said increasing the production of Virginia-class submarines while the shipyard builds a new Columbia-class ballistic missile sub is “viable” and could save taxpayers money.
Posted inNews
Military ramp-up challenges EB, other CT defense firms to find skilled workers
WASHINGTON — Even before President Donald Trump assumed office, the Navy had big plans for expansion that included new submarine work for Electric Boat. Now the ramp-up has grown, along with the Groton shipyard’s challenge to find enough skilled workers. High demand for Pratt and Whitney aircraft engines is adding to the need for skilled workers.
Posted inPolitics
Congress authorizes boost of CT-made weapons systems
WASHINGTON — House and Senate Armed Services panels have finished work on bills that would allow increased submarine production and boost the Pentagon’s authority to buy Sikorsky-made helicopters and F-35 fighter jets whose engines are made by Pratt & Whitney.
Posted inPolitics
U.S. House panel boosts plans for EB submarine construction
WASHINGTON — The House Armed Services Committee has moved to boost submarine construction, which would allow Electric Boat to build an additional Virginia-class sub in the years 2020, 2022 and 2023.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers react in horror to shootings at GOP baseball practice
Updated at 3 p.m.
Washington – Connecticut lawmakers, for whom gun violence has a personal edge because of the Newtown shootings, reacted with shock and horror at a gunman’s attack on a Republican congressional baseball practice early Wednesday. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., the House majority whip, was among those shot. The gunman, who was identified as James Hodgkinson of Illinois, also was shot and later died.
Posted inPolitics
Pentagon wish list would be gift to CT defense industry
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has given Congress wish lists totaling more than $30 billion in additional weaponry and personnel that could substantially boost the number of F-35s and Sikorsky helicopters purchased this year. These requests are in addition to the $30 billion President Trump has sough in increased funding for the Pentagon this year.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Trump budget: CT health, education, research hit — defense a mixed bag
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s budget would require Connecticut to drop residents from key social and health programs in the state, and make tough decisions on how to handle other proposed federal cuts to education, housing and the environment. Connecticut’s congressional delegation vowed to fight it.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers call for special prosecutor after Comey firing
Updated on May 10 at 12:06 p.m.
Stunned members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation joined demands for a special prosecutor to oversee the investigation of Russian influence on the 2016 election after President Donald Trump fired James Comey as FBI director Tuesday. “The need for a special prosecutor is now crystal clear,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal.
Posted inPolitics
This time, Newtown bike riders rolling away from Congress
WASHINGTON — With Donald Trump in the White House and a GOP lock on Congress, the 26 bike riders who roll hundreds of miles every year from Newtown to the U.S. Capitol to honor those slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School decided to change course. Instead of riding to Congress, they were riding away from it Thursday and toward where they believe their message has more resonance.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Federal budget deal boosts defense projects, other programs in CT
WASHINGTON — Connecticut’s defense industry is a big winner in a new budget deal that will keep the federal government running through September. It allows the Pentagon to increase the number of F-35 fighters and nearly double the number of Sikorsky Black Hawks it purchases this year. The bipartisan bill also funds a number of domestic programs important to the state, including the National Coast Guard Museum.
Posted inPolitics
Navy plan to build more subs could strain capacity at EB
WASHINGTON — The Navy’s plans to boost the number of ships and submarines would cost more than $100 billion a year and pose a challenge to the capacity of the nation’s shipbuilders, especially those building subs like Electric Boat, a new government report said.