Mike Rogers - Chairman of the Armed Services Committee | Official U.S. House headshot
Mike Rogers - Chairman of the Armed Services Committee | Official U.S. House headshot
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Trent Kelly (R-MS), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces, delivered an opening statement at the full committee markup for H.R. 8070, the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement Act and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25).
Rep. Kelly began by expressing gratitude to subcommittee members for their dedication in creating a bipartisan Seapower and Projection Forces mark, emphasizing its importance in maintaining America's naval strength.
"Today, we face a significant and escalating threat from China," Kelly stated. He highlighted China's military expansion as a direct threat to global stability, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region. Criticizing the current administration's budget proposal, he noted that it seeks to retire 19 ships prematurely and funds only one Virginia-class submarine. "This proposal is the result of forced trade-offs that undermine our naval capability," he said.
Kelly outlined how the subcommittee's mark addresses these concerns by funding an additional Virginia-class submarine and supporting six battle-force ships. The mark also prevents early retirement of two guided-missile cruisers and ensures consistency in the Navy’s annual shipbuilding plan.
"Our mark also improves decision-making before construction begins on first-of-class ships," Kelly added, mentioning support for air operations by raising air refueling tankers to 474 and meeting mandated levels for amphibious ships.
The En Bloc package includes measures such as requiring complete design before starting ship construction and reducing reliance on Chinese maritime infrastructure. It also focuses on integrating dual-modality autonomous vehicles into the fleet.
In closing, Kelly thanked Ranking Member Joe Courtney and various staff members for their efforts in developing this mark. "This mark presents an opportunity to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to a strong and capable Navy," he concluded, urging committee members to support it.
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