Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., has introduced an amendment to the fiscal year 2022 defense policy bill that would add another $25 billion to help the U.S. Navy reinvigorate its public shipyards, Breaking Defense reported Tuesday.
The proposed amendment – Shipyard Act of 2021 – to the FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act would provide the Navy with $21 billion in funds to advance the service’s plan to rebuild its four public shipyards. The Program Executive Office for Shipyard Infrastructure and Optimization oversees restoration efforts for those facilities.
The measure would allocate $4 billion for private shipyards that are performing construction and maintenance work for the Navy and another $350 million for the restoration of the U.S. Coast Guard’s facilities.
Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., also introduced a House version of the bill earlier this year. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has said he will bring the FY 2022 NDAA to the floor this week.
On Nov. 10, the Navy awarded five companies positions on a potential $8 billion contract to support construction projects under the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program.