Schatz Secures $12 Million In Defense Funding For Kauai
Legislation Includes $9 Million in New Funding Requested By Schatz
WASHINGTON – Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a bipartisan defense appropriations bill for fiscal year 2017. U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, worked to include $12 million in the bill for the recapitalization of the Barking Sands Tactical Underwater Range (BARSTUR) off of Kauai.
“This smart investment will give us the resources to strengthen our national security and ensure Kauai and our state continue to play a critical role in our Asia-Pacific rebalance,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. “Kauai’s unique environment makes it an ideal place to train and prepare our submarines against emerging challenges in the region.”
The funding is an additional $9 million above the president’s fiscal year 2017 budget. BARSTUR spans 120 nautical miles within the Pacific Missile Range Facility’s useable deep water tracking area. The area allows training and certification for U.S. Pacific Fleet operating in Asia and is the only facility of its kind in the region. The Navy has been attempting to recapitalize BARSTUR for the past several years.
The additional funding will help ensure that the Navy will continue to have a superior training range in the Pacific to assess tactics, training, procedures, new technology, and anti-submarine warfare capabilities that are critical to staying ahead of near-peer competitors in the Asia Pacific.
In addition to the funding, Senator Schatz secured language in the defense appropriations report requiring the Navy to submit a program execution plan for BARSTUR replacement and modernization, including the full costs, to ensure that the Navy continues to provide adequate funding for this superior training complex in the future.
The spending bill now heads to the Senate floor for a final vote.
