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(Washington, D.C.) Fourth District Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) today announced
the U.S. House of Representatives passage of the National Defense Authorization
Act of 2006, including language requested by Ross, directing the Secretary
of the Army to fully examine the Pine Bluff Arsenal as a Center of Industrial
and Technical Excellence (CITE) for Chemical and Biological Defense Equipment.
The Pine Bluff Arsenal is unique in that the Arsenal has invested millions
of dollars in specialized infrastructure and environmental regulatory permit
capacity, providing essential capacity to manufacture, repair, assemble,
and store specialized chemical and biological defense equipment.
“This is tremendous news for the Pine Bluff Arsenal and the hard working
families in Pine Bluff, White Hall, and Southeast Arkansas,” said Ross.
“The possible CITE designation for the Pine Bluff Arsenal could make the
Arsenal the sole preferred military site for production, storage, and maintenance
of Chemical and Biological Defense Equipment. Such a designation
would ensure that the distinctive missions provided by the Pine Bluff Arsenal
would continue for years to come, creating economic opportunity and potential
for new jobs.”
The Senate must now pass their version of the bill. Once the final
conference committee bill is passed, the President must sign it into law
before this project is final. |
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