APPROPRIATIONS BILL APPROVED BY HOUSE CONTAINS $325.3 MILLION FOR MILITARY CONSTRUCTION IN STATE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House today approved a military construction appropriations bill for the next fiscal year, adding three projects at Washington State military bases to the list of 10 other state projects that were included in the Administration's budget request for next year, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks said.
The original request, forwarded to Congress in February, contained substantial funding for barracks replacement ($100 million) and new facilities for Special Operations forces ($53 million) at Fort Lewis in the upcoming fiscal year. In addition, $107 million had been requested for support and security facilities at Submarine Base Bangor.
"I am pleased that the committee made this timely decision to add the funding necessary to finish the move of the Navy's Fox Island laboratory facilities to Bangor," said Rep. Dicks. He said the bill now contains $9.43 million for the completion of the move, which will consolidate the Navy's Deep Submergence research work that has been accomplished at Fox Island with other Navy research functions currently housed at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Submarine Base Bangor. Last Fall, Rep. Dicks added $6.97 million to the military construction appropriations bill for the current year to fund the first phase of the consolidation.
A total of $1.424 million was also added to the FY 2006 appropriations bill for a new Homeland Security training facility at Camp Murray, the headquarters of the Army National Guard. The new facility will consist of two 4,800 square foot classroom structures to support the Washington National Guard's role as the lead agency in responding to homeland security threats in the state.
Another $4.01 million was added to the bill to accelerate the replacement of ordnance magazines at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station.
"These are all substantial and necessary investments in our military bases in Washington that underscore their strategic importance," Rep. Dicks said. He noted that "the modern condition of the state's defense installations contributed to their military value as bases were evaluated during the recent base closing analysis, helping to assure that none of the major bases in the state was proposed for closure."
The following Washington State military construction projects were approved by the House of Representatives today in the FY 2006 appropriations bill:
ARMY -- FORT LEWIS
Barracks Complex construction
$50 million
North Fort Lewis Barracks Construction
$49.949 milliom
Special Ops Forces Battalion Complex
$30 million
Special Ops Forces -- Expansion of compound
$18.5 million
Special Ops Forces Training Facility
$4.8 million
ARMY NATIONAL GUARD - CAMP MURRAY
Homeland Security Multifunctional Education Center *
$1.424 million
NAVY -- SUB BASE BANGOR
Enclosure of Motor Transfer Facility
$2.86 million
Production & Staging complex
$47.095 million
Mission Support Facility for SSBN/SSN
$15.78 million
Waterfront Security Enclave
$41.52 million
Fox Island Detachment move/consolidation Project Phase 2 (first phase funded FY 2005) *
$9.43 million
NAVY - NAS WHIDBEY ISLAND
High Performance Magazines *
$4.01 million
NAVY -- NAVAL STATION EVERETT
Increment #1 Bachelor Enlisted Quarters
$49.95 million
Total Washington State Military Construction FY 2006
$325,318,000
* denotes project added during committee consideration, after submission of Administration's FY 2006 budget
