About cause and effect. History matters. Go to booktv. Org for the complete weekend schedule. Up next the acting Navy SecretarySean Stackley testified on president trumps 2018 navy budget request. Hes joined by the chief of Naval OperationsJohn Richardson and marine corps commandant. This is just over two hours. Senator mccain good morning. I want to thank each of our witnesses for they distinguished service to the nation as well as the say alreadies say alreadies, marines and civilians they lead who are serving around the world today. In recent months, our nations Senior Defense and military leaders testified to this committee about the severe threats we face around the world. Theyve reported shortfalls in readiness that our military advantage over our potential adversaries is eroding and the dire need for new, modern capabilities. Yet as secretary mattis testified here on tuesday, the greatest immediate threat that our military faces is right here in washington. Fiscal uncertainty, continuing resolutions, arbitrary caps on defense spend, four more years they have budget control act and the threat of sequestration. We desperately need a new approach. Unfortunately the administrations fiscal year 2018 budget request is insufficient to meet the challenges we face, rebuild the military, the readiness and capacity of our force, and regain our military technological advantage. Its no wonder then that the department of the navy submitted over billion in unfunded priorities. Our navy has been too small for more than a decade. Despite a requirement for more than 300 ships since 2006, the 270 has remained between and 290 ships. These capacity shortfalls have largely driven president driven present readiness challenges. 10month deployments are becoming the norm when it used to be six. Carrier strike and gaps in key regions are annual occurrences. More than half of navy f18s are not ready for combat. Theres backlog of more than 14 million in readiness. A navy of 355 ships with the right mix of capabilities an appropriate goal but this budget request makes no progress toward it. However, steps can be taken this year to grow the fleet and this committee will consider all options. Similarly, this budget request only supports a marine corps of 185,000 marines and 31 amphibious ship, despite a requirement for 194,000 marines and 38 amphibious ships. Meanwhile, marine corps aviation is in crisis. Fewer than half of marine f18s are ready for combat. S a result, nondeemployed nondeployed are trained to respond in a crisis. The budget request will help the navy and marine corps to staunch the bleed bug we can and must do better than that we need to modernize our forces because our adversaries are not standing still. As chairman dunford testified on tuesday, the competitive advantage that the United States militarily has long enjoyed is eroding. In just a few year, if we do not change trajectory, well lose our qualitative and quantitative advantage. Our navy and ha and marine core must be sufficiently sized and capable of projecting greater power over greater distances from the air, sea and beneath it. We need new concepts of operations and new programs that enable, in particular, the navy needs a carrier air wing with greater range and striking power, especially through unmanned platforms. I continue to urge the department of the navy to examine how smaller aircraft carriers could improve current plans for super carriers and amphibious ships and provide a more capable, credible maritime force. At the same time as we advocate for increased defense spending all of us must remain equally committed to exercising rigorous oversight of Acquisition Programs to ensure the best use of limited taxpayer dollars. I assure you this committee will. Initial cost overruns more than doubled the cost of the of each Littoral Combat ship. Development cost of the ships an their modules now exceed 6 billion and they keep rising. Meanwhile, key war fighting cainabilities of the l. C. S. , including mine Counter Measures and Antisubmarine Warfare, have fallen year, i repeat years, behind schedule and remain unproven. Because of longrunning cost, schedule and performance issues i support the departments proposal to pursue as quickly as possible full competition in selecting a new frigate with greater lethality and survivability. The navy should procure the minimum number of l. C. S. Necessary to keep the work force viable to compete for new frigates. Secretary stackley has testified that would be one l. C. S. In fiscal year 2018, not more. I want to emphasize, secretary stackley testified that would be one l. C. S. In fiscal year 2018. Not more. On the ford class aircraft carrier, while its encourage to see the ship finally delivered to the navy, the request for the gerald r. Ford exceeds the cost cap by 20 million. In addition, the navy wants to award the contract, the construction contract for the third ship, the enterprise, in march, 2018, at a cost of 13 billion which is 1. 6 billion more than the previous ship. This is unacceptable for a ship certified to be a repeat design that will deliver just three years later. Secretary stackley and admiral richardson, i would like an explanation. Generally, given the importance of replacing our age mag rein corps fleets, the marine corps must learn the lesson of past failures such as the expeditionary fighting vehicle and deliver these needed capabilities on time at cost and up to expectations. Some of the greatest threats and challenges of the future will be in the maritime domain so its important to ensure that our navy and marine corps are not only ready for todays fight but also developing capabilities for tomorrows fights. This budget request is a start, i am afraid it is not enough. We should not ask our military to choose between readiness and modernization, between present needs and future needs. We owe our sailors and marines and all our men and women in uniform more than that, a lot more. They serve and fight and sacrifice for us every single day. Let us do no less for them. Senator reid. Senator reid thank you, senator mccain. I want to welcome our witnesses to testify on the programs for the department of the navy for fiscal year 2018. We are grateful to all of you for your service, particularly grateful to the men and women you lead and express our consideration and thanks to them. Senator reed i want to thank senator stackley for his service, this may be your last appearance as secretary, thank you very much far job well done. Senator mccain im sure this is a sad moment for secretary stackley. Senator reed he was very upbeat before. Thank you again, mr. Stackley. Witnesses face challenges, they eed to balance maintaining readiness. The department of the navy faces serious readiness problems caused by deferred maintenance, canceled training and deployments. The continued emphasis on readiness in this years budget will address some of the navys most serious readiness problems and im interested in hearing the witnesses views on this matter. Im most interested in hearing what the navy is doing for the overhaul of the u. S. S. Boise which is prevented from operating because the diving certifications have expire. The current plan would fail to get the boat recertified until 2018. All are maintaining extremely high operational tempo. High level operations tempo contributed in part to the conclusion in the chief of Naval Operations new assessment, from 30for the increase ships to 355. Demand is overall whelming for attack submarines, the stroyers and Strike Fighter inslener tos. The navy is now in its fifth year of operating with fewer than 11 aircraft carriers. Uring the next decade, the focus will be on buying a new class of submarines to replace the ohio class submarines. Im interested to hear how they plan to manage future modernization demands as we begin procurement funding of the highway replacement, the now columbia class ram as we begin that this year. Commandant of the marine corps reauthorization s essential to our modernization. The navy continues to make modernization of ground vehicles to replace the aging inventory of Amphibious Assault vehicles as well as partners with the army to develop a joint light tactical vehicle. I would welcome an update on the status of these programs and if they believe there will be sig can delays in fielding due to the delays in the Acquisition Program. The dotcht the navy budget its usual number of significant programs, some of which have issues with execution. The chairman pointed out and detailed many of those. Last year i raised the question of the navy submitting a budget that would leave the navy in program. A this year theyre asking for a sevenyear approval for the same b22 program. I would like to hear why we should depart from the normal fiveyear regimen as established in title 10 in the United States count on hy we should the navy of pay manager attention to live up to the terms of a Multiyear Program than last year. The guidance issued announced a renewed strategy for orientation on the asia pacific. Consistent with that, they have been working to realign u. S. Forces in south korea and okinawa and plans to position forces in australia, singapore and elsewhere. Im interested in hearing how the navy is implemented these strategic decisions. The administration is asking for an increase of roughly 54 billion for fiscal year 2018 prescribed in the budget control act. Othat total would constitute abincrease of roughly 12 billion. However i must point out that unless congress can achieve a wrod and bipartisan agreement, any approval of the 12 billion increase for the department of the navy will create a sequestration of a similar amount they feel president s budget addresses the issue by making cuts of roughly 54 billion nondefense discretionary as a way to balance the increase, which is an untenable position and wont accomplish unless the b. C. A. Is modified because youll forfeit what youre given in a confusing and disorienting way. I thank the witnesses and look forward to their testimony. Senator mccain thank you, welcome to the witnesses. Secretary stackley, well start with you. Secretary stackley thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today with the c. O. O. And the commandant to talk about the navys 2018 budget request. Were grateful for your committees strong support of the navy and we look forward to working with you on this budget request. As the nations forward global force your navy and marine corps stand ready to respond to crises every hour, every day around the world from the north atlantic to the straits of malacca and the vast expanses of the Pacific Ocean and on the ground in 41 countries around the world, 140,000 sailors and marines are deployed today. Maintaining maritime security, responding to humanitarian crisis and disaster. The value of our forward presence and our ability to conduct prompt seabased operations is the surest the ternt to conflict and guarantor of our national interests. Maintaining the scale of these operations relies upon our ability to maintain a high state of operational readiness. We have been increasingly challenged to do so by the growing imbalance between the size of the force, the operational demand placed on the force and the funding available to operate and sustain the force. Years of combat and high operational tempo have stert accelerated the aging of our ships and aircraft, increased our maintenance requirement, drawn down munitions and supply parts and impacted training. Budget constraints, budget uncertainty, continuing resolutions have exacerbated these issues with a net impact of being a decline in the material condition of our ships and aircraft. Acourtingly, our priority in this budget request has been on funding maintenance, spares, training and munitions and to increase flying hours. Its critical to make course corrections cut turning to our modernization and procurement accounts as bill payers. More feign for maintaining our readiness, well rely on growing the force to match the challenges ahead. Building readiness is ea the priority in 2018 and building the navy and marine corps and the capability that the nation needs will be the priority in the Defense Strategy review in our 2019 budget. With this budget the expect requests support to procure nine ships in 2018. The aircraft airier enterprise two destroyers, two lit tore rarl lit lit torl combat ship, a fleet oiler and a towing, salvage and rescue ship. The budget request also include advance procurement related to the top shipbuilding priority, missile ia class submarine. Weve held costs constant the past six year have made significant reductions on cbn 79 currently on construction and we are committed to further improvements upon the estimated costs of the enterprise cbn 80 submitted in this years budget. We are seeking your support to continue with multiyear procurement strategies that have yielded substantial savings and provided critical stability to highly successful virginia submarine and burke destroyer programs. We are seening your support as we transition from the littora combat ship to a frigate design to increase survivability for our Small Surface combatant program. The three Littoral Combat ships in 2013 with the additional ships this year help fill our gap of Small Service combatants and help ensure a healthy Industrial Base in 2020. The budget request continues the steady recapitalization of navy and marine corps, we plan to me cure 91 manned and Unmanned Aircraft to mature production for most of our major aviation our major navy programs. It includes funding for 24 f35 and 24 super mor ho fer the hornet aircraft while keeping us n target for squadron in the 2024 time frame. We are requesting congressional approval nor this achird procurement in 018 which will provide the most affordable method to pr cure the final 65 aircraft of the program. This budget supports an end strength of 185,000 marines the proper size for todays mission. The marine corps invested in selected ground capabilities to conduct sustained operations and address changes in the operational environment including for the amphibious combat vehicle, the replacement of about a third of the legacy humvee fleet and upgrades to the Amphibious Assault vehicle. No quantity of next generation hip or aircraft will bring men and ithout our women. Todays force is the most talented and high performing in history. In turn its our responsibility to provide the incentives to attract all who are qualified to serve in the navy and marine corps can do so while creating an environment that promotes dignity and respect for all. This remains a top priority for the department. Our priority is to rebuild the readiness and lay the foundation for future growth in terms of numbers of ships and air crafflet and advanced capability of the force. To support those objectives we will need to make certain reforms to the way we do business to ensure that we are being the best stewards possible with the taxpayers funds. However, we also need your support in breaking the cycle of continuing resolutions and providing the increase outline and detailed by the president s budget request to the caps roposed. Tasked by congress to cut the gordian knot known as the b. C. A. , we will decline by every item you choose to measure. I look forward to answering your questions. Chairman mccain, rankling member reid and other Ranking Member reed and other distinguished member os they have subcommittee. I want to thank you for the privilege of being here today with my colleague, yen miller and the secretary of the navy to represent our navy team, our sailors, civilians and their families. Before i begin i would like to take a moment to add my voice on behalf of the navy to the chorus of voices who are hoping and praying for congressman scalise and the other victims of yesterdays brutal attackful we admire their strength and toughness and send our best wishes for a quick recovery. Im recently back from travel it is singapore and guam. Ourcy saylors face rising threat. They are talented, dedicated and laser focus obbedthashe mission. This is despite the increased challenges of the security environment and the challenges we have imposed by inconsistent, delayed an inadequate funding. Today i hope to convey a sense of urgency, our adversaries are improving more quickly than we are. I agree with the chairman that our advantage is eroding, we must increase our naval power today, pick up the pace and aintain our winning advantage. This effort starts by ensuring we have a basis for growth, restoring wholeness and balance this began with the fiscal year 2017 budget which helped readiness declines. I thank the committee for the support. More needs to be done. Challenges are sufficiently deep that it will take both predictable and sufficient funding and some time to fully recover. As you pointed out, weve got hundreds of aircraft grounded due to maintenance backlog and spare shortage. Our pilots dont fly enough, our maintainers are struggling to keep planes that are working up in the air. We havent funded part, spare parts at the required levels. Maintaining our ships is also a struggle. Submarines and warships are tied up to the pier, unable to submerge or get under way. I know that many of you are focused on add manager ships to the fleet and i am focused on that too. But if i cant repair a ship thats already been bought and paid for to go to see, i forfeit the good, hard work of our pretsessors and the net effect is the same as not buying a ship. Its one less ship today at sea and u. S. Naval putter suffers. Were making naval power suffers. The 2017 budget was a great help to restore a lot of readiness. The fiscal year 2018 request will capitalize on that and restore balance and wholeness so we can grow moving forward. Theres lots we need to do to shore up the force that we have. We need that firm foundation. As articulated in a white paper about the future navy i released we also need a larger and more capable fleet. Even as we shore up wholeness, the budget request preserves the Program Growth for the navy. It invests in emerging technologies for the future, it provides a balanced aploach approach that starts the slerlings of naval power from a firm foundation. As i talk to our sailors who are deployed forward, protecting america from att