WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, announced today that the Committee has approved the Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with a provision to improve the eligibility criteria of HUBZones located at former U.S. military installations closed through the so-called “Base Closure and Realignment,” or BRAC process.

The bill also contains provisions pushed by Senator King to fully fund shipbuilding priorities at Bath Iron Works and support military construction projects at Bangor IAP and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

“Military bases are often the economic engine of the towns and cities they call home, but when those bases close down, it doesn’t mean a town has to as well,” Senator King said. “With the right investments and federal funding, the government can partner with local redevelopment authorities to revitalize former bases and spur economic growth – and that’s exactly what our HUBZone provision will accomplish. The provision tailors the HUBZone program to cities and towns that have been hit hard by base closures, improving the program to jumpstart economic development, attract businesses, and create new jobs.”

“I’m delighted that Senator King was able to include the BRAC HUBZone provision in the Senate version of the NDAA,” said Steve Levesque, Executive Director of the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority. “Both of our Maine senators have been tremendous champions of this bill, which will be a big boost to the businesses here at Brunswick Landing to allow them to grow at this former naval air station. We are so fortunate to have the senators that we do representing our interests in Washington.”

“Today’s announcement is an important step forward in helping towns and cities across America receive the important HUBZone designation and get back on their feet after a base closure,” said Senator Collins. “I will continue to pursue every channel possible to get this legislation signed into law, which is why earlier this week Senator King and I introduced The HUBZone Expansion Act. Military bases throughout Maine and across the country are key drivers of our local economies. When they are closed through the BRAC process, it can take years for the communities in which they were located to fully recover.”

Current law assists communities affected by military installation closures by giving businesses established on closed bases preferential access to federal procurement opportunities via the Small Business Administration’s HUBZone program. To qualify for these preferences, at least 35 percent of the business’s employees must reside on the closed base or in other economically challenged areas. Moreover, businesses that locate on former bases are only granted this special status for five years after the base closes.

However, very few people live on former bases, which makes it difficult – if not impossible – for businesses that are interested in helping redevelop bases attract the workers they need to meet the requirements of the HUBZone program.  The amendment introduced by Senator King and included in the bill, which is identical to legislation he introduced earlier this week with Senator Susan Collins, would allow businesses that locate on a closed base to draw employees from just outside the boundaries of the closed base to meet the 35 percent requirement.

Additionally, local redevelopment authorities are often tasked with attracting new businesses to former bases, but their work cannot begin until they assume control of the base property, which can take several years – and because HUBZone preferences only apply for five years from closure, businesses can lose years of program eligibility.  Senator King’s amendment would also extend the period of time for which a closed base is eligible for HUBZone status from five years after closure to eight years.

The bill, which passed the Armed Services Committee by a vote of 22-4 with Senator King’s support, also contains several additional important provisions for Maine:

• FUNDING FOR SHIPBUILDING PRIORITIES: The bill authorizes almost $4 billion for Navy destroyer programs, including $433 million for the construction of DDG-1000 Zumwalt-class destroyers, and $3.1 billion for the procurement of two DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, one of which will be built at Bath. The bill also includes $400 million in incremental funding for an additional DDG-51 that the Navy could procure in the next three years, potentially at Bath Iron Works.

• MILITARY CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS: The bill authorizes $7.2 million for improvements to the fire and rescue station at the Bangor International Airport. Senator King also co-sponsored an amendment that established the committee’s expectation that the Navy will accelerate the modernization of the junior enlisted barracks at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard by requesting funding for the project in fiscal year 2017.

• JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER: The bill authorizes the procurement of a total of 63 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters of all three variants. Several Maine-based companies, including Pratt & Whitney in North Berwick and General Dynamics in Saco, are in the supply and production chain for this fifth generation fighter.

• NO NEW BRAC ROUND: Senator King, along with his colleagues on the committee, rejected the President’s call in his Fiscal Year 2016 budget request for additional base closures under the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process. The last BRAC process occurred in 2005 when the Pentagon's recommendation to close the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard was ultimately overturned by the BRAC Commission, but their recommendation to close Brunswick Naval Air Station was accepted.

“This bill has secured continued investment for BIW, Bangor IAP, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and other important employers,” said Senator King. “This is welcome news for the hardworking men and women in our state who play a pivotal role in providing for the common defense and supporting our national security.

“And though there are many positive provisions for the state of Maine in this bill, I do have lingering concerns about its use of a budgetary gimmick to get around defense spending caps,” Senator King continued. “The NDAA uses the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account to sidestep the caps established by the sequester, and though I’m a strong proponent of replacing sequestration, this is not a responsible way of achieving that result. I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to find legitimate, balanced sequester relief that applies to all discretionary funding, not just defense.”

The FY16 NDAA establishes policies and authorizes funding for the Department of Defense as well as the national security programs of the Department of Energy. It provides for the pay and benefits earned by members of the military and their families, provides for national defense including authorization of funds for counter-ISIL operations in Iraq and Syria, and represents a vision of America’s national security goals, resources, and policies. The legislation is expected to move to the Senate floor in the coming months.

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