Congress Hears Testimony on Military Base Water Contamination

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

Military base water contamination fight moves to Congress, reports Military Times, and includes DoD’s report on scores of on-base and off-base water sources that have tested significantly higher than EPA limits. Maureen Sullivan, deputy assistant secretary of defense for environment, is scheduled to testify today, March 6, before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform subcommittee on the environment. Also scheduled to testify is former Army reservist Spc. Mark Favors who counts at least 16 relatives near Colorado Springs’ Air Force and Army installations diagnosed with cancer.

The White House is creating a new high-level task force on preventing veterans suicide, which includes new grants, better research, more community focus, reports Military Times.

President Donald Trump eases transition for veterans and active-duty military to Merchant Marines, reports The Washington Times. The order will waive licensing fees and let applicants count education and experience on military ships toward their certification as a merchant mariner. Senior administration officials say it’s a win-win — veterans will find economic security and the nation will be secure, too, by having a steady supply of mariners to transport tanks, helicopters, and even troops, if conflict erupts.

Space Force would be by far the smallest military service, reports The Associated Press. Defense News released details of the Pentagon’s proposal showing about 15,000 personnel, including an unspecified number of civilians, but would begin in 2020 as only a headquarters of about 200.

Big Navy wants to retain more sailors, reports Navy Times. Last year, the Navy retained 78 percent of its reenlistment-eligible sailors, the best retention rate in more than a decade, but that’s not good enough.

The Pentagon cut its F-35 buy in 2020 by six, down to 78, reports Bloomberg.

North Korean hackers hit US and European banks, and oil and gas companies as Trump met with Kim Jong Un in Vietnam, reports The Sun. Working with law enforcement, McAfee said its researchers cracked into one of the main computer servers used by the hackers and watched the attack unfold.

China to raise defense spending by 7.5 percent this year, a lower hike than 2018, reports Agence France-Presse.

Few countries have embassies or extradition treaties with Syria, compounding the difficulties nations confront in dealing with ISIS supporters, reports CNN.

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: March 4, 2019.

National Guard tests toxin threat response system, reports Military.com. The system is designed to detect and identify a number of toxins and determine if its technologies are “effective, suitable, and survivable on the modern battlefield.” The five-day test will allow soldiers to take various chemical and biological samples and run them through the system’s analyses. The samples will then be processed off-site, with analysis and mitigation information provided to the incident commander.

The Air Force and Marines partner in a recent exercise with A-10s flying escort for Marine Ospreys over Hawaii, reports Marine Corps Times, as the forces plan to operate and possibly fight in the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean.

Contracts:

22nd Century Technologies Inc., Somerset, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0202); Agile Defense Inc., Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0203); Allied Associates International Inc., Gainesville, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0204); Beshenich Muir & Associates LLC, Leavenworth, Kansas (W15P7T-19-D-0205); Envision Innovative Solutions Inc., Manasquan, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0206); Interactive Process Technology LLC, Billerica, Massachusetts (W15P7T-19-D-0207); and Technology Service Corp., Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0210), will compete for each order of the $37,400,000,000 hybrid (cost, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-plus-incentive-fee, and firm-fixed-price) contract for knowledge based professional engineering support services for programs with command, control, communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance related requirements. Bids were solicited via the internet with 388 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 14, 2027. US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity.