DoD Budget Short of Time and Submarines

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Clock ticks down on the defense policy bill, reports Defense News. If Congress wants to pass the 2020 defense policy bill before the end of the year, lawmakers may have only three weeks to break a partisan deadlock between the House and Senate. A stumbling block: diversion of military funding for the border wall. Nor does the pending budget include all DoD sought. USNI News reports the agreement to build nine Block V Virginia attack submarines with an option for a 10th is receiving a tepid response from lawmakers. The Navy had said it sought a 10-submarine Block V buy during fiscal years 2019 through 2023, as described in the Department of Defense Fiscal Year 2020 President’s Budget Submission Estimates, released earlier this year.

Navy Times reports President Donald Trump has decided to restore convicted SEAL Edward Gallagher’s pay grade to chief petty officer, overriding a decision last week by the Navy’s top admiral.

Iran’s president announced Tehran will begin injecting uranium gas into 1,044 centrifuges, reports CNBC. This is  the latest step away from its nuclear deal with world powers since the Trump administration withdrew from the accord over a year ago. The centrifuges previously spun empty, without gas injection, under the landmark 2015 nuclear accord.

Multiple artillery strikes landed about 1 kilometer from a road US forces patrolling in northeast Syria. No US forces were injured and the patrol was not hit, reports Military Times.

Military Times reports US military commanders overseeing Syria operations are waiting for precise battlefield orders from the White House and Pentagon to “secure the oil” in Syria.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said global frictions should be resolved through discussions, and encouraged cooperation rather than separation at the opening ceremony of the China International Import Expo, reports CNBC. The expo first launched last November in a bid to promote China as a buyer of the world’s goods. Xi did not specifically mention the US, which is engaged with a trade dispute with China.

The US stock market reaches another milestone, reports Forbes. The Dow’s new benchmark comes on the heels of the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite Index both hitting record highs last week, says Reuters. Much of the market’s optimism, unsurprisingly, comes from trade progress, according to CNBC, which reported China said last Friday that it had in principle reached a consensus with US negotiators.

Concerns continue, however, over the possibility China could use TikTok to collect troops’ data, reports Military Times. Despite a national security review over the increasingly popular social media app TikTok, DoD officials have not yet issued guidance regarding the Chinese-owned platform, used by service members in both a personal and official capacity.

US sends in notice to withdraw from Paris Climate Agreement, reports CNN, as the damaging impacts of climate change become more apparent. It sends a powerful message, according to The New York Times, that the US, which according to a recent analysis has contributed more to global warming than any other country, will not be a part of the international charge to solve the crisis.

The Marine Corps awarded a $120 million contract to BAE for another 30 new Amphibious Combat Vehicles, reports Military.com, readying itself for initial operational test and evaluation next year. The ACV is an eight-wheeled vehicle equipped with a new six-cylinder, 700-horsepower engine, a significant power increase over the fleet currently in service.

Defense News has video of the Navy’s next carrier, the USS John F Kennedy before leaving dry dock in Newport News for the first time.

Contracts:

METIS/Celestar JV, Tampa, Florida, was awarded a $100,000,000 single award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA). The contract provides administrative support services to support DCSA. Work locations under this contract will be determined at the individual task order level. Most work will be performed at DCSA Headquarters at the Russell-Knox Building, Quantico, Virginia, and at various DCSA field offices as directed. No funds will be obligated on the base contract award. Due to a small business size protest on Sept. 24, 2019, fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $3,200,000 are being obligated on the first task order within the next two days. The anticipated delivery schedule includes a five year base period. The request for proposal was posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website on June 27, 2019. Forty proposals were received. The DCSA Contracting Office, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HS0021-20-D-0002).

Chinook Systems Inc., Arlington, Virginia (W912DY-20-D-0008); Exp Federal, Chicago, Illinois (W912DY-20-D-0009); Shearer and Associates, Huntsville, Alabama (W912DY-20-D-0010); and HDR Engineering, Omaha, Nebraska (W912DY-20-D-0011), will compete for each order of the $49,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for architectural and engineering services for cyber in support of the various divisions and programs. Bids were solicited via the internet with six received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 18, 2024. US Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity.