Coast Guard Budget Unanimously Approved by House
WASHINGTON, Sept. 15 — The House of Representatives voted unanimously on Thursday to authorize a budget of $8.7 billion for the Coast Guard. Significant portions of the money will be used to fund search and rescue missions and upgrade outdated vessels.
“The indisputable fact is that the demands on the Coast Guard have vastly outpaced its resources,” Rep. William Delahunt, D-Mass., said, before the vote. “That’s why it is incredibly important that we . encourage the purchase of additional cutters and aircraft.”
The measure passed by a vote of 415-0. The figure would represent a $1.4 billion increase in funding over the current budget.
Delahunt, himself a former Coast Guard member, expressed concern that some or the service’s equipment is dangerously outdated. “Many of these legacy assets are riddled with structural defects, putting Coast Guard personnel – and the people who call on them for help – at risk,” he said.
The Wood’s Hole Coast Guard group, the most likely to respond to calls from New Bedford fishermen, saved the lives of 158 people in 2004, according to Coast Guard data provided by Ensign Eric Leese. The unit located at Air Station Cape Cod in Falmouth performed 283 search and rescue missions in 2004, said Steven Broderick, legislative assistant to Delahunt.
Approximately 570 fishing vessels are registered to the ports of New Bedford and the surrounding towns, one of the most productive fishing regions in the country, according to the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries.
In the budget submitted to Congress, $966 million was requested for the Integrated Deepwater System, a comprehensive set of improvements to the Coast Guard’s systems, ships and aircraft.
The Coast Guard originally requested a budget of $8.15 billion, but it was increased in the House Transportation Committee by 6.7 percent. The additional funds are intended to accelerate the upgrades, said Steven Broderick, legislative assistant to Delahunt.
“In New England we’re talking about the ships that patrol fishing grounds [and] the helicopters and the aircraft,” said Jolie Shifflet, a spokeswoman from Coast Guard headquarters. “Our ships and aircraft are getting old and need to be replaced.”
The program could bring new, long-range aircraft, unmanned vehicles and more modern cutters to Air Station Cape Cod.
“They’re trying to upgrade their assets,” Broderick said. “They’ve got cutters going back to World War II protecting the coastline.”
The authorization vote today is only a preliminary step in the budget process. The requested funds still need to be included in the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill and approved by both the House and Senate.
Hurricane Katrina also has put additional strain on the Coast Guard’s capacity to successfully perform search and rescue missions. House members from both parties praised the efforts on the Gulf Coast.
“It has truly been one of the Coast Guard’s finest hours-and all Americans are profoundly grateful,” Delahunt said.
