Mike Levin: “The bill before us includes two significant cuts to the President's budget request in the area of Army research and…”

“The bill before us includes two significant cuts to the President's budget request in the area of Army research and development on combat vehicle and automotive technology. The first cut of $10 million eliminated funding for a fuel efficiency ground vehicle demonstrator, FED. This program is scheduled to be a 3-year effort by the ground vehicle experts at the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive Research, Development, and Engineering Center to develop a tactical ground vehicle that is significantly lighter and more fuel efficient than current high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles, HMMWVs. Specifically, this program will focus on the overall design of the vehicle as well as components including hybrid electric propulsion systems, fuel cells, advanced batteries, and new armor solutions. This project is key to advancing technologies that will allow the Department of Defense to meet the fuel efficiency goals it has established.”