Tony Thurmond: “In the fiscal year 1996 Defense Authorization Act, Congress imposed a cost cap on procurement of the three Seawolf class…”

“In the fiscal year 1996 Defense Authorization Act, Congress imposed a cost cap on procurement of the three Seawolf class submarines that Congress has authorized. The principal purpose of this cost cap was to cause the Navy to focus careful attention on the program to forestall the type of cost growth that plagued other major shipbuilding programs in the past. While the Navy was given ample opportunity to participate in its development, the cost cap is a tight one that will require constant attention throughout the construction of the ships. The Navy has responded by implementing a number of management changes that proved successful during the past year in containing cost growth. Included was the creation of an independent cost review team that has an independent charter to examine the program's books and report any concerns that arise to the Navy's Senior Acquisition Executive. As the team has developed information the committee has been kept informed. A concern that has emerged this year is the existence and status of program costs that have been allocated to canceled Seawolf submarines.”