Tony Thurmond: “I would be happy to clarify what the conference agreement requires. First of all let me just say that this language does…”

“I would be happy to clarify what the conference agreement requires. First of all let me just say that this language does not require the Department of Defense to withdraw depot maintenance workloads from the private sector and perform the work in public depots in order to achieve efficiency. As the statement of managers indicates, it simply requires the Secretary to assign sufficient workload to these facilities to ensure that they are operated as cost efficiently as possible. The report clearly states: The provision does not require that maintenance for all weapon systems necessary for the execution of DOD strategic and contingency plans be performed at public facilities. Rather, it requires that the capability to perform maintenance and repair on these systems be retained in the public depot activities and that these activities be assigned sufficient workload to ensure that they are operated as cost efficiently as possible while preserving sufficient surge capacity to support the strategic and contingency plans of the U.S. Armed Forces.”