(Washington, D.C.) – On behalf of its more than one million members and supporters, the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today urged Congress to reexamine the Navy’s DD(X) Next-Generation Multi-Mission Surface Combatant Ship program.  The House Armed Services Projection Forces Subcommittee will hold hearings on the DD(X) this week.  The following comments are from the letter sent by CCAGW President Tom Schatz to subcommittee chairman Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.):

The DD(X) program has already consumed $3.59 billion in research and development.  Projected costs have risen 417 percent, while the total number of ships to be procured has fallen from 24 to 12. 

Despite the substantial investment by taxpayers, the feasibility of certain key technologies has been questioned in a series of reports by the Government Accountability Office.  The DD(X) program has already missed a major deadline (Milestone B) due to disagreement between the Navy and the Cost Analysis Improvement Group over estimated DD(X) procurement costs.  The DD(X) was also highlighted in CAGW’s 2005 Congressional Pig Book, which stated, “at least three of the Navy’s big-ticket shipbuilding programs face major affordability concerns that could force the department to cut costs by dropping or changing requirements, Inside the Navy reports.”

Today’s Washington Post reported that Ronald T. Kadish, a former director of the Missile Defense Agency, concluded that the Pentagon cannot afford more than 60 of its 80 new major programs.  Mr. Kadish noted that the cost of these programs has increased by $300 billion.  The subcommittee must consider whether now is the time to cut losses on the DD(X) program before it becomes another cautionary tale of DOD fiscal irresponsibility.

The budget deficit is projected to be $330 billion this year and the Congressional Budget Office recently reported that the war in Iraq is expected to cost an additional $450 billion over the next 10 years.  The New York Times has asserted that the DD(X) program simply creates another expensive mega-ship that is unable to quickly and nimbly patrol our harbors for terrorists, or swiftly interdict drug smugglers in the Caribbean.  The Times also stated that the technology of the DD(X) addresses a different time and a different enemy.  The DD(X) program could very well result in a product that will do little to secure the United States from its enemies or its creditors. 

Again, Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding these hearings.  We urge you to keep the best interests of the taxpayers in mind as you evaluate this program.

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation's largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.