Letter to Secretary of the Army Dr. Francis Harvey

Dear Secretary Harvey:

One year ago, we informed you of the critical work being performed by the Maine Military Authority at the Maine Readiness Sustainment Maintenance Site (MERSMS) in Limestone, Maine and the potential for further significant savings to the Army by increasing the workload at this facility. At that time, we requested you use the authority granted to the Secretary of the Army under US Code Title 32, Section 113 and reinforced in Section 806 of PL108-375 to directly mission the MERSMS through the National Guard Bureau (NGB) to provide refurbished vehicles to US Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM). To date, you have declined to exercise that authority.

Recently, the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Peter Schoomaker testified before Congress that sustained strategic demand has placed a tremendous strain on the Army's equipment, noting for example, that the Army's truck fleet is experiencing pronounced and excessive wear as a result of operating at five to six times programmed rates and the addition of heavy armor kits and other force protection initiatives.

General Schoomaker went on to outline the Army's requirement for reset in FY2007 of $17.1 billion, including $4.9 billion deferred from FY2006. He stated that reset is a cost of war and should not be borne at the expense of our modernization efforts. We could not agree more. But he also said that the Army was seeking to perform reset services as efficiently and effectively as possible in order to use resources wisely and maintain preparedness for future deployments. We share this goal but do not believe it is being achieved.

The MERSMS has an unparalleled track record of providing refurbished HMMWV (Humvees) to the Army at a fraction of the cost of new equipment. Recently, TACOM entered into a $3 million, one-year contract with the MERSMS for the refurbishment of 300 Humvees at a savings of $12,500 over TACOM's active Army Depots, each of which will receive over 3,500 vehicles in FY2006. Because the MERSMS has a proven capacity to refurbish over 250 vehicles a month, it remains our position that the Army is neither effectively nor efficiently utilizing the entire capacity of the industrial base to reset its equipment and return its units to full readiness upon their return from operational deployments.

On August 1, the Senate adopted an amendment to add the $13.1 billion in emergency spending to the FY2007 Defense Appropriations bill that OMB stated was necessary for repairing and replacing Army and USMS equipment and on August 2, adopted another to permit the Army to shift an additional $6.7 billion from within Army accounts to further bolster readiness.

Clearly, Congress is intent on ensuring our troops have the equipment they need to maintain their training and readiness levels as they perform the missions that secure the nation. We believe it is time that you, as Secretary of the Army, use the authority provided you under 32 USC 113 to fully utilize the unused capacity within the industrial base and directly mission the National Guard Bureau and the Maine Readiness Sustainment Maintenance Site to rebuild military equipment for the Army.

Thank you for your personal attention to this vital matter.

Sincerely,

____________________________ _____________________________
OLYMPIA J. SNOWE SUSAN M. COLLINS
United States Senator United States Senator

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MICHAEL H. MICHAUD
United States Representative

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