Durbin Meets with the Commanding General at Rock Island Arsenal

Press Release

Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Sustainment Command at Rock Island Arsenal, Major General Yves Fontaine, to discuss job creation by increasing the arsenal's contracting capabilities. Late last night, Durbin announced that the Senate has approved $9 million in federal funding to assist the Rock Island Arsenal as part of the fiscal year 2010 Defense Appropriations bill.

"Major General Yves Fontaine and I discussed the importance of maintaining the Rock Island Arsenal's role as a critical national security asset in our nation's defense," said Durbin. "We also discussed ways to expand the vital role the Arsenal plays in the region's economy. The funding included in the Defense Appropriations bill passed by the Senate will help keep jobs in Rock Island and help the Arsenal continue its work supporting our nation's troops."

Durbin and Fontaine discussed the possibility of locating the Expeditionary Contracting Command (ECC) headquarters at Rock Island Arsenal. The expeditionary command will provide trained contracting personnel able to deploy when needed to increase the Army's oversight of contracting in theater. The formation of the ECC was announced in February of last year.

Durbin joined then Senator Barack Obama (D-IL), Congressman Phil Hare (D-IL), Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Congressman Bruce Braley (D-IA) in sending letters in March 2008 and September 2008 to the Army asking them to consider co-locating the ECC headquarters at Rock Island with the Army Sustainment Command. Basing the new headquarters at Rock Island Arsenal would give ECC the benefit of Army Sustainment Command's existing capabilities, expertise, and knowledge of Army contracting. Currently, the Army Sustainment Command manages $9.1 billion annually in Army contracts and employs about 1,000 people at the Arsenal.

Additionally, the fiscal year 2010 defense spending bill that will now go to a Conference Committee includes funding for the following initiatives at the Arsenal:

* Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island. $8,000,000 in funding for the Arsenal Support Program Initiative (ASPI) which renovates unused office and manufacturing space at the Rock Island Arsenal to lease to commercial firms. ASPI was enacted by Congress in FY 2001 to encourage commercial firms to use the arsenal's facilities. ASPI allows the arsenal to modernize and maintain infrastructure while creating jobs.

* Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island. $1,000,000 in funding to demonstrate a new firetube boiler technology at Rock Island that provides higher efficiency, lower emissions, water savings, and multi-fuel capabilities to the arsenal. It will help the Arsenal save money and meet energy efficiency requirements.

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