Limit funding for naval ship construction to historical levels

Acquisitions

Limit funding for naval ship construction to historical levels

The Navy's current shipbuilding plan calls for a budget roughly 18 percent higher than historical averages over the last 30 years. If the Navy were to cap the budget to this historical average, the number of ballistic missile submarines and aircraft carriers would remain unchanged, while the number of new ships would be cut by a small amount compared to the alternative. In the short term, the Navy would still have an extremely powerful fleet of ships, and could adjust plans according to emerging threats if needed.

SAVINGS

$27 billion over 10 years

STATUS

LINKS

CBO: Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026 (pg. 81)

“If we are going to effectively tackle the long-term national security threat posed by our national debt, then we need to seriously examine how our defense dollars are being spent. Waste and inefficiency within the Pentagon not only contributes to our nation’s debt and deficit, it also diminishes the effectiveness of our nation’s armed forces."

Dan Caldwell, USMC (ret.)
Concerned Veterans for America

“I'm concerned that our increasing fractious political process, particularly with respect to federal spending, is threatening our ability to properly defend our nation both in the short term and especially in the long term."

Dan Coats
Director of National Intelligence

“This guide is a much-needed first step toward encouraging politicians to consider all available options for substantive Pentagon reform. Our troops deserve better than broken bureaucracy, and politicians shouldn't fool themselves into thinking that throwing money at the problem is the solution."

Capt. Dan Grazier, USMC (ret.)
Project on Government Oversight

Solutions

Pursuing Smart Tradeoffs

Acquisitions