§8697 Battle Force Ship Employment, Maintenance, and Manning Baseline Plans

Summary

The Secretary of the Navy must send a report to the congressional defense committees within 45 days after the Navy accepts the first ship in a new class. The report must explain how the ships will be used, kept ready, and staffed for their expected service life. It must cover maintenance plans (who does the work and the timing for major and drydock work), which contractor logistics items and manuals were delivered on time and which will arrive later with dates, what parts of the planned maintenance system are finished or not and how they will be completed, which supply items are aboard or missing and when missing items will arrive, and the ship’s manpower and personnel details. That includes the ship manpower document, authorized billets and funded manning for the delivery year and each of the four fiscal years after, the actual people aboard at delivery, and counts of officers (by grade and designator) and enlisted (by rate and rating). For each critical hull, mechanical, electrical, propulsion, and combat system identified by the Senior Technical Authority under section 8669b(c)(2)(C), the report must list government and contractor training available at delivery (what it is, goals, length, and location) and plans and timing for any training changes. The report must also include a month-by-month planned employment schedule for the delivery year and the next four fiscal years, showing time in basic, integrated/advanced, deployment, maintenance, and sustainment phases. At least 30 days before making a significant change to any of these baseline plans, the Secretary must send written notice to the congressional defense committees. That notice must explain the change, the intended result, the reasons, how long it will last, and the operational effects. It must also show the budget, personnel, and sustainment/maintenance effects for the year of the change, for the five years after, and over the class’s expected service life. For this rule, the U.S.S. John F. Kennedy (CVN–79), U.S.S. Michael Monsoor (DDG–1001), and U.S.S. Jack H. Lucas (DDG–125) are treated as the first ship of a new class, and the Senior Technical Authority must name their critical systems. “Battle force ship,” “delivery,” and “Senior Technical Authority” are defined in other law (see sections 8671 and 8669b).