Panel Votes to Cut 1986 MX Output to 21

A House Armed Services subcommittee agreed in a closed session Wednesday to permit President Reagan to produce 21 MX missiles in fiscal 1986, fewer than half of the 48 that Reagan is seeking, sources said.

The action by the Armed Services subcommittee on procurement and military nuclear systems, which accepted a staff recommendation for 21 missiles without debate, is expected to be ratified by the full committee next week. The Senate Armed Services Committee voted last month to approve 21 missiles in fiscal 1986.

But the House subcommittee rejected by a 12-4 vote a proposal by Rep. Nicholas Mavroules (D-Mass.) that would have restricted to 40 the total number of MX missiles that the President could deploy. Charles Brown, a spokesman for Mavroules, said that the congressman intends to offer his amendment again next week in the full committee.

Not Discouraged

Brown said Mavroules was not discouraged by the lopsided vote against his ceiling, “given the pro-MX nature of the subcommittee.” He noted that two panel members who voted for the MX in the current fiscal year, Reps. Roy Dyson (D-Md.) and Albert G. Bustamante (D-Tex.), voted for his limit on deployment in the subcommittee.

Reagan’s long-range MX strategy calls for deploying 100 missiles and producing 123 more for replacements and testing. Congress has provided funds to produce 42 missiles, including 21 approved in March for the current fiscal year.

There is now no limit imposed by Congress on the number of missiles that the President may deploy, but the Senate Armed Services Committee voted early last month for a 50-missile ceiling.