House Panel Backs Study of Palmdale for Fighter Production
The House Armed Services committee voted to include language in the 2001 Defense Authorization Act requiring the Pentagon to study the costs of producing the Joint Strike Fighter in Palmdale versus other sites, congressional officials said Thursday.
The language, taken from a House bill introduced by Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Santa Clarita) and Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove), is aimed at increasing California’s chances of landing the JSF, the nation’s largest-ever defense contract, creating an estimated 10,000 jobs. The language was added late Wednesday, and the full House is expected to vote on the entire package next week.
Design teams for Lockheed Martin and Boeing are at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, building competing prototypes for the $300-billion fighter program, which will be awarded to one of the defense companies in early 2001.
Since last year, Lockheed executives have made it clear they will manufacture the fighters in Fort Worth, Texas, while those for Boeing say their plane would be produced in St. Louis, Mo.
But last November, McKeon and Sanchez tried to make California’s case by introducing a bill calling for the Pentagon to study the cost of building the Joint Strike Fighter at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale and compare cost savings against sites in St. Louis and Fort Worth.
McKeon has argued that building the JSF in California would save the government $2.2 billion because of state and local tax credits, proximity to suppliers, technical support bases and stealth production facilities.
“None of those [other] sites have even been used to produce stealth aircraft, which is a unique technology with a lot of associated start-up costs,” said McKeon aide David Foy. “It will produce other savings like being near Edwards Air Force Base, where the planes will be tested.”
Separately, the state has targeted the JSF and other defense projects by committing as many as 60 workers and more than $1 million to sell aerospace companies, Congress and the Pentagon on California’s skilled work force and manufacturing capability.
Gov. Gray Davis has budgeted about $4.1 million in tax breaks, marketing and subsidies for the commercial space and aerospace industries in the 2000-01 state budget.
Critics counter that any savings California would provide could be made up with changes in production lines or if competitors like Texas and Missouri match tax credits or incentives that California offers. They note California will reap billions of dollars from subcontracting work no matter where the JSF is produced.
