WATCH: In SASC Hearing, Kelly Secures Commitment from Navy Nominee to Address Maritime Workforce and American Shipbuilding Gaps

This week, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing to consider the nomination of Admiral Daryl L. Caudle to be Chief of Naval Operations, Arizona Senator and Navy combat veteran Mark Kelly raised concerns about the U.S. Navy’s ability to sustain logistics operations in a future conflict given the nation’s limited shipbuilding capacity and shortage of trained merchant mariners. He also highlighted the importance of passing his SHIPS for America Act, comprehensive bipartisan legislation to revitalize the United States shipbuilding and commercial maritime industries.  

Kelly pressed the nominee on the readiness of the U.S. shipbuilding and maritime base: “I’ve introduced, along with Senator Young, and some colleagues in the House, a bipartisan, bicameral bill called the SHIPS for America Act to rebuild our commercial shipbuilding and our entire maritime industry, including the workforce, which is also a challenge. Right now, just to man merchant ships that we have, the 80 ocean-going merchant vessels in international trade, we are sometimes at a loss for finding crews. So, Admiral, if confirmed, what steps will you take to ensure that our industrial shipbuilding base is ready for competition in crisis and conflict?” 

Kelly also discussed efforts to address the infrastructure issues at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy through the SHIPS for America Act: “All these schools do a fine job educating mariners that we need for our national security. I was meeting with Sean Duffy, the Secretary of Transportation, about this and some other things about a week ago, and one of the things he stressed was the infrastructure problem at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and, you know, he’s committed to work with me and we’re reviewing our legislation again to make sure that we have the necessary resources and to try to get the administration to get behind this because if we properly fund the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and the state schools and provide the training vessels we need to educate this workforce, that will better position the United States Navy to have the Mariners it needs to man those oilers and supply ships and others.” 

In response, Admiral Caudle acknowledged the seriousness of these shortfalls and committed to prioritizing solutions if confirmed. 

Click here to download a video of Kelly’s remarks. See the transcript below: 

Sen. Kelly: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Admiral, congratulations on your nomination for this very important role. As you know, the Navy, I spent 25 years in the Navy. Very important to me. We’ve got a great Navy. There are always opportunities to improve it. I want to follow up on Senator Sullivan’s questions about shipyards but also from the angle of our merchant fleet and our ability to move combat power across the ocean, especially the, you know, Pacific Ocean. 

[…] 

I’ve introduced, along with Senator Young, and some colleagues in the House, a bipartisan, bicameral bill called the SHIPS for America Act to rebuild our commercial shipbuilding and our entire maritime industry, including the workforce, which is also a challenge. Right now, just to man merchant ships that we have, the 80 ocean-going merchant vessels in international trade, we are some sometimes at a loss for finding crews. So, Admiral, if confirmed, what steps will you take to ensure that our industrial shipbuilding base is ready for competition in crisis and conflict? 

Admiral Caudle: Well, Senator, thanks for that, and for championing this. Quite frankly, it’s an important issue. Our combat logistics force with our oilers and T-A-K-Es and pretty much all of our ships with a T at the beginning, we’re not in a good place. And, predominantly, that comes from a couple of challenges that we face. Challenges with having the right number of masters, first mates, chief engineers and some of the able-bodied seaman as well, so, we have a crewing problem that we’re addressing. And so, we’re after that. A campaign plan, working with legislative propositions on making sure compensation is adequate, leave accrual, rotation in a timely manner, so we’re not holding those marines on station without knowing where the relief is coming from. We’re working all that. We do have some delivery of our new class problems. We get the ships late, and when we do, sometimes they require additional work before we can put them in the field, so that’s something we need to work on as well. I think all the Shipbuilding Act and all the emphasis that that the Administration, Department of Defense, is putting on that will be a tide that raises all boats, if you will. It’s going to help me with my civilian mariner problem, the myriad problem of accountability after a degree and me getting my fair share of those Mariners is something I’m also working on. And so, it’s a lot, to your question, but if I’m confirmed, sir, you have my commitment I will work and focus on it.  

Sen. Kelly: Yeah, I’m a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. 1986. Left there with a 3rd assistant, and a 3rd mate’s license, 3rd assistant engineer. And we graduate and the Merchant Marine Academy puts out more Mariners that actually go to sea then, I think, the state schools combined. And all these schools do a fine job educating mariners that we need for our national security.

I was meeting with Sean Duffy, the Secretary of Transportation, about this and some other things about a week ago, and one of the things he stressed was the infrastructure problem at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and, you know, he’s committed to work with me and we’re reviewing our legislation again to make sure that we have the necessary resources and to try to get the administration to get behind this because if we properly fund the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and the state schools and provide the training vessels we need to educate this workforce, that will better position the United States Navy to have the Mariners it needs to, you know, man those oilers and supply ships and others.

So, thank you, Admiral, for your continued service to this nation.