Industry wants changes in depot maintenance legislation.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra
• Position: Defense Insider

* Weapons manufacturers worry that Congress might have tilted the playing field when it changed the language in U.S. military depot maintenance legislation.

Under the rule commonly known as the 50-50 split, at least half of the military's depot maintenance funds must be spent in public depots.

Congress has resisted calls for changes in the law, but last year it did revise the language in Section 2464 and appears to have expanded the definition of core weapons maintenance work that is subject to the 50-50 split. That change has stirred industry fears that a larger share of the workload will be out of reach for contractors.

The revisions were included in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, Section 321 under Title III.

Weapon upgrades and modifications typically have been competitively awarded and not counted toward the 50 percent share that must be assigned to public depots, says a March 27 letter sent by industry associations to the leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.

Industry contends that aircraft carrier refueling--estimated at $1 billion per year--is one example of the work that would fall into...