Washington— United States Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today called for an investigation into the role of foreign imports in the U.S. defense industrial base. Bayh and Brown today submitted an amendment to the FY2009 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) requiring a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the volume and function of imports in Department of Defense (DoD) procurement, as well as the impact of supply disruptions on U.S. military capacity and readiness.

“We should not depend on unreliable sources for U.S. military components,” Bayh said. “Our nation’s security and the safety of our service members must never be jeopardized by faulty supply chains or defective imports, especially when our own companies can provide our military with superior products. It is time we took a thorough inventory of the national security vulnerabilities created by the Defense Department’s reliance on imports.”

“Our nation cannot afford any cracks in our defense industrial base,” said Brown. “We need to know the national security implications of our increasing reliance on foreign manufacturing to equip the U.S. military. It certainly hurts Ohio’s economy when US business and jobs are shipped overseas – is it also jeopardizing our military readiness?”

In recent years, the pace of globalization has accelerated dramatically, altering supply relationships throughout the world economy. Defense manufacturers increasingly rely on imports for critical equipment and parts. For example, Meggitt Aircraft Braking Systems, a recipient of government contracts for the manufacture of critical aircraft braking systems, recently announced it will shift operations from Akron, Ohio, to Mexico. Brown and Bayh are seeking the GAO study to provide more information to lawmakers as they address changing supply relationships in defense manufacturing.

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