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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 30, 2009
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Contact: Zach Goldberg
202-225-5801 (office) |
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HOLT, PALLONE SECURE $3 MILLION FOR NEW JERSEY
TECHNOLOGY CENTER TO KEEP FORT MONMOUTH JOBS IN NJ
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(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Reps. Rush Holt (NJ-12) and Frank Pallone (NJ-6) today announced today that the House of Representatives has approved a federal defense budget that includes their request for $3 million for the newly created New Jersey Technology Center. The funding would provide an opportunity for thousands of skilled Fort Monmouth employees who would not move to Maryland if the Fort closes to join the Center, through contracts with the Army, and continue to provide technical and programmatic support for the U.S. military. Holt and Pallone requested the funding earlier this year and worked to get it included in the Fiscal Year 2010 Defense Appropriations bill, which passed the House today. The bill still needs Senate approval.
“The best step Congress and the Administration could take would be to reverse the misguided and costly decision by the BRAC Commission to close Fort Monmouth,” Holt said. “We continue to fight that decision, and our discussions with the Administration on the Fort’s future continue. At the same time, we have an obligation to ensure that our troops have the communications and intelligence support they need should the closure decision stand. The New Jersey Technology Center—a joint venture between the state and the Fort Monmouth business community—is the vehicle we need to ensure our warfighters are not left in the lurch.”
"The men and women employed at Fort Monmouth are highly skilled workers dedicated to service in the Nation's interest,” said Pallone. “As we continue to fight to keep Fort Monmouth open, the technology center will put people to work with skills and abilities needed by the military in support of our troops.”
Using the expertise of highly-skilled former Fort Monmouth workers remaining in New Jersey and other recruited experts, the intent of the Technology Center is to obtain contracts with the U.S. Army to provide mission critical services and capabilities. Support would include, but not be limited to, intelligence and communications support to the warfighter.
“The men and women of Fort Monmouth—the scientists, engineers, and acquisition specialists who make the IED jammers and related devices—have acquired their skills over decades of service,” Holt added. “You can’t buy this kind of talent off the street, and certainly not fresh out of grad school, which is why funding the Center and utilizing those workers who will stay in New Jersey is so important.”
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