Congressional panel chief seeks refund from Bollinger shipyard

The chairman of a congressional oversight committee has called for a Louisiana shipbuilder to return $100 million to the federal government for faulty renovations to U.S. Coast Guard patrol boats.

Federal contractors hired Bollinger Shipyards Inc. of Lockport to renovate 49 Coast Guard cutters by extending their length from 110 feet to 123 feet. The first eight boats the company produced were taken out of service when the frames cracked on their maiden voyages.

U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., said Thursday that the federal government should seek a refund from the company, which has 13 shipyards between New Orleans and Houston.

“We want our money back; that’s all about accountability,” said Cummings, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Coast Guard and Maritime subcommittee. “We don’t want boats out there that are not floating.”

A Bollinger spokesman declined to comment, saying he was unaware of Cummings’ request.

Marc Stanley, Bollinger’s government affairs executive vice president, testified earlier in the year that any repayment costs should be shared with the Coast Guard and federal contractors.

Cummings discussed the issue while introducing new legislation that would impose stricter contracting and management standards on the Coast Guard’s deepwater renovation program.

The 25-year, $24 billion acquisitions program is aimed at updating the Coast Guard’s aging fleet and aircraft. Cummings has held three hearings investigating the program and the U.S. Department of Justice has also started a probe.

“When you buy something, from a necktie to a ship, you expect to get what you bargained for,” Cummings said. “We didn’t get what we bargained for.”

In addition to the boats, the program has had problems with radio equipment in aircraft that were also renovated at a cost of $100 million.

The deal with Bollinger was part of a larger contract with Lockheed Martin and Northrup Grumman for equipment that was to be used for drug and migrant interdiction programs, search and rescue efforts, homeland security and fisheries enforcement.