April 9, 1976
Page 10366
MAREMONT CORP. AND THE M-60 MACHINE GUN
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, the Secretary of the Army recently announced his decision to procure the Belgian-produced armor machine gun for use on the U.S. Army's M-60 tanks. The decision was extremely disturbing to me and to other Members in Congress familiar with the procurement because of concerns that the competing machine gun, the M-60E2 produced by Maremont Corp. in Saco, Maine, was more cost effective and would have better served our national security interests than the Belgian weapon. The Maremont weapon exceeds the Army's self-defined requirements for an armor machine gun and costs little more than half what the Army will have to pay for the foreign gun. The Maremont weapon also clearly exceeds the Belgian gun on several factors including the durability, ease of maintenance, and proper rate of fire.
The Army reports that its decision was based on a cost effect analysis but a study conducted by the General Accounting Office at my request concluded that the Army's cost benefit analysis did not provide sufficient basis for a decision.
I remain convinced that had fair consideration been given to the domestic weapon it would have prevailed in the Army's procurement competition and will continue to insist that the Army conduct a fair review of both weapons before awarding a contract. Senator HATHAWAY and I have requested the Senate Armed Services Committee to investigate this procurement and a similar request has been made of the House Armed Services Committee by Congressmen COHEN and EMERY.
The Maine Legislature has expressed its official concern with the decision by the Army in a resolution outlining the economic impact on Maine and the added costs to the U.S. taxpayer. On behalf of Senator HATHAWAY and myself, I ask unanimous consent that this resolution be printed in the RECORD following Mr. HATHAWAY'S remarks.
Mr. HATHAWAY. Mr. President, I am pleased to join Senator MUSKIE in requesting unanimous consent that the joint resolution adopted by the Maine State Legislature on March 31, 1976, be inserted into the RECORD in its entirety.
The Army's announced decision to purchase the Belgian-manufactured Mag 58 rather than the Maremont M60E2 raises fundamental questions regarding the integrity of our weapons procurement system.
We have therefore asked the Senate Armed Services Committee to conduct a complete investigation regarding the facts and circumstances which led to the Army's decision, including the relationship between this procurement and the Belgian Government's agreement to purchase the U.S. manufactured F-16 aircraft.
We are hopeful that such an investigation shall bring the true facts to light and thereby give our colleagues the information they require to proceed on this matter.
There being no objection, the resolution was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:
JOINT RESOLUTION
Concerning the decision of the United States Department of Defense to award the contract for the manufacture of the M-60 machine gun to a Belgian firm instead of to the Maremont Corporation of Saco, Maine
Whereas, the largest single employer in York County is the Maremont Corporation of Saco, Maine; and
Whereas, the continued employment of the workers of Maremont is a grave concern to the State of Maine at a time when the state unemployment rate is 10%; and
Whereas, the Department of Defense has now officially declared that a contract to manufacture the M-60 machine gun will not be awarded to the Saco firm but instead will be awarded to a Belgian firm; and
Whereas, the taxpayers of the United States will pay $14,700,000 more to the Belgians for this contract than they would have paid to the Maremont Corporation; and
Whereas, 18,000 Maine citizens have signed petitions protesting the possible loss of the Maremont contract, which protests have been personally delivered to President Gerald Ford; now, therefore, be it
Resolved: That we, the Members of the 107th Legislature in Special Session assembled, do hereby express our consternation and dismay at the decision of the Department of Defense to award the M-60 machine gun contract to a Belgian firm instead of to the Maremont Corporation; and be it further
Resolved: That we urge and request the members of the Maine Congressional Delegation to convey our sentiments to the President and to the Department of Defense and to use every possible means to bring the Department of Defense to a reconsideration of its ill-advised action; and be it further
Resolved: That duly attested copies of this Resolution be immediately transmitted to those Congressional Delegates with our thanks for their prompt attention to this important matter.