(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Navy may not approve the start of construction of the first ship for any major shipbuilding program until a period of 30 days has elapsed following the date on which the Secretary—

(1) submits a report to the congressional defense committees on the results of any production readiness review;

(2) certifies to the congressional defense committees that the findings of any such review support commencement of construction; and

(3) certifies to the congressional defense committees that the basic and functional design of the vessel is complete.

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(b) Report.—The report required by subsection (a)(1) shall include, at a minimum, an assessment of each of the following:

(1) The maturity of the ship’s design, as measured by stability of the ship contract specifications and the degree of completion of detail design and production design drawings.

(2) The maturity of developmental command and control systems, weapon and sensor systems, and hull, mechanical and electrical systems.

(3) The readiness of the shipyard facilities and workforce to begin construction.

(4) The Navy’s estimated cost at completion and the adequacy of the budget to support the estimate.

(5) The Navy’s estimated delivery date and description of any variance to the contract delivery date.

(6) The extent to which adequate processes and metrics are in place to measure and manage program risks.

(c) Definitions.—For the purposes of subsection (a):

(1) Basic and functional design.—The term “basic and functional design”, when used with respect to a vessel, means design through computer aided models, that—

(A) fixes the major hull structure of the vessel;

(B) sets the hydrodynamics of the vessel; and

(C) routes major portions of all distributive systems of the vessel, including electricity, water, and other utilities.

(2) First ship.—The term “first ship” applies to a ship if—

(A) the ship is the first ship to be constructed under that shipbuilding program; or

(B) the shipyard at which the ship is to be constructed has not previously started construction on a ship under that shipbuilding program.

(3) Major shipbuilding program.—The term “major shipbuilding program” means a program for the construction of combatant and support vessels required for the naval vessel force, as reported within the annual naval vessel construction plan required by section 231 of this title.

(4) Production readiness review.—The term “production readiness review” means a formal examination of a program prior to the start of construction to determine if the design is ready for production, production engineering problems have been resolved, and the producer has accomplished adequate planning for the production phase.

(5) Start of construction.—The term “start of construction” means the beginning of fabrication of the hull and superstructure of the ship.