Status of Senior Service School Program - USCG



Purpose: To provide a two-year update on to the Coast Guard Caucus.THANK YOU to FRA:The Fleet Reserve Association was founded 92 years ago to advocate on behalf of enlisted sea service members and their families. As the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard just detailed…the FRA has been a staunch advocate supporting those who make great sacrifice to put service before self. This “one percent” includes our military families who take no oath, but serve every day. These are families who are frequently uprooted and relocated to new communities, schools and churches. FRA is there to ensure their voice is heard & I thank you on their behalf.This morning, I’d like to spend a few minutes to update you on our strategic direction now that I am two years into the job.STRATEGY DRIVING BUDGET (Mid-Term Report):Two of my principal themes as Commandant are: (1) Strategy will drive our budget; and(2) Intelligence will drive our Operations.These themes are present in all of our “big four” operational strategies, and we are using strategy to drive our Human Capital efforts as well.WHEM STRATEGY:Transnational organized crime is a direct threat to our national security. The indiscriminate use of violence, fueled by profits from drug trafficking, weakens governments. Stymies legitimate economic activity. Terrorizes peaceful citizens. It is also the principal cause of illegal migration on our southern border. In 2014 alone, over 68,000 unaccompanied minors arrived in the United States, among the millions of adults who also entered illegally.And, while we are affected at home…these illicit groups are destabilizing governments, threatening rule of law, and spreading violence throughout Central America in an unprecedented fashion. Guided by our Western Hemisphere Strategy, the Coast Guard combats transnational crime at sea to disrupt illicit drug and human trafficking. To sever the financial lines of these criminal networks. To be clear…this is not another war on drugs. Drugs are simply the commodity of choice for criminal networks who operate with complete disregard of governments, rule of law and human life. The convergence of terrorism with transnational crime also remains a significant threat as transnational crime is also the principal cause of illegal migration on our southern border. In 2014, over 68,000 unaccompanied minors arrived in the United States. So what is the Coast Guard’s role?We are uniquely postured with the authorities and capabilities to attack transnational crime (smugglers) at sea. We have been doing it for 226 years in August!Since 2014…the latest uptick…Your Coast Guard has doubled down at home – in the Western Hemisphere.Last year we conducted the most aggressive campaign – and I emphasize campaign, this is not a war – we have undertaken in recent history to hit transnational criminal networks at sea. And, we hit them hard!RESULTS:In 2015, we disrupted 191 metric tons of cocaine and arrested nearly 700 smugglers. With each of those arrests, we gained additional intelligence to go after the next shipment.This year…in the first half of 2016, we (and our interagency and international partners) have already removed 245 metric tons of cocaine and nearly 400 more smugglers. On pace for a record year. In one stretch last fall, CUTTER BERTHOLF (First NSC) had six drug interdictions in six days. In the past, that would have been career worth of interdictions. Today, it is a good week!In fact, our NSCs (STRATTON and BERTHOLF) seized three drugs submarines in back to back deployments.I can’t get new National Security Cutters out there fast enough to replace our forty year old High Endurance Cutters, and I look forward to getting the Offshore Patrol Cutter into the fleet soon as they will replace our largest fleet…the 30-55 year old Medium Endurance Cutters.[STRATTON -> RIMPACCS21 – USN REBALANCE -> PACIFICOMSI]Yes, there is much work left to be done…but, our Strategy for the Western Hemisphere is on target and tracking.ARCTIC:To our far north and south…I remain very focused on the polar regions.Decreasing ice coverage and vast growth in human activity at the Polar Regions, particularly the Arctic, create challenges for safety of life at sea, requires oversight to ensure the responsible use of fragile resources and requires assured access to assert United States sovereignty among significant competing claims by numerous Arctic and non-Arctic nation states. The United States is an Arctic nation, and we are responsible for the Safety, Security and Environmental Stewardship of our sovereign Arctic region, including the resource rich seabed along our Extended Continental Shelf.In Spring 2014, we released a Coast Guard Arctic Strategy (in unison with the White House National Arctic Strategy) that recognized the unprecedented increase in human activity that would require significant Coast Guard commitment.In just the last two years we’ve seen:(1) Increased interest in resource extraction.(2) 200,000 cruise ship passengers visiting the High North for the past three summers. (3) CRYSTAL SERENITY will soon take 1000 passengers and nearly 700 crew through the Northwest Passage. If you’re interested, ticket prices are upwards of $21,000 a piece.(4) And, there is considerable interest in new territorial claims, and in perfecting existing claims under international law. HEALY is underway today to collect the bathymetric data to support to the United States claim for an extended continental shelf that is twice the size of California.These changes in the Arctic have occurred so rapidly that neither our infrastructure nor even our maritime charts have kept pace. [Soundings from 1915 are still common].For all of these reasons, the Coast Guard will continue to remain in the Polar Regions as we have for over 150 years. Acquiring new heavy ice breakers is key to our efforts. Only a heavy ice breaker – like the POLAR STAR – is capable of conducting our Antarctic mission or performing year-round operations in the Arctic. By way of comparison, Russia launched another nuclear icebreaker just last week that will be capable of 24/7/365 Arctic operations…they have 41 more nuclear and non-nuclear ice breakers. You cannot maintain sovereignty over any land or body of water when you are unable to be present on your own turf…your very claim itself becomes questionable. The Russians clearly get that.Just two weeks ago, I met with the Arctic Coast Guard Forum in Boston…where we continued to advance areas of mutual cooperation with unity of effort that even includes Russia.Our Coast Guard District 17 and US NORTHCOM are coordinating with international, federal, state, tribal, and local stakeholders in preparation for a mass rescue event. A SAREX, under the auspices of the Arctic Counsel is scheduled for this October. CYBER:As a regulator of the maritime industry, we have some unique challenges in the Coast Guard, where new technology enters our world every day.Aside from a few fifty year old Coast Guard cutters, there are very few ships at sea today with analog components. Even the gantry trains and cargo movers that offload ships in our ports are now fully autonomous.While it means that things are moving faster and more efficiently than ever before, it also means that the maritime domain is increasingly vulnerable to incident or attack.We’ve already seen cyber impacts to vessels and port facilities, here and abroad. It was widely reported in 2012 that over 120 ships experienced malicious jamming of GPS signals. A number of major Asian Coast Guard vessels were impacted. Mobile Off-Shore Drilling Units have driven off-station due to disruption to the Dynamic Positioning System. In Europe, organized crime exploited a container terminal’s system to facilitate drug smuggling... The risk is real. Recently, we have even seen an uptick in “ransom ware” attacks at port facilities. The boldness among cyber criminals is astounding!We have a Coast Guard Cyber strategy on the street now that is being implemented to make sure we both understand and mitigate cyber risk in our maritime domain. Industry outreach is an important part of our strategy. The private sector has a vital role in combating cyber intrusions and cyber crime in general. ENERGY:We’re not seeing the $100 per/bbl oil that we were in 2014, but we are still seeing an overall uptick in maritime commerce that remains unprecedented. This is particularly true for ports affected by deeper and wider Panama and Suez Canals. We’re producing more natural gas than ever before, and the Coast Guard remains poised to re-inspect or certify the vessels, facilities and crews that will spring back into action with the next uptick in oil. We are also ever-mindful of the pollution response capabilities needed as hydrocarbons and petrochemicals continue to move through our nation’s Maritime Transportation System.HUMAN CAPITAL STRATEGY: [Active, Reserve, Civilian, Auxillary.]Ships, planes, and boats are all hollow without people. And, that is why I’m laser focused on our workforce of the future.We are beginning work to complete our force planning construct to baseline force size.I’m increasingly concerned we are manned for a steady state environment in a sea of tranquility.My own experience tells me that we never go more than five years without a major incident (9/11 (2001), Katrina/Rita (2005), Deepwater Horizon (2010), Sandy (2012)).I’m an eternal optimist, but…tranquility is not on our horizon.With that…today’s operating environment requires a workforce that is:(1) More specialized;(2) More adaptable; and(3) More diverse…than ever before. Just last week I received our current statistics from the Coast Guard Academy. On average, considering the classes of 2016 and projecting to the class of 2020 – we have achieved over 32% under-represented minorities and over 36% women. Still room to improve, but we are headed in the right direction! While the majority of our eleven missions are the same as those envisioned by Alexander Hamilton…the complexity and uncertainty of our operating environment and our adversaries require 21st century talent and thinking. MSRT (Advanced Interdiction, CBRN/E, CT); SURFMAN (the sea is still the sea, but a lot more people are using it!); PILOTS (Airlines are hiring);INTELLIGENCE (using National Intelligence to drive ops); MARINE INSPECTORS (from 22,000 TEU ships to LNG Power); CYBER EXPERTS (nationwide shortage of cyber specialists, particularly for positions within the federal government)Our new “blended retirement” plan beginning in 2018 is another area of uncertainty which may come with unintended consequences. The exact cost of the plan is unknown and unpredictable, but we know it will be large. And, unlike DoD, that cost will come out of our Operating funds… That is fuel for our cutters. Gear for our people.It may impact retention. Currently, the Coast Guard’s active duty retention rate is over 93% for officers (5-yr average) and over 88% for enlisted members. The retention rate among first-term enlisted members is 85%. We need those rates to stay high or even grow higher to face the complex operating environment in this 21st century.CLOSING: As we complete our 225th year of service to our Nation, the Coast Guard remains an indispensable instrument of national security and prosperity. Over the past two years, we have outlined our Service’s strategic direction. And used that to inform budget needs. We must continue to modernize. To maintain force structure size. To preserve operations and readiness. We must continue to use intelligence to make risk-based decisions for the optimal allocation of our finite resources. Finally, we must invest in our people. Our 88,000 active duty, reserve, civilian, and all-volunteer auxiliary members. They are the centerpiece of our 21st century Coast Guard!The support of this Congress has enabled me to recap and modernize the Coast Guard, sustain mission readiness, and maintain force structure. Thank you! ................
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