House-Passed Defense Appropriations Bill Contains Funding for Two Southern Indiana Projects

House-Passed Defense Appropriations Bill Contains Funding for Two Southern Indiana Projects

(Washington, DC) - The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Department of Defense (DOD) Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2008 early Sunday morning. The bill contains funding for two important projects in Southern Indiana - enhancing the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility's linear accelerator and supporting its collaboration with Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center's (NSWC, Crane), and expanding training capabilities at the Muscat tuck Urban Training Center (MUTC).

Indiana University is set to receive $3 million in funding for their Cyclotron Facility's collaboration with NWSC, Crane, to design improvements and upgrade equipment at Indiana University's Cyclotron Facility. The linear accelerator is used to test the effects that radiation has on the DOD's space and missile system. The current linear accelerator at Crane is more than 20 years old and does not meet today's technological standards. Crane and Indiana University are joining together to test DOD's space and missile systems at the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility.

MUTC is projected to receive $2 million to enhance their training capabilities. More specifically, the funding will be used to install recording equipment to monitor and record training operations in order to give them a more thorough "after action report" evaluation, and / or install motion sensor equipment to activate "environmental elements" such as lights, sounds, or smells to enhance the realism of the training space and exercise. With such additions, MUTC will be better able to train law enforcement, emergency medical service personnel and military units though heightened realism.

"I am proud to support all of these projects and very pleased my colleagues concur with me about the importance of all of these projects," Hill said. "The fact that two projects in Southern Indiana were funded through this appropriations bill is a reflection of just how important they are to Southern Indiana. These projects assist this nation's military, first responders and institutions of higher education. I am proud of what we are doing in Southern Indiana and proud that the House of Representatives is funding these innovative programs."

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