Bush Signs Supplemental Spending Bill With Space/Missile Funding

President Bush signed into law a supplemental appropriations bill that provides funding for various space- and missile-related programs in the current fiscal 2006 that ends Sept. 30.

For example, the bill includes $203.3 million for Army missile procurement. While the funding is contained in the fiscal 2006 measure, it will remain available through the end of fiscal 2008.

The measure also provides $35 million for repair and rehabilitation of assets at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans after they suffered hurricane-caused damage.

As well, the bill contains $8.57 million for shoulder-fired rockets of various types, and $10 million for different types of Hydra 70 rockets.

For the Navy, there is $55.2 million for Hellfire missiles made by Lockheed Martin Corp. [LMT].

For the Marine Corps, the bill provides $3.7 million for the Javelin shoulder-mounted missile by Raytheon Co. [RTN] and Lockheed.