The U.S. Senate approved a bill Friday to include millions of dollars in funding for several Wisconsin companies manufacturing goods for the nation's military.
Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., touted the passage of the 2006 Defense Appropriations Bill through the Senate, saying businesses and projects in the state could receive a combined $70 million in contracts from the U.S. Department of Defense to provide the nation's military forces with goods and services.
"I am proud that Wisconsin industries, with their commitment to excellence and innovation, will continue to play an important and vital role in supplying our military," Kohl, who is also a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said in a release.
DRS Technologies of Milwaukee, a company that makes lightweight generators for naval vessels, would receive a contract worth $11 million through the 2006 bill.
Silicon Logic and Pliant, two Chippewa Falls companies which make battery-life indicators and food-packaging products, respectively, will each get $2 million to develop materials for military use.
Kohl said Rayovac, which is based in Madison, would be the recipient of a "large share" of a $3 million battery-technology contract under the provisions of the Defense Appropriations Bill, if it is signed into law.
"In the past, Wisconsin has been last or close to last for the number of federal dollars received from the Department of Defense," State Sen. Spencer Black, D-Madison, said. "So it is great for the state to finally get this money."
Black said the funding from the bill will help create new jobs in the state and will also provide an additional boost to Wisconsin's economy.
"Economists will usually tell you that for every dollar brought in from outside, there's usually three or four more dollars generated as the money circulates in the economy," Black said.
Other companies in Racine, Milwaukee, Madison, Oak Creek, Berlin and Cudahy are included in the bill and stand to establish contracts worth a total of more than $35 million with the DOD to make other products that will be implemented by the military.
In addition, military projects in the state are slated to receive substantial funding through the bill.
Despite this, U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., expressed disappointment in some parts of the bill, but added the legislation did have positive attributes.
"We continue to waste billions on Cold War-era weapons systems designed to counter the Soviet Union while not fully funding the needs of the military personnel fighting our current wars," Feingold said in a statement. "However, on balance this legislation contains many good provisions for our men and women in uniform and their families, and that is why I support it."
The 2006 Defense Appropriations Bill will now be considered and voted on by the U.S. House of Representatives.
