Defense Shipyard Workforce Housing Act of 2025
Defense Shipyard Workforce Housing Act of 2025 would require the Secretary of Defense to lead a formal study on whether providing apartment-style or dormitory housing for civilian workers at certain naval shipyards is feasible, what it would cost, and what benefits it might yield. The study, conducted in coordination with the Secretary of the Navy and the DoD’s Office of Industrial Policy, would assess construction/maintenance/lease costs, potential impacts on recruitment and retention, feasibility across public shipyard locations, operational effects on worker availability and morale, and the possibility of deducting rent from employees’ paychecks. It would also compare with other federal housing programs and include case studies at at least two covered shipyards. A final report would be due to Congress within 18 months of enactment. The bill specifies four shipyards as “covered naval shipyards”: Norfolk (VA), Pearl Harbor (HI), Portsmouth (ME), and Puget Sound (WA). The bill does not authorize funding or construction. Instead, it creates a research pathway to inform future policy decisions about housing civilian shipyard workers at these sites.
Key Points
- 1Mandates a DoD-led study on the feasibility, costs, and benefits of providing apartment-style or dormitory housing for civilian shipyard workers at covered naval shipyards.
- 2Study components include: cost estimates (construction, maintenance, leasing), potential economic/workforce benefits (recruitment/retention), location feasibility across public shipyards, operational effects (availability, morale, commuting), and rent deduction options from paychecks with related administrative/legal considerations.
- 3Requires comparisons to similar workforce housing models used by the DoD or other federal agencies and at least two case studies with data on effectiveness.
- 4Establishes a firm reporting deadline: not later than 18 months after enactment, Congress to receive a detailed study report.