Turner & Assistant Army Secretary Bush Tour Lima Tank Plant

This week Senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, Doug Bush, and I visited Lima's tank plant, the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center (JSMC).

I have long supported the JSMC tank plant's capabilities from advocating the plant remain operational to securing federal funding to support modernization efforts to advancing foreign military sales. As the sole producer of tanks in the United States, it is crucial that the Lima plant continue to receive the federal resources it needs to maintain military readiness for our US troops and our allies.

Rep. Turner' s work supporting JSMC:

• 2012: Led the initiative alongside congressional colleagues to keep Lima open through legislative provisions in the FY13 NDAA when the Obama Administration sought to close its doors
• 2015: Welcomed partners from the Israeli Diplomatic Mission to the plant to honor the 2015 Israeli Ministry of Defense contract awarded to the plant
• 2016: Secured provisions in the FY17 NDAA allowing plant to maximize use of the facility while protecting production lines and jobs of the workers
• Feb. 2022: Advocated for foreign military sale of tanks to Poland
• May 2022: Pushed for increased production at the plant to backfill tanks and maximize defense capabilities

Background on the Lima Tank Plant: 

Lima's JSMC is the sole producer of tanks in the United States. A government owned and contractor operated facility, the JSMC currently produces approximately 30 tanks a month. Production lines at JSMC are critical to maintaining a robust defense industrial base and have aided US and allied forces in conflicts dating back to WWII.