Posted on October 2, 2026
In a report dated September 25, 2026, the Government Accountability Office, the US Congress’s oversight body, the GAO, estimates that modernizing the US Navy’s 4 public shipyards could exceed $200 billion and take more than 50 years. This timeframe far exceeds the fleet renewal schedules of the United States and China, while US industrial capabilities already no longer allow it to produce and maintain all the vessels planned under Washington’s naval planning.
For the GAO, the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program is very substantially underestimated in both cost and duration
Launched in 2018, the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program was initially expected to cost $21 billion and be completed in around 20 years. It covers facilities in Norfolk, Virginia; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Portsmouth, Maine; and Puget Sound, Washington. These sites provide maintenance, repair and modernization for US nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines, notably through dry docks, workshops and equipment suited to particularly complex vessels.
Environmental challenges, rising raw-material prices, deferred maintenance operations and the addition of new work have gradually expanded the scope of the program. At Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, new seismic risks have notably required additional reinforcement. The GAO also notes the absence of regular assessments integrated into key decisions, as well as incomplete documentation of responsibilities assigned to the various organizations. The US Navy accepted all 3 recommendations concerning oversight of costs, schedules, performance and governance.
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The consequences are already visible in the US submarine fleet. The US Navy has 49 attack submarines, while it estimates it needs 66, and their number is expected to fall to around 46 by 2030. The 2026 schedule also called for the retirement of 3 Los Angeles-class units. USS Boise, which has been immobilized in dry dock at HII Newport News Shipbuilding for more than 11 years, is set to be retired prematurely following this lengthy period of unavailability.
