Congress will be asked to help the Rock Island Arsenal.
Friday, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos from East Moline held a news conference in the Quad Cities to talk about her new bill, the Army Arsenal Revitalization Act.
It would force the Army and Department of Defense to lower the cost of production on the island, so it would be more competitive with the private sector.
She's already found several co-sponsors for the bill, including a republican House member from Arkansas who has an arsenal in his district, plus Congressman Dave Loebsack, who represents the Iowa Quad Cities.
With Bustos was Ken McKillip from Local 2119 of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents many workers on the island.
Bustos says employment on the island is now about 6,200, lower that it was during the Iraq wars. So she says we have to be creative to help the Arsenal during peace time.
With her Friday was Illinois US Senator Dick Durbin, who says his colleagues from the two states, Mark Kirk, Chuck Grassley, and Joni Ernst, are also co-sponsors of her bill.
