The House Appropriations Committee's Defense panel drafted a bill for the 2008 Defense Budget which zeroed out funding for ARH-70 production, citing Bell's inability to enter production, but continued funding for research and development. However, government officials began working on export policy to allow international sales of the ARH-70. Including the U.S. Army's expected total of 512 helicopters, orders were anticipated to total over 1,000. The Army filed a Nunn-McCurdy cost and schedule breach on 9 July 2008, when new cost estimates showed a 40% cost increase above initial estimates. In August 2008, the Army requested that Bell cease recruitment for the ARH-70 program pending the outcome of the review.