- Base Realignment and Closure, 2005
The preliminary 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list was released by the
United States Department of Defense onMay 13 ,2005 . It is the fifthBase Realignment and Closure ("BRAC") proposal generated since the process was created in1988 . It recommends closing 33 majorUnited States military base s and the "realignment" (either enlarging or shrinking) of 29 others. OnSeptember 15 ,2005 , PresidentGeorge W. Bush approved the BRAC Commission' s recommendations, leaving the fate of the bases in question to the United States Congress. Congress had a maximum of 45 days to reject the proposal by passing a joint resolution of disapproval, or the recommendations automatically enter into effect. Such a resolution (H.J.Res. 65) was introduced to the House of Representatives onSeptember 23 2005 , by Rep. Ray LaHood (R-IL) (no such resolution was introduced in the Senate). The House took up debate of the resolution onOctober 26 2005 . The resolution failed to pass, thereby enacting the list of recommendations. TheSecretary of Defense must begin implementing the recommendations bySeptember 15 ,2007 and complete implementation not later thanSeptember 15 ,2011 .Commissioners
*
Anthony Principi — Chairman
*James H. Bilbray
*Philip Coyle
*AdmiralHarold W. Gehman, Jr. (USN)
*James V. Hansen
*GeneralJames T. Hill (USA)
*GeneralLloyd W. Newton (USAF)
*Samuel K. Skinner
*GeneralSue E. Turner (USAF)Justifications
Pentagon officials calculated that, if adopted in full by the nine-member BRAC Commission, the recommendations would have saved almost $50 billion over 20 years. The BRAC Commission (officially known as the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission) disputed this claim, pointing out what it considered to be significant flaws in the Department's methodology. The Commission recalculated the 20-year savings of the DOD recommendation list at just above $37 billion. Between late May and late August, the Commission reviewed the list and amended many of the Pentagon's recommendations, removing several major installations from the closure list. The Commission has calculated the overall 20-year savings to the government in carrying out its amended list of recommendations as close to $15 billion.
Gen.
Richard Myers ,Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , said onMay 12 ,2005 that the two-year effort to produce the list had several objectives::*better integrate active and reserve units:*rearrange forces to be able to act around the globe:*make the military more flexible and agile:*improve cooperation between military service branches while training and fighting (ironically many Air Force combat units have converted to non-combat duties):*convert unneeded capacity into warfighting capability
The 2005 BRAC round is the fifth since the process was initiated in 1988, and it is the first since 1995. It differs significantly from its predecessors in several respects:
:*it is the first with a nine-member commission (the 1991, 1993, and 1995 commissions had eight members):*it is the only stand-alone round authorized by Congress (the 1988 BRAC round was initiated by the Secretary of Defense, and the 1991-1995 rounds were authorized together in the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990):*it is the first BRAC round focused on military force transformation, not infrastructure reduction:*it is the only round to form part of a worldwide defense infrastructure review that includes similar examination of U.S. installations overseas:*it is the first BRAC to significantly impact the National Guard, causing several states to file legal proceedings attempting to stay or cause recommendations to be thrown out:* Targeted examples of Joint Bases for closure when creation of joint facilities was stated as a main goal.:* Targeted some of the most decorated units in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq including these:
::*102nd Fighter Wing — The F15s flown by the 101st Fighter Squadron were the first responders on 9/11::*
VMFA-321 — Based atAndrews Air Force Base , this Marine Reserve squadron flewcombat air patrol (CAP) missions on 9/11; many members reported for duty long before any official call.::*VFA-201 — A Navy Reserve Squadron called to take part in the first Reserve squadron deployment as part of a Carrier Air Wing since theKorean War .:*Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove was slated for closure, even after it was stated as a perfect base for Homeland Security operations. In fact, the US Customs Service flew EP-3 Orion AWACS aircraft from the base immediately following 9/11. The base had units from every branch of the DOD. Each branch of the DOD was represented at the base across various missions. As such, Willow Grove often was key for joint training missions, A-10s working with F-14s andMarine Aircraft Group 49 forward air Controllers (FACs).Recommendations
Major bases slated for closure (ordered by branch of the military)::*14 major Army bases:*9 major Navy bases :*10 major Air Force bases
Major facilities slated for closure include these::*
Fort McPherson, Georgia :*Fort Gillem , Georgia:*Naval Submarine Base New London inConnecticut (removed from listAugust 24 ,2005 ):*Portsmouth Naval Shipyard inKittery, Maine (removed from listAugust 26 ,2005 ):*Naval Air Station Brunswick inMaine :*Ellsworth Air Force Base inSouth Dakota (removed from listAugust 26 ,2005 ):*Cannon Air Force Base inNew Mexico (temporarily removed from closureAugust 26 ,2005 , pending review of new mission assignment):*Fort Monmouth inNew Jersey :*Defense Finance and Accounting Service inNew York :*Fort Monroe ,Virginia :*Willow Grove Naval Air Station/Joint Reserve Base inPennsylvania :*Naval Station Ingleside ,Texas :*Otis Air National Guard Base ,Massachusetts (removed from listAugust 26 ,2005 ):*Navy Supply Corps SchoolMajor facilities slated for realignment include these::*
Army Human Resource Command (HRC) inMissouri , moving to the [http://www.Knox.army.mil/Fort_Knox_BRAC_Updates.html Fort Knox Military Installation] in Kentucky.:*Walter Reed Army Medical Center inWashington, D.C. :*Naval Station Great Lakes inIllinois :*Naval Air Station Oceana inVirginia (extent contingent on reopening the formerNaval Air Station Cecil Field inFlorida ):*Grand Forks Air Force Base inNorth Dakota :*Eielson Air Force Base andElmendorf Air Force Base inAlaska :*Rome Laboratory inNew York :*Wright Patterson Air Force Base inOhio :*Brooke Army Medical Center inTexas :*Wilford Hall Medical Center inTexas The process of closing bases and moving people and activities must begin within two years and end within six years and would incur considerable initial cost. Somewhat less than half of the eventual savings would come directly from eliminating the cost of running closed bases. More than half would come from consolidating administrative, technical, and industrial services and from increasing the amount of joint military services and facilities available for education, training, intelligence, medical care, supply, and storage.
Lawsuits Over National Guard Realignments
Unlike previous BRAC actions, the 2005 BRAC called for major changes for National Guard units throughout the country. The result was the recommendation for the realignment of numerous Guard bases and the closure of several more. A number of states filed lawsuits to block the realignment of National Guard units, arguing that in doing so, the federal government would have been trampling over
states' rights guaranteed by theU.S. Constitution . Most of the state lawsuits were settled out of court through compromise deals with the Pentagon and Congress over the BRAC recommendations.ee also
*
Distance in military affairs External links
* [http://www.brac.gov/ 2005 BRAC Commission official website]
* [http://www.defenselink.mil/brac/ Department of Defense BRAC 2005 official website]
* [http://www.defenselink.mil/brac/pdf/Vol_I_Part_2_DOD_BRAC.pdf Detailed DOD BRAC Recommendations] (in PDF format)
* [http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/sections/news/050513_Base_CLosings.pdf Short summary of closure and realignment impacts by state] (in PDF format) -MSNBC
* [http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2005/20050513_1081.html "BRAC 2005: Closings, Realignments to Reshape Infrastructure" article]
* [http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2005/20050512_1054.html "BRAC 2005: Rumsfeld Recommends 5 to 11 Percent Cut in Infrastructure" article]
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