May 13, 2005 Washington, DC- The Pentagon today announced its proposed list of 2005 Base Realignments and Closures. Following is U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein's statement on the proposed 2005 BRAC list: „Overall, looking back at prior base closure rounds, California dodged a bullet. However, I remain very concerned about those communities that face closure or down-sizing and will do all I can to soften the blow. We must also remain vigilant to ensure that the BRAC Commission does not close any additional bases because of pressure from other states. I also still have very serious questions about the timing of this new round of closures. We are still at war and face growing threats from military expansion and nuclear proliferation in the Asian-Pacific region and the increasing dangers of the post 9/11 world."
The Department of Defense is moving forward with the implementation of the latest round of domestic base closures. In the last four rounds, starting in 1988, California has lost 30 percent of its bases and almost 100,000 jobs. Today, 62 of the 425 major military installations nationwide are in California. In its March 2004 report to Congress on implementing a new round of BRAC, the Pentagon estimated that there is currently an excess installation capacity of 24 percent, and that consequently, up to a quarter of domestic bases may need to be closed.
BRAC COMMISSION:
Under the 1990 BRAC statute, the President must nominate a nine-member independent commission to review the Department of Defense's recommendations for base closures and realignments. The law provides for the Congressional leadership to recommend six of the nine individuals, while the President independently selects the remaining three, including the Chairperson of the commission. Under the selection process, the Senate Majority Leader and Speaker of the House each recommend two names, while the Senate and House Minority Leaders each recommend one name a piece. Under the BRAC timeline, the President was given until March 15 to nominate the full nine-member commission to the Senate for approval. In this round, President Bush chose to wait until the March 15th deadline to nominate all of the commissioners, and bypassed Congressional approval by recess-appointing the full BRAC Commission. The Commission is as follows:
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Anthony Principi, Chairman (former Secretary of VA Affairs -- DC)
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James Hansen (former Member of Congress -- UT)
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Samuel K. Skinner (former Transportation Secretary -- IL)
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Philip Coyle III (former Asst. Secretary of Defense -- CA)
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General Lloyd Newton (retired Air Force -- CT)
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Adm. Harold Gehman (retired Navy -- VA)
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James Bilbray (former Member of Congress -- NV)
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Brig. General Sue Ellen Turner (retired Air Force -- TX)
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General James T. Hill (retired Army -- FL)
Now that the BRAC Commission has been formed, they will have several weeks to hire staff and move into their new office space. On or about May 16, 2005, the Department of Defense will release the official BRAC list including its recommended closures and realignments for this round. The BRAC Commission will then be tasked with reviewing this list in a comprehensive and thorough manner, including visiting the targeted military installations and holding various regional hearings on the proposed BRAC closings and realignments. By September 8, 2005, the BRAC Commission must forward its findings and recommendations to the President for approval.
BRAC PROCESS:
Once the Pentagon releases its BRAC list, on or about May 16, 2005, the list will include both closures and realignments. For example, in the last BRAC round in 1995, there were 27 closures and 17 realignments nationwide. While most communities are primarily focused on closure issues, the process of realignment is just as important. While a closure means that a military installation loses all of its missions, realignment can mean either the loss of some missions or the addition of missions. In fact, many bases that have been realigned in the past, have in essence suffered closure because all the primary missions and economic generators were transferred elsewhere. Communities therefore should be vigilant for both closures and realignments and be prepared to argue in favor of their base(s) in either case.
CRITERIA
Military Value-
1. The current and future mission capabilities and the impact on operational readiness of the total force of the Defense Departmen including the impact on joint warfighting, training, and readiness.
2. The availability and condition of land, facilities, and associated airspace (including training areas suitable for maneuver by ground, naval, or air forces throughout diversity of climate and terrain areas and staging areas for the use of the Armed Forces in homeland defense missions) at both existing and potential receiving locations.
3. The ability to accommodate contingency, mobilization, surge, and future total force requirements at both existing and potential receiving locations to support operations and training.
4. The cost of operations and the manpower implications.
Other Considerations-
5. The extent and timing of potential costs and savings, including the number of years, beginning with the date of completion of the closure or realignment, for the savings to exceed the costs.
6. The economic impact on existing communities in the vicinity of military installations.
7. The ability of the infrastructure of both the existing and potential receiving communities to support forces, missions, and personnel.
8. The environmental impact, including the impact of costs related to potential environmental restoration, waste management, and environmental compliance activities.
BASE TRANSITION AND REUSE
The reality of BRAC is that some military installations in California will be closed or realigned. In the past four BRAC rounds, California lost nearly 30 of its bases, along with 8 that were realigned. This resulted in the loss of 93,000 jobs or 54% of the nation's BRAC personnel cuts. It is estimated that the losses have cost the State nearly $10 billion annually in revenue. In January 2005, the GAO released a report to Congress which assessed the progress of 62 communities nationwide in recovering from nearby base closures. While the GAO report suggests that "most communities have recovered or are recovering" from the previous BRAC rounds, the 18 California communities surveyed have suffered disproportionately compared with the other 44 communities. In fact, the California communities had only recovered 57% of the personnel losses compared with a 78% rate for the others. It is vital that as communities organize to defend their bases from this coming BRAC round that they also consider alternative and reuse options should their bases be closed. Many former military installations in California continue to face reuse and clean-up problems, and the more communities are prepared to face these issues in advance, the better the chance for success. About half of the land that was closed during the previous four BRAC rounds has yet to be conveyed to local reuse authorities in California. And it is estimated that the remaining cost for the military to clean-up California's closed bases could run between $1-2 billion. Return to top <#top> BRAC 2005 TIMELINE
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February 12, 2004 Pentagon released the selection criteria for BRAC 2005.
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March 15, 2004 Deadline for Congress to disapprove selection criteria.
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March 23, 2004 Pentagon released report on force structure plan, infrastructure inventory, and certified need for latest round of BRAC.
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May 13, 2005 Secretary of Defense will release list of proposed closures and realignments.
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July 1, 2005 GAO will release report assessing the Pentagon's BRAC recommendations.
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September 8, 2005 BRAC Commission must issue a report based on its "findings and conclusions" regarding the Defense Secretary's BRAC recommendations.
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September 23, 2005 The President has until this date to accept or reject the list of recommendations. If he approves the list, Congress has 45 days or until adjournment to sign off on the recommended list.
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October 20, 2005 If President disapproves of the recommendation list, this is the deadline for the BRAC Commission to resubmit a revised list to the President.
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November 7, 2005 If there is a revised list of BRAC recommendations, the President has until this date to submit the list to Congress. The recommendation list becomes "binding" if after 45 legislative days or adjournment, the Congress does not reject it.
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April 15, 2006 BRAC Commission terminates.
DoD 2005 BRAC Recommendation List by State, (PDF, 108kb)
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