Shifting Defense Policy Underlies BRAC
While the Base Realignment and Closure program saves the Defense Department billions of dollars each year, Pentagon officials say the program is not just about saving money, but modernizing and restructuring the military to meet the country's needs.

The four previous BRAC rounds have saved the military about $17.7 billion, and the 2005 round could save up to $48.8 billion over 20 years when an estimated 25 percent of excess infrastructure is closed, the department estimates.

Like other rounds, BRAC 2005 is also focused on upgrading the military and military technology. But unlike other BRAC rounds, the 2005 BRAC process is being conducted in the shadow of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. The present national security needs and the military's role in defending the homeland have dramatically evolved since the end of the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was the United States' main rival.

And, as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said in a Nov. 15, 2002 memorandum, the military requires an overhaul to meet these new needs.

"BRAC 2005 should be the means by which we reconfigure our current infrastructure into one in which operational capacity maximizes both warfighting capability and efficiency," wrote Rumsfeld.

To do this, the Department of Defense proposes closing 33 major bases, reducing personnel at 29 major bases and closing or consolidating 775 minor bases. Forty-nine bases are slated to receive "major gains" -- a major gain being 400 or more military and civilian personnel.

The consolidations and service and personnel transfers that will result from BRAC 2005 will lead to more "joint utilization of assets" -- where bases and facilities with the same function are used by multiple services, reducing unnecessary redundancies, according to the military.

The Defense Department argues that closing or consolidating bases saves money, which helps to balance the cost of carrying out a war, and allows the military to reorganize troops based on national defense needs.

But the independent, bipartisan BRAC Commission, which is reviewing the Pentagon's proposal for submission to President Bush, has expressed some concerns about the timing of the base changes.

During a May 16, 2005 meeting with top military advisers and officials, the BRAC Commission raised concerns about the reduction of U.S. bases and support services while thousands of troops are serving overseas in combat zones or foreign bases that may themselves be closing.

BRAC Commissioner Philip Coyle said that, according to information provided to the commission, as many as 70,000 troops posted overseas may come back to the United States. He asked Defense Department officials if they would be ready to accommodate such an influx when it appeared the BRAC recommendations only accounted for 15,000 troops.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld replied that the department was working very closely with the Overseas Base Closing Commission to make sure U.S. bases have enough capacity to take care of returning troops.

Geoffrey Prosch, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for installations and environment, addressed the same issue in a May 27, 2005 interview with the Armed Forces Information Service. Prosch said the issue of returning troops has forced the military to evaluate base closings even more thoroughly and cautiously.

"The timing for this BRAC has been perfect for the Army because it has allowed us through our analysis process to figure out the right location to reset units from overseas as we bring them back," he said.

Another area of concern for the commission and some politicians is the effect BRAC 2005 will have on recruitment efforts, especially for Reserve and National Guard units, which have been used heavily in the Iraq war.

The majority of the 775 smaller bases being closed or combined are Army Reserve and National Guard posts and recruitment facilities. With military recruiters already struggling to meet national goals, the commission was troubled that enrollment will drop further.

And, commissioners argued, fewer guard and reserve posts will mean potential new troops for those units will have to travel further for drills and meetings, which could further hamper recruitment efforts.

During the May 16 meeting, Gen. Richard Myers, outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he did not foresee recruiting challenges as a result of BRAC 2005.

"I don't think in the process that we anticipated that we would have difficulties in recruiting and retention," Myers said. "And no doubt there will be some inconveniences, where somebody that was used to drilling a couple of miles away may have to drive further for that training. But we think the training will be better and in some cases, joint, which it needs to be, as opposed to having individual armories out there, where if you want to access, again, these people to go do military missions, a lot of retraining is necessary."

Myers also said the senior leadership of the Army Reserve and the National Guard support the latest BRAC round.

Along with BRAC commissioners, politicians have weighed in with concerns over the Defense Department's recommendations.

Senate Armed Services Committee member Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., wrote in an editorial for USA Today on May 13, "The world has changed since the current BRAC round began in 2001. Homeland defense is more important than ever since 9/11.

"Our bases are concentrated in the South and Southwest. The states in the Northeast, Midwest and Pacific have few military bases but the bulk of the population, so an adequate regional balance must be an essential part of this BRAC evaluation."

The Defense Department has countered that homeland security needs are adequately met under the restructuring program and that bases in the South and West provide more room and more security for troops.

The BRAC commissioners, all of whom have extensive national defense experience, have held hearings to evaluate DOD's proposals throughout the summer ahead of sending their recommendations to President Bush and Congress in early fall.

-- Compiled by Lindsay Diokno for the Online NewsHour