[CPEO-IRF] "BRAC Failed Capacity, Financial Goals"

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

BRAC Failed Capacity, Financial Goals

Commentary by Lawrence J. Korb
Center for Defense Information
September 27, 2005


This commentary first appeared in the Sept. 26 edition of Defense News.

For the last decade, the Pentagon has been complaining that keeping 
excess bases open is costing the military and the taxpayers at least $10 
billion a year. Since taking office, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld 
has been arguing that the Congress needed to reauthorize another 
realignment and closure process so he could eliminate about 100 major 
bases, or about 25 percent of the Defense Department’s base structure.

Given the fact that four previous rounds of base closures closed 97 
major bases, restructured another 55, has saved $40 billion and 
continues to save $7.3 billion annually, these estimates seem plausible.

Yet this year, when a reluctant Congress finally allowed another round 
of base closures, the results fell far short of expectations. Why? 
Although some blame politics, the fact is Rumsfeld and his staff 
mismanaged the process.

...

For the entire commentary, see
http://www.cdi.org/program/document.cfm?DocumentID=3159&StartRow=1&ListRows=10&appendURL=&Orderby=D.DateLastUpdated&ProgramID=37&from_page=index.cfm


--
Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
http://www.cpeo.org
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