Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC), is a process by a United States federal government commission to increase United States Department of Defense efficiency by planning the end of the Cold War realignment and closure of military installations. More than 350 installations have been closed in five BRAC rounds: 1988, 1991, 1993, 1995, and 2005.
Video Base Realignment and Closure
Background
The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 after the 1947 reorganization for establishing the National Military Establishment was passed regarding reductions of US military bases, forts, posts, and stations. The subsequent 1950s buildup for the Cold War (e.g., during the Korean War) resulted in extensive installations such as the widespread number of Permanent System radar stations and Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) control centers. By 1959, plans for extensive numbers of Cold War installations were cancelled (e.g., DoD's June 19, 1959, Continental Air Defense Program reduced the number of Super Combat Center underground nuclear bunker to 7) and in 1958, US Intercontinental Missiles (ICMs) began to replace Strategic Air Command bombers. From 1960-1964, the Eisenhower and Kennedy Administrations closed "574 U.S. military bases around the world", particularly after President John F. Kennedy was briefed after his inauguration that the missile gap was not a concern.
- 1961 closures
- President Kennedy announced on March 28, 1961 that "73 military establishments" would be closed--Congress was informed on 30 March-- (e.g., the Snark Missile Launch Complex's wing was inactivated on 5 June 1961), and 224 closures were added later in 1973.
- 1964 closures
- "In December 1963, Secretary McNamara announced the closure of twenty-six DOD installations or activities in the CONUS".
- 1965 closures
- Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announced 95 base closures/realignments in November 1964: 80 in the United States (33 states & DC) and 15 overseas. Closures included the Portsmouth Navy Yard, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Brooklyn Army Terminal, the Springfield Armory, 6 bomber bases, and 15 Air Defense Command radar stations--a realignment transferred Highlands Air Force Station to the adjacent Highlands Army Air Defense Site.
- 1968 Project 693
- Project 693 was established by Secretary Clark Clifford during the Vietnam War for reducing programs and personnel, and the project also closed several military installations.
- 1969 realignments
- The DoD realigned "307 military bases" beginning with an announcement in October 1969.
- 1974 Project Concise
- Project Concise eliminated most of the Project Nike missile locations which generally each had 2 sites, a radar station on an elevated landform for guidance and command/control, and a launch area that had launch rails and stored missiles and warheads. A 1976 follow-on program to Concise closed additional installations.
- Grace Commission, 1983
- The Grace Commission was President Ronald Reagan's "Private Sector Survey" on cost control that "concluded in 1983 that savings could be made in the military base structure" and "recommended establishing an independent commission to study the issue." "Public Law 100-526 endorsed the review" in October 1988 and authorized the "special commission to recommend base realignments and closures to the Secretary of Defense" and provided relief from NEPA provisions that had hindered the base closure process.
1988 Carlucci Commission
On 3 May 1988 the Carlucci Commission was chartered by Secretary of Defense Frank C. Carlucci , which in December 1988 recommended to close 5 Air Force bases: Chanute Air Force Base in Illinois, George Air Force Base, Mather Air Force Base and Norton Air Force Base in California, and Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire).
Maps Base Realignment and Closure
Defense Base Realignment and Closure Act of 1990
The Defense Base Realignment and Closure Act of 1990 provided "the basic framework for the transfer and disposal of military installations closed during the base realignment and closure (BRAC) process". The process was created in 1988 to reduce pork barrel politics with members of Congress that arise when facilities face activity reductions.
The most recent process began May 13, 2005, when Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld forwarded his recommendations for realignments and closures to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission. The BRAC is an independent nine-member panel appointed by the President. This panel evaluated the list by taking testimony from interested parties and paying visits to affected bases. The BRAC Commission had the opportunity to add bases to the list, and did so in a July 19, 2005 hearing. The Commission met its deadline of September 2005 to provide the evaluated list to the President, who approved the list with the condition that the list could only be approved or disapproved in its entirety. On November 7, 2005 the approved list was then given to Congress which then had the opportunity to disapprove the entire list within 45 days by enacting a resolution of disapproval. This did not happen and the BRAC Commission's recommendations became final.
Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commissions
1988
The 1988 Base Realignment and Closure Commission included:
1990
In 1990, the Navy considered cutting 34 military installations.
1991
The 1991 Base Realignment and Closure Commission included:
1993
The 1993 Base Realignment and Closure Commission included:
1995
The 1995 Base Realignment and Closure Commission included:
2005
The Pentagon released its proposed list for the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission on May 13, 2005 (a date given the moniker "BRAC Friday," a pun on Black Friday). After an extensive series of public hearings, analysis of DoD-supplied supporting data, and solicitation of comments from the public, the list of recommendations was revised by the 9-member Defense Base Closure and Realignments Commission in two days of public markups and votes on individual recommendations (the proceedings were broadcast by C-SPAN and are available for review on the network's website). The Commission submitted its revised list to the President on September 8, 2005. The President approved the list and signalled his approval to Congress on September 15. The House of Representatives took up a joint resolution to disapprove the recommendations on October 26, but the resolution failed to pass. The recommendations were thereby enacted. The Secretary of Defense must implement the recommendations no later than September 15, 2011.
Twenty-six bases were re-aligned into twelve joint bases, with each joint base's installation support being led by the Army, the Navy, or the Air Force. An example is Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, combining Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base.
Future
The 2005 Commission recommended that Congress authorize another BRAC round in 2015, and then every 8 years thereafter. On May 10, 2012, the House Armed Services Committee rejected Pentagon calls for base closures outside of 2015 round by a 44 to 18 vote. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta had called for two rounds of base closures, while at the same time arguing that the alternative of the sequester would be a "meat-ax" approach to cuts which would "hollow out" military forces.
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 specifically prohibits authorization of future BRAC rounds: No future Base Realignment and Closure round for military installations within the United States, its commonwealths, territories, and possessions for realignment or closure shall be authorized until, at the very earliest, the Department of Defense has completed and submitted to Congress a formal review of the overseas military facility structure, which incorporates overseas basing consolidations, an assessment of the need for bases to support overseas contingency operations, and the Department of Defense's Strategic Choices and Management Review.
In May 2014, it was attempted to fund another round of BRAC, although funding was not approved in a vote in May of that year.
In March 2015, the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations and Environment addressed the possibility of a future BRAC, indicating that the DOD, Defense secretary Ash Carter was requesting authority to conduct another BRAC. In September 2015, at the tenth anniversary of the end of the most recent BRAC commission report, its former chairman Anthony J. Principi wrote the time for a new BRAC was "now", and that "Spending dollars on infrastructure that does not serve [our men and women in uniform] needs is inexcusable."
Base Closure and Realignment Appropriations
The following is a chronological timeline of authorizations for U.S. Congressional legislation related to US defense installation realignments and military base closures.
See also
- Loss of Strength Gradient
- Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe
- Joint Bases of the United States military
References
External links
- "Collection: Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission" at the UNT Digital Library
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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