(Washington, D.C.) – Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today applauded the list of closing and restructuring recommendations made by the Department of Defense (DOD) to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission and warned members of Congress against interfering in the base closing process.  The Pentagon predicts the recommendations, if approved, would yield $48.8 billion in net savings over the next 20 years.

According to the DOD, 5 to 10 percent of the space on the nation’s 425 domestic military bases is not needed.  Eliminating this excess capacity would help accelerate military transformation, increase the sharing of bases by services and by active-duty and reserve units, and redirect funding toward war-fighting.  The realignment is part of the larger goal of changing military strategy from fighting the Cold War to fighting the War on Terror.   

The BRAC Commission will now have until September 8 to present its final recommendations to President Bush.  The president has until September 20 to send the bill to Congress for an up-or-down vote.  In past years, the BRAC Commission has accepted approximately 85 percent of the Pentagon’s proposals; however, Pentagon officials expect an even higher acceptance rate in this round.

“The Pentagon’s recommendations represent the careful work and judgment of our nation’s most knowledgeable military leaders,” CAGW President Tom Schatz said.  “While the BRAC Commission deliberates, members of Congress should resist the urge to intervene on behalf of their home districts and states.”

Next week, the BRAC Commission will hear testimony from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers, as well as top uniformed and civilian leadership from the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Army, and senior defense officials.
Since 1988, the DOD has closed 97 major installations and realigned an additional 55 installations.  That process has resulted in net savings of $18 billion. 

Established in 1988, the BRAC Commission, a nine-member panel of military experts, is one of the most important legacies of President Reagan’s Grace Commission, which recommended an independent commission to study base realignment and closure as a way of getting around congressional anxiety over military base closures. 

“In recent years, members have become more aggressive in their attempts to derail the BRAC process,” Schatz concluded.  “Congressional leaders should encourage members to respect the autonomy and authority of the commission, and when the time comes, approve the BRAC Commission’s recommendations.”

Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation's largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization is dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.