Base Realignment And Closure

"Provides a comprehensive analysis of how American communities redevelop closed military bases"--

Approximately 13 years ago, in December 1988, the first military base closure commission recommended the closing and realignment of 145 US domestic bases and facilities. This action was the consequence of the Department of Defense's broad reevaluation of its mission in conjunction with the weakening and ultimate collapse of the Soviet Union. There was little need, according to the Pentagon, to continue to retain the vast Cold War-era infrastructure. Funds saved from closing down under-utilised bases, DOD further noted, could be used to enhance development of new weapons and improved readiness. Three additional rounds followed the 1988 round of infrastructure reductions in 1991, 1993, and 1995. Since then, no further rounds of base closures and realignments have been authorised by Congress, despite repeated requests from the Department of Defense in recent years for two additional rounds. The reasons for congressional resistance are two-fold. First, there is concern over a likely backlash from constituents living in or near military installations. Second, many Members of Congress remain wary about a repetition of the perceived political intrusion by the Clinton Administration that occurred in regard to the 1995 recommendations to close Kelly and McClellan air force bases. This book reveals the tension in the military facilities that may yet again be up for closure. Also discussed are the issues members of Congress feel need be answered before conducting a new round of base closures, when the national security environment is uncertain.

The Army has been doing its part to help downsize the defense establishment, closing 23 major installations in the four rounds of base closures and realignments. Yet, this work states that many believe that excess installation capacity remains, so more rounds are sure to come.

Between 1988 and 1995, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission closed down 97 bases and realigned over 350 other bases. A hot button topic in the military field, base-closings is an important issue that affects not only soldiers, but ordinary citizens as well. Due to their massive economic significance for local and regional communities, military bases impact thousands of people, and thus encompass various political interests between local, state, and national levels. This reference work investigates the politics and key political figures involved in base-closing decisions, and considers various reasons why bases have been and continue to be closed down. An overview of the U.S. military base infrastructure as well as primary documents is included to help students understand the BRAC Commission process between 1988-2005. The book also analyzes the closure of overseas bases outside of the BRAC process. Ideal for high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, this comprehensive handbook is the only complete reference guide to military base closings. Between 1988 and 1995, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission closed down 97 bases and realigned over 350 other bases. A hot button topic in the military field, base-closings is an important issue that affects not only soldiers, but ordinary citizens as well. Due to their massive economic significance for local and regional communities, military bases impact thousands of people, and thus encompass various political interests between local, state, and national levels. This reference work investigates the politics and key political figures involved in base-closing decisions, and considers various reasons why bases have been and continue to be closed down. An overview of the U.S. military base infrastructure as well as primary documents are included to help students understand the BRAC Commission process between 1988-2005. Ideal for high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, this comprehensive handbook is the only complete reference guide to military base closings.

From Italy to the Indian Ocean, from Japan to Honduras, a far-reaching examination of the perils of American military bases overseas American military bases encircle the globe. More than two decades after the end of the Cold War, the U.S. still stations its troops at nearly a thousand locations in foreign lands. These bases are usually taken for granted or overlooked entirely, a little-noticed part of the Pentagon's vast operations. But in an eye-opening account, Base Nation shows that the worldwide network of bases brings with it a panoply of ills—and actually makes the nation less safe in the long run. As David Vine demonstrates, the overseas bases raise geopolitical tensions and provoke widespread antipathy towards the United States. They also undermine American democratic ideals, pushing the U.S. into partnerships with dictators and perpetuating a system of second-class citizenship in territories like Guam. They breed sexual violence, destroy the environment, and damage local economies. And their financial cost is staggering: though the Pentagon underplays the numbers, Vine's accounting proves that the bill approaches $100 billion per year. For many decades, the need for overseas bases has been a quasi-religious dictum of U.S. foreign policy. But in recent years, a bipartisan coalition has finally started to question this conventional wisdom. With the U.S. withdrawing from Afghanistan and ending thirteen years of war, there is no better time to re-examine the tenets of our military strategy. Base Nation is an essential contribution to that debate.

The Defense Secretary's Commission on Base Realignment and Closure was chartered on May 3, 1988 to recommend military installations within the United States, its commonwealths, territories, and possessions for realignment and closure. The Congress and the President subsequently endorsed this approach through legislation that removed some of the previous impediments to successful base-closure actions. This Commission's recommendations for closure and realignment affect 145 installations. Of this number, 86 are to be closed fully, five are to be closed in part, and 54 will experience a change, either an increase or a decrease, as units and activities are relocated. The Commission also makes several additional recommendations that address potential problems in implementing the Commission's closure and realignment recommendations and certain other matters that the Commission has discovered during its review of the military base structure.