Environmental insurance purchased by the commonwealth of Puerto Rico will protect the redevelopment of about 1,000 acres at the former Naval Station Roosevelt Roads slated to become an ecotourism resort. The policy provides comprehensive coverage to the site’s LRA, including remediation costs for unknown and new pollution conditions, bodily injury, property damage and legal defense costs …
The loss of Fort Drum in a future BRAC round would be devastating to the North Country economy of New York, resulting in “the end of life as we know it,” according to a column in the Watertown Daily Times. Not so clear are what steps the area can take to leverage Fort Drum’s economic assets, assuming the post survives …
Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base has picked up a variety of new missions and personnel after losing an F-16 squadron due to BRAC 2005, but elected officials and business leaders in Houston realize they will have to continue lobbying on behalf of the facility to ensure it survives any further base closure rounds. Now it is home to more than 6,000 personnel, up from 1,500 in 2008 …
The Navy’s fiscal 2013 budget proposes to decommission the Navy Reserve’s Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 77 at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, eliminating about 100 active duty and reserve Navy personnel and 55 contractors. Local officials were disappointed to learn about losing the unit, which focuses on stopping the flow of illegal drugs, but said that the move would not jeopardize the future of the facility …
The Army will inactivate two infantry brigades based in Germany that have not been modernized as part of DOD’s plan to trim the number of personnel in Europe from 80,000 to 70,000 over the next five years, Secretary Leon Panetta announced last week. The 170th infantry brigade will be inactivated this year, with the 172nd infantry brigade scheduled to be inactivated in fiscal 2014 …
In an effort to make one San Antonio-area base more attractive as a host for new missions following a future BRAC, the city of San Antonio is offering to lease 139 acres of land adjoining Lackland AFB to the installation at no cost. “This is a proactive step by the city and Port San Antonio to prepare for any upcoming base realignments and closures …
The federal government in many cases ignores a law designed to protect National Guard and reserve personnel from adverse job actions resulting from their military service, reports the Washington Post. More than 18 percent of the 1,548 complaints that employers violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act in fiscal 2011 involved federal agencies, in most instances for firing service members for their absence or retracting job offers due to a member’s active-duty commitment …
In contrast to the last BRAC round which attempted to transform the military, the next BRAC likely will focus on shedding DOD’s least efficient facilities, Anthony Principi, chairman of the BRAC Commission in 2005, told the local support organization for Naval Support Facility Indian Head. As a result, installations should attempt to cut costs …
Leaders of the Army, Navy and Marines warned lawmakers last week of the devastating effects an additional $500 billion in automatic spending cuts would have on national security. Army Secretary John McHugh said officials would begin to plan for the budget cuts this summer if no legislative fix for the looming budget cuts is in sight …
At last week’s hearing of the House Armed Services Committee on the fiscal 2013 budget request, the topic of BRAC came up often, with lawmakers questioning the rationale behind the Pentagon’s proposal for two more rounds a common refrain. A comment from Rep. Mac Thornberry was typical: “The 2005 round of BRAC will not even break even until 2018, according to GAO …