The recent decision by the U.S. and Japanese governments to scale down the realignment of Marines from Okinawa to Guam could obviate the need to construct a new base there, two Guam officials suggested. Reducing the number of Marines moving to Guam from 8,600 to 4,700 could allow the contingent to be based at Naval Base Guam, especially since some of the troops are expected to be rotational …
Monday’s meeting of Allies for Cherry Point’s Tomorrow was intended to discuss the possibility of new BRAC rounds and substantial cuts in DOD spending, but local and state officials from eastern North Carolina first heard about personnel cuts already affecting Fleet Readiness Center East. “Our numbers are going to be going down,” said Mary Beth Fennell, the facility’s business operations director …
In an effort to halt the relocation of an F-16 squadron from Eielson AFB, Alaska Sen. Mark Begich on Monday asked the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee to block funds from the fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill from being spent on force structure changes by the Air Force until congressional committees and the Government Accountability Office have an opportunity to review the plan. “The Air Force has not conducted a detailed feasibility assessment or cost analysis of the relocation to justify the decision and estimated cost savings …
The Japanese government has agreed to increase its direct contribution for the relocation of an estimated 4,700 Marines from Okinawa to Guam by $700 million to $3.5 billion. The U.S. government asked for the higher contribution in February, a request Japan had resisted until now. The increased commitment from Japan comes even as DOD has scaled down the scope of the realignment, which until recently had called for 8,600 Marines to move …
The Montana Chamber of Commerce will form a military support group to promote Malmstrom AFB, the presence of the Guard and Reserve, and the defense industry, the organization said last week. “The military is big business in Montana,” said President/CEO Webb Brown. “The state’s leading business advocate will play a greater role in supporting all the services across all of Big Sky Country …
Secretary Panetta last week said major installations should be closed only through the BRAC process, a statement that should ease communities’ concerns about the department’s intentions to shutter bases if Congress does not authorize new base closure rounds. “There is some de minimis closures that we have the right to do under the law, but my view is that for the kind of major installation, that ought to be done through the BRAC process …
In an effort to preserve Eielson AFB, the Alaska legislature is considering a measure intended to reduce the Fairbanks installation’s operating costs. After passing the House earlier this month, the Senate now is taking up House Bill 316, which would create military facility zones that offer state and federal incentives for businesses that support Alaska’s military …
The change in scope of the planned realignment of Marines from Okinawa to Guam most likely will require a new environmental impact statement, possibly resulting in a significant delay, according to testimony last week by the Navy’s installations chief. Japan and U.S. officials are in talks over the details of the reshaped plan now calling for only 4,700 Marines to relocate to Guam, down from 8,600 …
Navy officials say a planned wind farm near Naval Air Station Kingsville is not a threat to the base’s flying mission, but leaders in Texas’ Coastal Bend aren’t so certain. The Kingsville City Council passed a resolution opposing the project and is setting aside money for potential litigation to stop wind farms …
As Tobyhanna Army Depot in northeastern Pennsylvania approaches a June celebration of its 100th anniversary, workers and area residents look back to the close call they experienced during the 1995 BRAC round. While facing the prospect of being closed made for an anxious time, it brought the community closer together. “That was the first time the community realized what was here …