NSIAD-95-133 Military Bases: Analysis of DOD's 1995 Process
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United States General Accounting Office Report to the Congress and the GAO Chairman, Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission April 1995 MILITARY BASES Analysis of DOD’s 1995 Process and Recommendations for Closure md Realignment GAO/NSIAD-95-133 National Security and International Affairs Division B-26 1024 April 14,1995 To the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives The Honorable Alan J. Dixon Chairman, Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission The Secretary of Defense announced his 1995 recommendations for base closures and realignments to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission on February 28,1995. This report responds to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (P.L. 101~510), as amended, which requires that we provide the Congress and the Commission, by no later than April 15,1995, a report on the recommendations and selection process. We have identified issues for consideration by the Commission as it completes its review of the Secretary of Defense’s recommendations. Given that this is the last of three biennial reviews authorized under the 1990 act, we are also including matters for consideration by the Congress regarding the potential need for continuing Iegislation to authorize further commission reviews and authorize changes, as needed, to prior decisions We are sending copies of this report to the Chairmen, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Defense; Senate Committee on Armed Services; House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on National Security; House Committee on National Security; the Secretaries of Defense, the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force; and the Directors of the Defense Logistics Agency and the Defense Investigative Service. We will make copies available to others on request. This report was prepared under the direction of David R. Warren, Director, Defense Management and NASA Issues, who may be reached on (202) 512-8412 if you or your staff have any questions. Other major contributors are listed in appendix VI. Charles A, Bowsher & Comptroller General of the United States Executive Summary Purpose realignments, and other actions affecting 146 domestic military installations. Of that number, 33 were described as closures of major installations, and 26 as major realignments; an additional 27 were changes to prior base closing round decisions. The Secretary projects that the recommendations, when fully implemented, will yield $1.8 billion in annual recurring savings. As required by the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990, as amended, this report presents GAO'S analysis of the Secretary’s recommendations and the selection process used by the various defense components. Background concern about the effects on communities and their economies and concerns about the impaxtiality of the decision-making process. To overcome impediments to base closures, Congress enacted legislation in 1988 (P.L. 100-526) that facilitated a successful round of base closures. Because of that success, Congress enacted the 1990 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act (Title XXIX, P.L. lOl-510), which authorized base closure rounds in 1991, 1993, and 1995. The 1990 legislation outlined a process to close and realign military installations, including the establishment of an independent, bipartisan commission to review the Secretary of Defense’s closure recommendations. Base realignment and closure (BRAC)rounds in 1988, 1991, and 1993resulted in decisions to fully or partially close 70 major domestic bases and to close, realign, or otherwise downsize hundreds of other bases, installations, and activities. DOD estimates that when fully implemented, these actions will produce savings of $4 billion per year. The current BRAC round retained basically the same requirements and procedures as those in 1993. It included the requirement to use certified data, that is, information that was accurate and complete to the best of the originator’s knowledge and belief. This requirement was designed to overcome concerns about the consistency and reliability of data used in the process. For the 1995round, DOD emphasized the exploration of opportunities for cross-service use of common support assets, It therefore established cross-service review groups to provide the services with alternatives for realignments and closures in the areas of depot maintenance, laboratories, test and evaluation facilities, undergraduate pilot training, and medical treatment facilities. Page 2 GAO/NSJAD-95-133 MilitaryBases Executive Summary As before, the Secretary’s recommendations were to be based on selection criteria established by DOD and on a 6-year force structure plan. As indicated in table 1, DOD established eight selection criteria; they have remained unchanged since 1991. Table 1: DOD Criteria for Selecting Bases for Closure or Realignment Category Criteria Military value (priority 1. Current and future mission requirements and the consideration is to be given impact on operational readiness of DOD’s total force. to the four military value criteria) 2. The availability and condition of land, facilities, and associated airspace at both the existing and potential receiving locations. 3. The ability to accommodate contingency, mobilization, and future total force requirements at both the existing and potential receiving locations. 4. Cost and manpower implications. Return on investment 5. The extent and timing of potential costs and savings, including the number of years, beginning with the date of completion of the closure or realignment, for the savings to exceed the costs. Impact 6. The economic impact on communities. 7. The ability of both the existing and potential receiving communities’ infrastructures to support forces, missions, and personnel. 8. The environmental impact. Although the Department of Defense (DOD) has in recent years undergone Results in Brief substantial downsizing in funding, personnel, and force structure, commensurate infrastructure reductions have not been achieved. Despite some progress in reducing excess infrastructure, it is generally recognized that much excess capacity wiU likely remain after the 1995 BRAC round. This view is supported by the military components’ and cross-service groups’ analyses, which showed far greater excess capacity than will be eliminated by the Secretary’s recommendations. Currently, DOD projects that its fiscal year 1996 budget represents, in real terms, a 39-percent reduction to its fiscal year 1985 peak of recent times. By way of comparison, its 1995 BRAC recommendations would produce cumulative BRAC reductions of 21 percent in inventory of major domestic bases since 1988. Page3 GAO/NSlAD-96-133 MilitaryBases ExecutiveSummary DOD'S 1995BRAC process was generally sound and well documented and should result in substantial savings. However, the recommendations and selection process were not without problems and, in some cases, raise questions about the reasonableness of specific recommendations. At the same time, GAO also noted that improvements were made to the process from prior rounds, including more precise categorization of bases and activities; this resulted in more accurate comparisons between like facilities and functions and in better analytical capabilities. GAO raises a number of issues it believes need attention by the Congress and the Commission in considering DOD'S recommendations: l DOD'S attempt at reducing excess capacity by suggesting cross-service opportunities to the services facilitated some important results. However, agreements for consolidating similar work done by two or more of the services were limited, and opportunities to achieve additional reductions in excess capacity and infrastructure were missed. In particuhu-, this was the case at depot maintenance activities and laboratory facilities. Although the services have improved their processes with each succeeding BRAC round, some process problems continued to be identified. In particular, the Air Force’s process remained largely subjective and not well documented; also, it was intluenced by preliminary estimates of base closure costs that changed when more focused analyses were made. For these and other reasons, GAO questions a number of the Air Force’s recommendations. To a less extent, some of the services’ decisions affecting specific closures and realignments also raise questions. For example, the Secretary of the Navy did not consistly apply DOD'S criteria when he excluded certain facilities from closure for economic impact reasons. Because the legislation authorizing BFUC expires this year, some process will be needed to handle changes and problems that arise during implementation of this and earlier rounds. principal F’indings BRAC Savings Are GAO estimates that the 2@yearnet present value of savings from DOD'S Expected to Be recommendations will be $17.3 billion, with annual recurring savings of Substantial, but Estimates almost $1.8 billion. GAO notes that these estimates are not based on budget Are Preliminary quality data and are subject to some uncertainties inherent in the process. However, GAO believes the savings will still be substantial. At the same Page4 GAOIIQXAD-95-133 MilitaryBases Executive Summary time, it should be noted that environmental restoration was not a factor in the DOD base closure decision-making process, and such restoration can represent a significant cost following a base closure. DOD and its components improved their cost and savings estimates for BFW 1995 recommendations. In