• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

US Military

  • Branches
    • Army
    • Navy
    • Air Force
    • Marine Corps
    • Coast Guard
    • National Guard
    • Air National Guard
    • Find A Recruiter
  • Find A Recruiter
  • Military Benefits
    • GI Bill
    • VA Loans
    • Military Scholarships
    • Military Friendly Colleges
    • Money
  • Jobs
    • Military Pay Chart
    • Veteran Jobs
    • Civilian Jobs
  • VA Loan Rates
  • Military News
    • Top News
    • Benefits
    • Careers
    • Education
    • Featured Columnists
      • Larry Fowler
      • Scott Ostrow
      • Kim Lengling
      • Dr. Sasha Toperich
      • Rick Stewart
  • USM Shop
  • GI Bill
  • VA Loans
  • Military Scholarships
  • Top Military-Friendly Colleges and Universities in America

Hammack Tells Congress BRAC Round Needed

March 9, 2015 By admin

WASHINGTON (March 9, 2015) – The assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment was on Capitol Hill March 3 to discuss the Army’s 2016 military construction budget and explain the need for base realignment and closure.0

“We need a round of base closure and realignment [BRAC] in 2017,” said Katherine Hammack in testimony before the House Armed Services subcommittee on readiness. “Without a BRAC and the realized cost-savings, the only alternative is to make up for shortages in base funding by increasing risk in readiness.”

Hammack told the committee that the Army believes it can meet the primary missions of the Defense Strategic Guidance of today, but the future has become “tenuous,” because fiscal challenges brought on by the Budget Control Act strain “our ability to bring into balance readiness, modernization and end strength.”

“Even as demand for Army forces is growing, budget cuts are forcing us to reduce end strength and base support to dangerously low levels,” she said. “We face a mismatch between requirements and resources.”

The Army’s military construction request was $1.6 billion for fiscal year 2016 which is a 26-percent increase from FY15, but a 33-percent reduction from FY14 and a 55-percent reduction from FY13, she said.

“As force structures decline, we must right-size the supporting infrastructure and achieve a balance between the cost of sustaining infrastructure and Army readiness,” she said. “Degraded readiness makes it more difficult for us to provide for the common defense? the BCA [base closure act] increases risk for sending insufficiently trained and underequipped Soldiers into harm’s way and that is not a risk our nation should accept.”

Hammack said the Army had conducted a facility capacity analysis based on its 2013 audited real property data and concluded that excess facility capacity will be at 18 percent when the active Army cuts down to 490,000 Soldiers by the end of 2015.

Just two weeks ago, Lt. Gen. Karen Dyson, military deputy to the assistant secretary of the Army (financial management and comptroller), said by the end of FY16, the active force would move to 475,000 Soldiers.

“As we shrink further, more excess capacity is created,” said Hammack, adding that the impact of sequestration in fiscal years 2013 and 2014 created an increasing number of failing facilities and infrastructure.

“Right now 7 percent of the Army’s facilities are in failing condition, yet we still have operating units in them,” she said. “Twenty-four percent of Army facilities are in poor condition and the number of failing or poor increases every year.

Hammack told the committee members that sustainment is the lowest cost method of maintaining a building. If a structure is not sustained properly due to lack of investment, then it falls into restoration and modernization? “Instead of fixing one leak, you have to replace a roof,” she said.

“We saw a 9 percent increase in requirements for restoration and modernization directly due to impacts of underfunding in ’13 and ’14 due to sequestration,” she said. Buildings which are not maintained adequately, now due to constrained funding, may need to be replaced in the future at a much higher cost, she explained. “So we’re increasing the cost for future generations due to sequestration right now.”

Filed Under: Army, daniel articles, Top News

[related_posts_by_tax format="thumbnails" limit_posts="100" image_size="sidebar-thumbnail" public_only="true" posts_per_page="6"]

Primary Sidebar

USMilitary.com Career Guide

Sign up to receive USMilitary.com email updates and to hear what's going on with all military branches!

Featured Columnists

Larry Fowler

Larry Fowler is the publisher of USMilitary.com Network one of America's premier privately owned

Autobiography Compares Living Faithfully With Navy SEAL Training (BUD/S).

Scott Ostrow

Lt Col (Dr.) Scott A. Ostrow retired from the Air Force in September 2005 and has been teaching

Must Read: The Truth About The ASVAB Test Prep From The Man Who Wrote The Book

Kim Lengling

Kim Lengling is a Air Force Veteran whose passion is to help support veterans and their

The Moving Wall: Women Who Paid The Ultimate Price For Their Country

Dr. Sasha Toperich

Dr. Sasha Toperich is the Senior Executive Vice President at Transatlantic Leadership

Sarraj’s Dangerous Dance With Power

Rick Stewart

Rick Stewart is a former United States Air Force Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE)

Announcing American Patriots Unsung Magazine

Nathan B. Nelson

Capt (ret) Nathan B. Nelson is the Director of Military Affairs for the 1st Congressional district

Three Critical Considerations for Every Veteran Prior to Leaving Active Duty

Laquan Daniels

Laquan Daniel is a military recruiting expert with over 17 years of specialized experience in the

Important News For Military Transitioning Veterans

Veteran Buzz

Hire Military Veterans

Which Companies Are Most Likely to Hire Military Veterans?

July 30, 2018 By Ben Ehinger

High-Paying Jobs for Military Veterans

5 High-Paying Jobs for Military Veterans

July 2, 2018 By Ben Ehinger

High Paying Jobs Not Requiring a Degree

June 28, 2018 By Ben Ehinger

Footer

  • Advertise With Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Write For US
  • Link to Us

Recent

  • Apache Attack Helicopter Pilot: To Maintain a Watchful Eye, “Above the Best”
  • A Few Benefits You May Not be Aware of As a Military Child
  • Experts Predict Artificial Intelligence Will Transform Warfare
  • Autobiography Compares Living Faithfully With Navy SEAL Training (BUD/S).
  • The Unraveled Pandemic Of Navy SEAL Posers

Search

© Copyright 2021 USMillitary
Web Design by Goebel Media Group


THIS IS A PRIVATE WEBSITE THAT IS NOT AFFILIATED WITH THE U.S. GOVERNMENT, U.S. ARMED FORCES, OR DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. U.S. GOVERNMENT AGENCIES HAVE NOT REVIEWED THIS INFORMATION. THIS SITE IS NOT CONNECTED WITH ANY GOVERNMENT AGENCY.

​Tips
Discounts
News

​

​

Join the USMilitary.com Newsletter Today!

By subscribing you agree to our terms & conditions

x