THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 27, 1995 TAG: 9501270660
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DALE EISMAN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 95 lines
The Clinton administration, which just weeks ago was promising a ``robust'' military base-closing effort this year, is scaling back those plans, Defense Secretary William Perry said Thursday.
Reversing a longstanding policy, Perry told the U.S. Conference of Mayors that this year's hit list of bases will be smaller than the list the Pentagon submitted in 1993. About 130 installations, 32 of them major, were targeted then.
A year ago, Perry's predecessor as defense chief, Les Aspin, predicted that more bases would be shut in 1995 than in any of three previous rounds. Independent analysts had suggested the 1995 base cuts would match all previous efforts combined.
Legislators had similar expectations.
``My understanding all along has been that the 1995 round of base-closings would be far more extensive than previous rounds,'' said Rep. Norman Sisisky, a senior member of the House National Security Committee.
``If a change in the extent of base-closings indicates a slowdown in defense-reduction . . . I'm all for it,'' added Sisisky, whose 4th District includes Portsmouth, Chesapeake and Suffolk.
Perry gave little explanation for the administration's change in plans, telling the mayors only that ``in the previous three (base-closing rounds) we have closed all the bases that were relatively easy to close.''
Later, Perry told The New York Times that he scaled back the Pentagon's original plans in recent weeks after military services told him a larger round of closings would be too difficult and too costly in the near term.
Perry's announcement came as sources on Capitol Hill and in the Pentagon reported that senior defense officials have told uniformed leaders to review internal recommendations for further base closures in California.
The Golden State, which has the nation's highest concentration of defense workers and military facilities, was the hardest-hit state in the 1993 round of base reductions. Virginia, which ranks second in defense presence, fared far better.
One source suggested that the administration is worried about the impact of more cuts on California, noting that federal law requires officials to consider the economic results of base closures.
Also figuring in the administration's calculations may be California's political clout. The nation's most populous state, it is considered vital to President Clinton's re-election campaign in 1996. California's 54 electoral votes are one-fifth of the total needed to claim the White House.
Bracing for further cuts, California Gov. Pete Wilson in the fall demanded that the state be represented on the 1995 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission. Only one commissioner has been selected so far, but the eight-member panel is expected to include three Californians.
Perry is to submit his proposed list of base changes by March 15. The commission will have until July 1 to review those proposals and submit its recommendations to Clinton and Congress. By law, the commission proposals must be accepted or rejected as a package.
Closing unneeded bases has been an integral part of longstanding Pentagon plans to generate some of the money the military needs to develop new weapons systems. But budget savings have never met expectations, and environmental cleanups and other factors have created expensive delays between decisions to close and actual shutdowns.
Perry acknowledged Thursday that the Pentagon still needs to trim bases to bring its infrastructure in line with the scaled-down force military planners believe is needed for the post-Cold War era. He said previous base-closing decisions will reduce military facilities by 20 percent, while force levels are being cut by one-third.
Perry also sought to reassure the mayors that the administration is committed to limiting the economic damage to their communities from any closings.
The Pentagon plans to spend about $15 billion to close the 70 major installations ordered shut in previous base-closing rounds, he said. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Graphic
TOP DEFENSE STATES DOD PERSONNEL
California: 279,020
Virginia: 194,363
Texas: 158,092
North Carolina: 109,605
Florida: 97,085
INSTALLATIONS
California: 67
Virginia: 29
Texas: 26
Florida: 24
Source: Dept. of Defense
KEYWORDS: BASE CLOSINGS by CNB