GovernmentExecutive.com

The Labor Department announced Tuesday more than $28 million in federal grants for communities affected by the Pentagon's current base closure and realignment round.

The money is spread out among 28 states, plus Washington, D.C., and Guam, all of which stand to lose jobs as a result of the BRAC round.

The grants are intended to aid workers affected, help communities develop their post-base closure plans, and expand economic development programs, Labor Secretary Chao said in a statement.

States applied for the grants following criteria laid out by the Labor Department in May, just after Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld announced his base-closure recommendations.

No state or community may use the funds to lobby the independent base-closure commission to keep their installations open.

In many cases, the size of the grants coincides with the impact the BRAC round might have on individual states.

Connecticut and Maine, for instance, are the two states hit hardest by the base-closure round and each stand to receive $1 million and $1.3 million, respectively.

South Dakota, which stands to lose Ellsworth Air Force Base, likewise would receive $1 million.

COMMENTS

• What savings???? GovExec.com reader Posted July 7, 2005 8:45 AM
• This is perfect example of the costs of BRAC that are not included in the DoD savings estimates for BRAC. Moving out of leased space in Arlington VA where the government has ten year leases means the buildings are empty but GSA continues to pay the lease. DoD has moved an operating expense from DoD to GSA. The government saved nothing. Likewise, the employees will have to drive because mass transport is not aviable to the proposed locations. This will generate greater air pollution and remove the subsidy that DoD has to pay commuters. Thus, again DoD gets out of costs but those costs increase for the empolyees moved. Finally, at the closed facilities the people are unemployeed - at least for awhile. All those people are paid unemployment that is not a DoD expense but is a government expense. Congress and BRAC must stop looking at how much DoD will save and start looking at what the government will save. Actually the current proposal probably will increase the total cost to the government while allowing DoD to shift "savings" to other DoD areas. Base closure is a very complicated way to increase governemnt spending for what the military wants and reduce the money available for toher things or increase the debt and taxes on us all. Congress has to get the GAO to look at the BRAC savings for the government and stop allowing them to focus on DoD. taxpayer Posted July 1, 2005 7:34 AM