CBO Papers: Closing Military Bases: An Interim Assessment.

The end of the Cold War significantly reduced many of the nations military requirements and resulted in major cutbacks in defense personnel, the weapons they operate, and the support services they need. Closing and realigning military bases overseas and in the United States has been an essential part of the post-Cold War drawdown of U.S. military forces. Determining the appropriate quantity and type of bases to close and realign has been a major concern of the Department of Defense DoD and the Congress. Beginning in 1988, when the Congress authorized the first Commission on Base Realignment and Closure BRAC, the Department of Defense undertook a major review of the military bases supporting active duty and reserve forces and recommended closing and consolidating hundreds of surplus installations. BRAC Commissions convened in 1988, 1991, 1993, and 1995 recommended that the Congress authorize DoD to close 97 of 495 major bases in the United States and realign hundreds of others. According to DoD estimates, it will cost about 21.5 billion to close and realign those bases. DoD expects that those actions will generate about 56.7 billion in net savings discounted to present value over a 20-year period. The Department of Defense has shut approximately half of the bases that the Congress directed to be closed. Action on the final round of closures has only just begun. Many observers have called for the Congress and DoD to consider shutting additional bases beyond those already being closed. This paper provides the Congress with an interim assessment of the BRAC process that could assist the Department of Defense in carrying out its final actions and the Congress in considering whether to close additional bases using the BRAC process.