Military Base Closures: Observations on Prior and Current BRAC Rounds

The Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990, as amended, authorized a new round of base realignment and closures (BRAC) in 2005, the fifth such round in recent years but the first since 1995. The legislation requires the Secretary of Defense to submit his list of bases recommended for closure and realignment to an independent BRAC commission by May 16, 2005. The Commission is charged with reviewing these recommendations and submitting its report with recommendations to the President for his acceptance or rejection of them in their entirety by September 8, 2005. Subsequently, the Congress has final action to accept or reject the recommendations in their entirety later this year. By law, GAO is mandated to review the Department of Defense's (DOD) process and recommendations and to report its findings by July 1, 2005. For the inaugural hearing of the 2005 BRAC Commission GAO was asked to address: (1) the status of implementing recommendations from previous BRAC rounds, (2) DOD's expectations for the 2005 BRAC round, and (3) the analytical framework for the 2005 BRAC round. GAO offers some suggestions for the Commission to consider as it prepares for the 2005 BRAC round.