Sec. 2903. Procedure for making recommendations for base closures and realignments
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As part of the budget justification documents submitted to Congress in support of the budget for the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2019, the Secretary shall submit to Congress the following: A force-structure plan for the Armed Forces based on an assessment by the Secretary of the probable threats to the national security during the 20-year period beginning with that fiscal year, the probable end-strength levels and major military force units (including land force divisions, carrier and other major combatant vessels, air wings, and other comparable units) needed to meet these threats, and the anticipated levels of funding that will be available for national defense purposes during such period.
A comprehensive inventory of military installations world-wide for each military department, with specifications of the number and type of facilities in the active and reserve forces of each military department. Using the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory prepared under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare (and include as part of the submission of such plan and inventory) the following: A description of the infrastructure necessary to support the force structure described in the force-structure plan.
A discussion of categories of excess infrastructure and infrastructure capacity. An economic analysis of the effect of the closure or realignment of military installations to reduce excess infrastructure. In determining the level of necessary versus excess infrastructure under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consider the following: The anticipated continuing need for and availability of military installations outside the United States, taking into account current restrictions on the use of military installations outside the United States and the potential for future prohibitions or restrictions on the use of such military installations.
Any efficiencies that may be gained from joint tenancy by more than one branch of the Armed Forces at a military installation. The Secretary may revise the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory. If the Secretary makes such a revision, the Secretary shall submit the revised plan or inventory to Congress not later than February 15th of the year following the year in which such plan was first submitted. For purposes of selecting military installations for closure or realignment under this title in the year in which a revision is submitted, no revision of the force-structure plan or infrastructure inventory is authorized after that date.
On the basis of the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory prepared under subsection
(a)and the descriptions and economic analysis prepared under such subsection, the Secretary shall include as part of the submission of the plan and inventory— a certification regarding whether the need exists for the closure or realignment of additional military installations; if such need exists, a certification that the additional round of closures and realignments would result in annual net savings for each of the military departments beginning not later than six years following the commencement of such closures and realignments; and a certification that the additional round of closures and realignments will have the primary objective of eliminating excess infrastructure capacity within the Department of Defense and reconfiguring the Department’s infrastructure to maximize efficiency and reduce costs. If the Secretary does not include the certifications referred to in paragraph (1), the President may not commence a round for the selection of military installations for closure and realignment under this title in the year following submission of the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory. If the certification is provided under subsection (b), the Comptroller General shall prepare an evaluation of the following: The force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory prepared under subsection
(a)and the final selection criteria specified in paragraph (d), including an evaluation of the accuracy and analytical sufficiency of such plan, inventory, and criteria. The need for the closure or realignment of additional military installations. The Comptroller General shall submit the evaluation to Congress not later than 60 days after the date on which the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory are submitted to Congress. The final criteria to be used by the Secretary in making recommendations for the closure or realignment of military installations inside the United States under this title in 2019 shall be the military value and additional criteria specified in paragraphs
(2)and (3). The military value criteria are as follows: The current and future mission capabilities and the impact on operational readiness of the total force of the Department of Defense, including the impact on joint warfighting, training, and readiness. The availability and condition of land, facilities, and associated airspace (including training areas suitable for maneuver by ground, naval, or air forces throughout a diversity of climate and terrain areas and staging areas for the use of the Armed Forces in homeland defense missions) at both existing and potential receiving locations. The ability to accommodate contingency, mobilization, surge, and future total force requirements at both existing and potential receiving locations to support operations and training. The cost of operations and the manpower implications. The additional criteria that the Secretary shall use in making recommendations for the closure or realignment of military installations inside the United States under this title in 2019 are as follows: The extent and timing of potential costs and savings, including the number of years, beginning with the date of completion of the closure or realignment, for the savings to exceed the costs. The economic impact on existing communities in the vicinity of military installations. The ability of the infrastructure of both the existing and potential receiving communities to support forces, missions, and personnel. The environmental impact, including the impact of costs related to potential environmental restoration, waste management, and environmental compliance activities. The Secretary shall give priority consideration to the military value criteria specified in subsection (d)(2) in the making of recommendations for the closure or realignment of military installations. When determining the costs associated with a closure or realignment, the Secretary shall consider the costs associated with military construction, information technology, termination of public-private contracts, guarantees, the costs of any other activity of the Department of Defense or any other Federal agency that may be required to assume responsibility for activities at the military installations, and such other factors as the Secretary determines as contributing to the cost of a closure or realignment. Subject to subsection
(e)the Secretary shall emphasize those recommendations that yield net savings within 5 years of completing such closure or realignment. The Secretary shall not consider any recommendation that does not yield net savings within 20 years, unless the Secretary expressly determines that the military value of such recommendation supports or enhances a critical national security interest of the United States. The final selection criteria specified in this section shall be the only criteria to be used, along with the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory referred to in subsection (a), in making recommendations for the closure or realignment of military installations inside the United States under this title in 2019. If the Secretary makes the certifications required under subsection (b), the Secretary shall, by no later than April 15, 2019, publish in the Federal Register and transmit to the congressional defense committees and to the Commission a list of the military installations inside the United States that the Secretary recommends for closure or realignment on the basis of the force-structure plan and infrastructure inventory prepared by the Secretary under subsection
(a)and the final selection criteria specified in subsection
(d)that are applicable to the year concerned. The Secretary shall include, with the list of recommendations published and transmitted pursuant to paragraph (1), a summary of the selection process that resulted in the recommendation for each installation, including a justification for each recommendation. The Secretary shall transmit the matters referred to in the preceding sentence not later than 7 days after the date of the transmittal to the congressional defense committees and the Commission of the list referred to in paragraph (1). In considering military installations for closure or realignment, the Secretary shall consider all military installations inside the United States equally without regard to whether the installation has been previously considered or proposed for closure or realignment by the Department. In considering military installations for closure or realignment, the Secretary may not take into account for any purpose any advance conversion planning undertaken by an affected community with respect to the anticipated closure or realignment of an installation. For purposes of subparagraph (B), in the case of a community anticipating the economic effects of a closure or realignment of a military installation, advance conversion planning— shall include community adjustment and economic diversification planning undertaken by the community before an anticipated selection of a military installation in or near the community for closure or realignment; and may include the development of contingency redevelopment plans, plans for economic development and diversification, and plans for the joint use (including civilian and military use, public and private use, civilian dual use, and civilian shared use) of the property or facilities of the installation after the anticipated closure or realignment. In making recommendations to the Commission, the Secretary shall consider any notice received from a local government in the vicinity of a military installation that the government would approve of the closure or realignment of the installation. Notwithstanding the requirement in subparagraph (D), the Secretary shall make the recommendations referred to in that subparagraph based on the force-structure plan, infrastructure inventory, and final selection criteria otherwise applicable to such recommendations. The recommendations shall include a statement of the result of the consideration of any notice described in subparagraph
(D)that is received with respect to a military installation covered by such recommendations. The statement shall set forth the reasons for the result. In addition to making all information used by the Secretary to prepare the recommendations under this subsection available to Congress (including any committee or member of Congress), the Secretary shall also make such information available to the Commission and the Comptroller General of the United States. Each person referred to in subparagraph (B), when submitting information to the Secretary of Defense or the Commission concerning the closure or realignment of a military installation, shall certify that such information is accurate and complete to the best of that persons knowledge and belief. Subparagraph
(A)applies to the following persons: The Secretaries of the military departments. The heads of the Defense Agencies. Each person who is in a position the duties of which include personal and substantial involvement in the preparation and submission of information and recommendations concerning the closure or realignment of military installations, as designated in regulations which the Secretary of Defense shall prescribe, regulations which the Secretary of each military department shall prescribe for personnel within that military department, or regulations which the head of each Defense Agency shall prescribe for personnel within that Defense Agency. Any information provided to the Commission by a person described in paragraph (5)(B) shall also be submitted to the Senate and the House of Representatives to be made available to the Members of the House concerned in accordance with the rules of that House. The information shall be submitted to the Senate and House of Representatives within 48 hours after the submission of the information to the Commission. After receiving the recommendations from the Secretary pursuant to subsection
(h)for any year, the Commission shall conduct public hearings on the recommendations. All testimony before the Commission at a public hearing conducted under this paragraph shall be presented under oath. The Commission shall, by no later than October 1 of each year in which the Secretary transmits recommendations to it pursuant to subsection (h), transmit to the President a report containing the Commission’s findings and conclusions based on a review and analysis of the recommendations made by the Secretary, together with the Commission’s recommendations for closures and realignments of military installations inside the United States. Subject to subparagraphs
(C)and (E), in making its recommendations, the Commission may make changes in any of the recommendations made by the Secretary if the Commission determines that the Secretary deviated substantially from the force-structure plan and final criteria referred to in subsection (d)(1) in making recommendations. In the case of a change described in subparagraph
(D)in the recommendations made by the Secretary, the Commission may make the change only if— the Commission— makes the determination required by subparagraph (B); determines that the change is consistent with the force-structure plan and final criteria referred to in subsection (d)(1); publishes a notice of the proposed change in the Federal Register not less than 45 days before transmitting its recommendations to the President pursuant to subparagraph (A); and conducts public hearings on the proposed change; at least two members of the Commission visit the military installation before the date of the transmittal of the report; and the decision of the Commission to make the change is supported by at least seven members of the Commission. Subparagraph
(C)shall apply to a change by the Commission in the Secretary’s recommendations that would— add a military installation to the list of military installations recommended by the Secretary for closure; add a military installation to the list of military installations recommended by the Secretary for realignment; or increase the extent of a realignment of a particular military installation recommended by the Secretary. The Commission may not consider making a change in the recommendations of the Secretary that would add a military installation to the Secretary’s list of installations recommended for closure or realignment unless, in addition to the requirements of subparagraph (C)— the Commission provides the Secretary with at least a 15-day period, before making the change, in which to submit an explanation of the reasons why the installation was not included on the closure or realignment list by the Secretary; and the decision to add the installation for Commission consideration is supported by at least seven members of the Commission. In making recommendations under this paragraph, the Commission may not take into account for any purpose any advance conversion planning undertaken by an affected community with respect to the anticipated closure or realignment of a military installation. The Commission shall explain and justify in its report submitted to the President pursuant to paragraph
(2)any recommendation made by the Commission that is different from the recommendations made by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (h). The Commission shall transmit a copy of such report to the congressional defense committees on the same date on which it transmits its recommendations to the President under paragraph (2). After October 1 of each year in which the Commission transmits recommendations to the President under this subsection, the Commission shall promptly provide, upon request, to any Member of Congress information used by the Commission in making its recommendations. The Comptroller General of the United States shall— assist the Commission, to the extent requested, in the Commission’s review and analysis of the recommendations made by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (h); and by no later than June 3 of each year in which the Secretary makes such recommendations, transmit to the Congress and to the Commission a report containing a detailed analysis of the Secretary’s recommendations and selection process. The President shall, by no later than October 15 of each year in which the Commission makes recommendations under subsection (i), transmit to the Commission and to the Congress a report containing the President’s approval or disapproval of the Commission’s recommendations. If the President approves all the recommendations of the Commission, the President shall transmit a copy of such recommendations to the Congress, together with a certification of such approval. If the President disapproves the recommendations of the Commission, in whole or in part, the President shall transmit to the Commission and the Congress the reasons for that disapproval. The Commission shall then transmit to the President, by no later than November 18 of the year concerned, a revised list of recommendations for the closure and realignment of military installations. If the President approves all of the revised recommendations of the Commission transmitted to the President under paragraph (3), the President shall transmit a copy of such revised recommendations to the Congress, together with a certification of such approval. If the President does not transmit to the Congress an approval and certification described in paragraph
(2)or
(4)by December 2 of any year in which the Commission has transmitted recommendations to the President under this title, the process by which military installations may be selected for closure or realignment under this title with respect to that year shall be terminated.