The President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
We are pleased to submit the 1995 Defense Base Closure and Realignment report for your consideration. This report contains the Commission’s findings and recommendations based on a thorough review and analysis of the recommendations made by the Secretary of Defense together with the Commission’s recommendations for closure and realignment of military installations within the United States.
Over the past four months, the Commission has reviewed thousands of pages of testimony and written documentation. We held 16 regional hearings across the country, visited 167 military activities, and met with hundreds of local community groups. In 13 hearings in Washington, D.C., we received expert testimony from Department of Defense officials, the General Accounting Office and Members of Congress. All of the Commission’s activities and all of the documentation used by the Commission were open to the public.
The decision to close a military installation is a painful one. Every installation recommended for closure or realignment has enjoyed a proud history and offered a priceless service to our nation. Our review indicates that, with a concerted effort, communities can recover from the impact of a base closure, but we realize that our recommendations will result in economic hardship for many families and communities. We also realize that it is essential to our national security that we reduce our defense infrastructure in a careful, deliberate way. We believe our recommendations will help the military services maintain readiness, modernize their forces and preserve the force structure necessary to protect our nation’s vital interests in the future.
The Commission has also included some recommendations in this report regarding the post-closure activities of the federal government concerning military installations, as well as some ideas on how to address base closings in the future.
This third and final report of the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission brings to a close a unique and, in our view, remarkably successful experiment in open, participatory government.
Alan J. Dixon
Chairman
Alton W. Cornella
Commissioner
Rebecca G. Cox
Commissioner
GEN James B. Davis, USAF (Ret.)
Commissioner
S. Lee King
Commissioner
RADM Benjamin F. Montoya, USN (Ret.)
Commissioner
MG Josue Robles, Jr., USA (Ret.)
Commissioner
Wendi L. Steele
Commissioner