$310 Billion Not Enough For Pentagon?
PRESS RELEASE COUNCIL FOR A LIVABLE WORLD 110 Maryland Avenue, NE - Room 409 Washington, D.C. 20010
For release: Contact: Friday October 6, 2000 Dan Koslofsky 202.543.4100 ×125
Pork, Bases, and Unneeded Weapons Drive Spending Increases
Washington DC - The House and Senate Armed Services Committees today completed the fiscal 2001 Defense Authorization bill. The announcement comes on the heels of a report released by the General Accounting Office detailing funding shortfalls in the Pentagon’s future readiness and modernization programs.
The GAO report claims the Pentagon will have to continue using procurement dollars intended for new weapons to fund current operations and maintenance programs. The report is expected to add momentum to increasingly vocal calls for massive increases in military spending. However, initial analysis of the recently completed authorization bill and the GAO report by Council for a Livable World revealed the problems can best be solved by a shift in priorities, not an increase in spending.
“The Pentagon could save $3 billion a year if Congress would simply let it close unneeded bases,” argued John Isaacs, President of the Council for a Livable World. The GAO report cites maintaining excess infrastructure as a key financial strain on future budgets.
The report also points out that higher than expected costs for weapons programs such as the Army’s Comanche helicopter, the Navy’s F/A-18E/F aircraft, the Air Force’s F-22 aircraft, and the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft are contributing to the funding shortfall. The latter three programs, all tactical aircraft, are expected to cost the Pentagon over $300 billion over the next 10 to 20 years.
The Defense Authorization conference report, totaling $309.9 billion, includes billions in unrequested spending including: $150 million for two F-15 fighter aircraft, $51 million for two F-16 aircraft, and $125 million for 12 additional UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. “The problem is not a lack of funds,” said Isaacs, “It’s a lack of will power in Congress.”
Despite adding $750 million for the medium-weight armored vehicle to support the Army’s transformation to a lighter, more mobile force, the bill also includes full funding ($355 million) for the 110 ton Crusader mobile howitzer and adds $77 million for the Wolverine Heavy Assault Bridge. “Congress wants to have its pork and eat it too,” continued Isaacs.
While the GAO report contends procurement funding for next year will be lower than actually planned, it is unclear if the GAO estimate includes $2.8 billion in C-17 cargo planes. Under the fiscal 2001 Defense Appropriations bill, already signed into law, funding for these planes was transferred from procurement accounts to the “National Defense Airlift Fund” to prevent competition between cargo aircraft and other procurement priorities. “This is just another example of big defense spenders using ‘fuzzy math,’” added Isaacs.
Other add-ons to the Fiscal 2001 Defense Authorization bill:
$74.6 million for one KC-130J Hercules cargo aircraft $41.9 million for 2 CH-60 Navy cargo helicopters $24 million for 19 TH-67 Army helicopters $72 million for ugrades to Army National Guard Bradley vehicles $47.4 million for 2 SH-60R Navy helicopters $55 million for a C-40A Navy transport aircraft $90 million for the Navy’s DDG-51 Destroyer program $35.6 million for 2 AV-8B Harrier jump jets $32.8 million for 2 T-45 Goshawk Navy training aircraft $85 million for the Airborne Laser program