FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 14, 2011
CONTACT: Bridget Nolan, Outreach Coordinator, 202.546.0795, ext. 2113, bnolan@armscontrolcenter.org
(Washington, D.C) – The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation released today a detailed budget analysis in response to the Obama administration’s release of its Fiscal Year 2012 defense spending request.
The Obama administration’s FY 2012 Pentagon base spending request totals $553 billion. This is $13 billion below the Pentagon’s Future Years Defense Program (FYDP) estimate, released last year, but represents about 3 percent in real growth over the funding the department would receive for FY 2011 under the current continuing resolution, which expires on March 4.
In addition, the administration has requested $118 billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, $18 billion for nuclear weapons activities at the Department of Energy (DoE), and $7 billion for additional non-DoD defense related activities.
Laicie Olson, Senior Policy Analyst at the Center, stated, “While the Pentagon’s base budget request continues the pattern of growth in defense spending, the significant decrease in war funding demonstrates the administration’s commitment to reducing troop levels in Iraq – and perhaps in Afghanistan.”
“Though the military budget remains large, we support the Pentagon’s continued efforts to cut or reduce wasteful and ineffective programs such as the expeditionary fighting vehicle,” added Laicie Olson. “But the toughest budget decisions have yet to be made.”
# # #The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation is one of the nation’s oldest and largest organizations dedicated to reducing and eventually eliminating nuclear weapons.
