Appropriations for FY2002: Military Construction (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised April 23, 2002 |
| Report Number |
RL31010 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Susan B. Epstein, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The military construction (MilCon) appropriations bill provides funding for (1) military
construction
projects in the United States and overseas; (2) military family housing operations and construction;
(3) U.S. contributions to the NATO Security Investment Program; and (4) the bulk of base
realignment and closure (BRAC) costs.
Funding for rebuilding parts of the Pentagon destroyed in the terrorist attack of September 11,
2001, is likely to be included in military construction appropriations. Preliminary estimates of the
total cost vary from $100 million to $1 billion. Part of the emergency funding legislation,
H.R. 2888 ( P.L. 107-38 ), passed by Congress Friday, September 14, will be allocated
for this rebuilding. To date, $173.4 million in contracts have been awarded for emergency structural
assessment, repair, and restoration to the Pentagon, with provision for additional awards at 60-day
intervals.
On June 27, the Administration submitted a $343.5 billion amended FY2002 defense budget
request. $10.0 billion of this is intended for military construction. Of that amount, $4.6 billion is
intended for the active services and DOD; $0.6 billion for the National Guard and Reserves; $4.1
billion for construction and operation of military family housing; $0.2 billion for the NATO Security
Investment Program, and $0.5 billion for BRAC. Separate versions of appropriations bills (both
granting $10.5 billion in new budget authority) have been passed by Congress ( H.R. 2904 and S. 1460 ).
A key issue in Congress is funding for quality of life construction. Military work facilities,
particularly those overseas and those by the National Guard and Reserves, are perceived by many
as being deteriorated and underfunded. Recently, Congress has often appropriated more in
construction funds than the Administration has requested. Congress has similarly augmented budget
requests for military family housing appropriations. The FY2002 military construction bill exceeds
the requested amount by 5.3%.
An additional key issue is the future of the Efficient Facilities Initiative (EFI). DOD
recommended legislation on August 3 to initiate a worldwide assessment of military installation
requirements, based on the results of the current Quadrennial Defense Review, and a subsequent
round of base closures and realignments. The legislation as submitted would permanently authorize
the service secretaries to convey base property to local or state government or private enterprise and
lease back what is necessary for military use. This is modeled on a demonstration project begun
during FY2000 at Brooks Air Force Base, Texas. If enacted, the EFI is likely to affect the future need
for military construction and operations and maintenance funding.
Other issues include the provision of construction contingency funds in budget requests (to
enable uninterrupted construction), an understanding of the total costs of DOD real property (spread
across several budget accounts), and recent conflicts between Administration and congressional
construction priorities and funding. Conference action on the bill is pending.
