Lawmakers on Capitol Hill and state governors are starting to become more open to the idea of allowing the Defense Department to realign and consolidate military bases, an Army assistant secretary has told Federal News Radio.
Shefali Kapadia writes that Katherine Hammack — assistant secretary for installations, energy and environment — said the service also needs to “shrink the size of the Army in terms of bases†as it cuts its force.
The U.S. Army looks to reduce its troops to 490,000 by the end of fiscal year 2015, Kapadia reports.
The Army also says it runs excess costs of up to $500 million in footprint based on a macro analysis, according to the report.
Hammack told Federal News Radio the Army plans to perform “micro analysis that reveals which specific bases can be consolidated†with authorization from Congress.
