[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 70 (Friday, May 17, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H2721]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE CALL FOR A BASE REALIGNMENT AND CLOSURE COMMISSION

  (Mr. COFFMAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. COFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, in a hearing before the House Armed 
Services Committee on April 25, I asked the Secretary of the Army, John 
McHugh, if he could give me an idea of what the excess capacity is for 
Army installations in the United States.
  The Secretary informed me that the last study was done in 2004, and 
it found that the excess capacity was at 20 percent. He stated that the 
number would probably be much higher today but that he had no way of 
knowing since Congress had prohibited him from using any funds to study 
the issue further.
  Mr. Speaker, I will move an amendment when the National Defense 
Authorization Act comes to the House floor that will direct the 
Secretary of Defense to determine what the current excess capacity is 
so that we will know the potential savings from doing another Base 
Realignment and Closure Commission.
  I support the administration and its call for another Base 
Realignment and Closure Commission in 2015. Every dollar wasted in the 
Defense budget is a dollar that is not spent on defending our Nation.
  I ask that my colleagues in the House support my amendment when it 
comes to the floor.

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