The Pentagon will ask Congress to authorize two more rounds of BRAC—first in 2013 and then again in 2015, said Air Force Secretary Michael Donley. “We know it’s not a very popular [issue],” he said Thursday during an AFA-sponsored speech in Arlington, Va. He continued, “We know it’s a very difficult process for Congress and all concerned, but we think the responsible thing to do is to table the proposal and Congress will deal with it as they see fit.” BRAC 2005 simply left behind too much infrastructure, focusing instead on realignments, said Donley. Since then, the Air Force has reduced its fleet by hundreds of airplanes and hopes to cut an additional 286 aircraft as the Defense Department adjusts to projected budget cuts of some $487 billion over the next 10 years. The Air Force fulfilled its 2005 BRAC mandates last September, executing seven closures and 63 realignments. Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz said that round left the service with more than 20 percent excess infrastructure.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.