Florida panel could prove helpful
to Northeast military installations

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Gov. Bush-appointed 17-member panel charged with helping to save Florida military installations from the next round of base closures and realignments could prove helpful to Florida's Northeast.

The Department of Defense wants to downsize its military facilities 25 percent during its next round of base closures and realignments slated to begin in 2005. Each insallation will be scrutinzed.

In Northeast Florida, Naval Air Depot Jacksonville is one of 21 military bases in the state that are subject to the Base Closure and Realignment Commission's review. More than 22,000 people work at the Jacksonville depot. Across town at Naval Station Mayport, 14,000 people are involved in Navy operations.

The 17-member panel has four committees that will come up with recommendations on ways to enhance infrastructure and make Florida more military friendly. The group will lobby Congress directly.

The Army, Air Force and Navy will take a close look at their facilities and recommend to the Defense Department which bases they can do without. The Department of Defense then decides on the final list and sends it to the White House, which can either accept or reject the list.

It has not rejected a list in previous base closures.

The decision on which bases to close will be made in 2005, with some installations beginning closure within two to five years. Defense officials hope to save $3.5 billion.