PENTAGON RECOMMENDATIONS GO TO INDEPENDENT PANEL

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/11639408.htm PENTAGON RECOMMENDATIONS GO TO INDEPENDENT PANEL By Jim Puzzanghera Mercury News Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - Onizuka Air Force Station in Sunnyvale would be closed, costing 278 people their jobs, but Moffett Field in Mountain View would gain 253 jobs as the home to a new regional Army Reserve headquarters, according to the military base closure recommendations released this morning. Spared are two prestigious facilities in Monterey that California officials were worried would be closed. The Defense Language Institute and the Naval Postgraduate School will not close, according to the commission list, which was obtained by the Mercury News from a congressional source. Moffett Field will gain the jobs as the military shuts Army Reserve facilities in Los Angeles and Little Rock, Ark., and creates a new regional command and control headquarters at the Mountain View facility, which already is home to the NASA-Ames Research Center and a rescue wing of the California Air National Guard. California would lose 5,693 military jobs, 2,829 civilian jobs and 33 contractor positions as 12 bases are closed and a dozen more have their missions changed. But the state would gain 2,044 military jobs and 2,018 military and civilian jobs at other facilities, according to the Pentagon's recommendations to the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The total impact for the state is a direct net loss of 2,018 jobs, with more likely lost indirectly in surrounding communities. The commission can make changes to the list, but it's very difficult and in previous rounds there have been few changes from the Pentagon's recommendations. ``Overall, upon first examination and looking back at prior base closure rounds, California did not do badly,'' Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said in a statement. ``Of course, any closure, especially for those most impacted in locals communities, is not usually a very good thing.'' The largest changes in Northern California are at Beale Air Force Base near Sacramento, which will remain open but lose 179 jobs. Moffett Field is the region's biggest gainer. The biggest hits for the state overall take place in Southern California. The Naval Medical Center in San Diego will remain open but lose 1,630 jobs, and the Naval Base in Ventura City will remain open, but lose 1,534 jobs. The biggest gains will be at the Naval Air Weapons Station in China Lake, which will gain 2,469 jobs. The states with the biggest gains in jobs are Maryland with 9,293, Georgia with 7,423 and Texas with 6,150. Overall, the Pentagon is cutting 26,187 jobs. The biggest losses are on the East Coast: Connecticut will lose 8,586 jobs, Maine 6,938 and the District of Columbia 6,496. California took a disproportionate hit in the four earlier rounds of base closures, from 1988 to 1995. The state lost a total of 29 major facilities and nearly half of the 200,092 military jobs cut nationwide, according to the California Office of Military and Aerospace Support. The closings cost the state $9.6 billion in lost annual revenue, according to one state estimate. State officials now say part of the reason for the large hit was that California did not have a statewide strategy, leaving localities to fight for their bases on their own. The Bay Area lost its major military facilities in those rounds, including the Naval Air Station at Moffett Field in Mountain View, the Presidio in California and Fort Ord along Monterey Bay. Despite the earlier closings, the U.S. military still plays an important role in California. The Pentagon spends about $30 billion annually in California, which is home to 62 major defense facilities and about 350 smaller ones, including Onizuka and the Defense Language Institute and Naval Postgraduate School. So California, like many other states, fought hard for its bases before the latest round of closures was announced. California had a unique pitch: After having been hit so hard in the earlier rounds, the state should be spared any major cuts this time. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last November formed the Council on Base Support and Retention, with 12 of the 18 members having strong connections to the military. In early April, the council released a 76-page report touting the need for the state's defense facilities called `California: The Key to Transforming America's Military. The state sent copies of the report to President Bush, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld and the chair of the Base Realignment and Closure Commission, Anthony Principi, along with a letter signed by Schwarzenegger and all 55 members of the state's congressional delegation. The letter and report stressed California's main strengths: an ``integrated combination'' of military training facilities, research centers, military schools, academic institutions and defense contractors; bases ``ideally located'' for dealing with threats in the Pacific and across Asia; a diverse geography allows all kinds of training; and a climate that allows for year-round training. ``We are committed to support America's military, and believe California provides that support, across the board, better than any other state,'' the letter said. But every state fought to be spared in the process. Governors traveled to Washington to personally press the Pentagon. Many states tapped former military officers to serve on base retention task forces similar to California's to make their case and lobby Defense officials. Communities have held rallies at their local facilities and sent in petitions arguing their base or facility should not be closed.