U.S. Army Garrison Fort Belvoir leaders have been working on plans to keep the impact of the planned Department of Defense directed civilian employee furloughs to a minimum.
The garrison presented its plans to Maj. Gen. Michael S. Linnington, U.S. Army Military District of Washington-National Capital Region commanding general, April 3.
"We wanted to make sure the general knows what the plan for Fort Belvoir is so he could tell us if there are any issues with the plan and back us up in case there are," said Col. Gregory D. Gadson, Fort Belvoir garrison commander.
On March 28, Chuck Hagel, Secretary of Defense, announced the reduction of furlough days from 22 to 14. Additionally, furloughs are not set to begin until June. This means the furlough letters will not go out until mid-May. Furloughs would happen over seven, two-week pay periods through September, when the current fiscal year ends, the senior official said, with employees likely to be told not to come to work for two days during each of those pay periods.
Gadson gave supervisors as wide a latitude as he could to spread the days out and close operations only where absolutely necessary.
There are specific furlough exceptions for employees deployed in a combat zone and foreign nationals employed outside the continental U.S. Nonappropriated fund employees are also excluded from furloughs regardless of how their positions are paid for.
"The reality is when you reduce a department's man-hours by 20 percent, there will be a reduction in service," said Gadson. "It continues to be essential that everyone communicate their plans to their customers."
Here at Fort Belvoir, there are three critical functions possibly affected by the sequester -- manning at the access control points, casualty assistance office, and base operations emergency functions.
Belvoir is unique in that it doesn't have brigade-sized units with replacement Soldiers waiting to be assigned to duties here. This means that while other posts can have Soldiers augment on shortfalls in civilian positions, Belvoir cannot.
"The main issue for Directorate of Emergency Services, aside from life, health and safety, is the gates," said David Parchman, DES director. "Without the exception to policy, we will be forced to close two gates. The main emphasis is getting people to work. With any diminished gate capacity, traffic quickly backs up to the main roads, including Fairfax County Parkway and Route 1 and has an adverse affect on the community."
The solution to avoid this situation is to work with Linnington to gain an exception to policy and to approach partner organizations with Soldiers to man gates on a limited basis.
For both the casualty assistance office and BASOPS, the issue is overtime in the event of an emergency. These offices are responsible for reports that must go out in a certain amount of time after an event. These timelines occur regardless of the time or day of an event.
The other issue impacted by sequestration is the ability to hire childcare and mission-critical positions currently vacant in the garrison. Directors were assured that filling critical positions was a priority with Linnington.
"I will help you hire critical positions," Linnington said. "We cannot allow mission failure."
Most garrison directorates are working on an alternating Monday and Friday furlough day schedule to keep offices open five days a week, according to John M. Burns, Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security, deputy chief of operations.
However, during the furlough, it makes sense for some services to close one day a week.
The Staff Sgt. John D. Linde Visitor Center at Tulley Gate will be closed Fridays.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Office will also be closed Fridays.
Army Community Service will be closed on Fridays. Soldiers with emergencies can call the Armed Forces Emergency Service Center, 1-877-272-7337. Only Red Cross emergencies will be handled at that center. Family Advocacy Program Domestic Violence Hotline (703) 229-2374, which is available 24/7, will be manned as usual.
Fort Belvoir's Staff Judge Advocate is working with the SJA at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall to provide continuous services. SJA at Fort Belvoir will close Fridays while JBMHH will close Mondays.
Services at the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation are provided by a mix of Department of Army civilians and nonappropriated fund employees.
"We at Morale, Welfare and Recreation are assessing all programs and services and the effect the furlough will have on our ability to provide those services," said Kim Mills, DFMWR director. "In addition, funding to DFMWR has been cut, requiring us to reassess some of the nice-to-have programs versus the direct services supporting resiliency that we deliver. Our intent is to minimize disruption to service to our customers but, at some point, we may see changes in hours at some facilities or even closures."
The garrison is not in charge of all services on Fort Belvoir. For example, the Defense Commissary Agency and Fort Belvoir Community Hospital belong to different commands.
During a furlough, the Commissary will likely close for one day a week according to Rick Brink, DeCA Public Affairs specialist.
"If a furlough day is implemented, the Fort Belvoir Commissary, a seven-day-a-week operation, would close one day per week," Brink said. "We cannot confirm at this time any specific furlough dates that have been previously reported in the press. As additional information is available, we'll communicate those specifics to all our patrons.
"Because DeCA's planning for sequestration is fluid and subject to change, customers can find out about any changes to their store's operating schedule at www.commissaries.com. The "Locations" link and subsequent "Alphabetical Listing" leads to your "Local Store Information" page," he added.
Fort Belvoir Community Hospital is a joint command under Joint Task Force National Capital Region -- Medical and does not follow service-specific guidance regarding furloughs, according to Charles Widener, FBCH strategic communications chief.
"Hospital officials continue working to reduce the impact of sequestration. While our goal is to minimize any disruption in the care we provide, civilian personnel furloughs may result in reduced services to include longer wait times and fewer personnel available to provide care," Widener said. "Active duty and emergency medical care is an absolute priority and will be preserved. Family care remains a high priority as well, and we will make every attempt to maintain access. Our patients remain our number one priority as we work to ensure that we continue providing the highest quality of health care to our nation's servicemembers, retirees and their Families."
If a furlough is required under sequestration, garrison leaders will work with the Belvoir community and mission partners to maintain a competent level of service and notification.
"With effective communication we hope to keep the community informed of any changes in service and ask for its patience as we work through this difficult challenge," said Stephen Brooks, Deputy to the Garrison Commander.
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