Before a packed audience in Cochise Theater Tuesday, a senior Army Civilian listened to community leaders and members as they voiced their concerns about impacts on Fort Huachuca if additional cuts to the force were needed if the Army is required to make cuts beyond the end-strength announced in last year's Programmatic Environmental Assessment.
During Fort Huachuca's second listening session, John McLaurin III, the deputy director of the Army's Force Management office at the Pentagon, listened as members of the audience stated why jobs should not be cut. The general feeling was that if new missions were added, more Soldiers and Civilians would be needed on post.
The Department of the Army is reaching out to gather verbal community-unique considerations during community listening sessions being conducted at 30 communities across the Army. Fort Huachuca is one of them.
Maj. Gen. Robert Ashley, commanding general, U.S. Army Intelligence Center of Excellence and Fort Huachuca, opened the session, saying that, although the Army is facing "incredibly complicated times … your voice will be heard in Washington, and it already has been. We've already gone through part of documenting the comments you've made thus far, and this will be one more step in the process. Your voice will be heard in D.C."
Col. Thomas A. Boone, Fort Huachuca Garrison commander, also reiterated this, saying, "[the comments you provide] go into … two-and three-star senior Civilian discussions, to ultimately provide the Chief of Staff and Secretary of Defense [information] to move forward on where we go and how the Army is shaped for the future."
Members of the surrounding communities voiced their support and concerns.
Shay Saucedo, from the office of Senator John McCain, urged Army leaders to consider that cuts at Fort Huachuca would have "far-reaching, negative effects on national security." Cuts would also "impact more than one-fifth of the active duty and Civilian jobs in Sierra Vista and undermine the fort's status as the Army's top installation working to conserve water supplies in the drought-stricken West."
The mayor of the City of Sierra Vista cited Fort Huachuca's 2011 award as Military Installation of the Year.
"In 2011, Fort Huachuca/Sierra Vista community was recognized as the Military Installation of the Year by the … Association of Defense Communities," said Sierra Vista Mayor Rick Mueller, adding that the award was bestowed on communities on the leading edge of meeting the future needs of the military. He said the fort has the capacity to support and enhance missions here, but already meets many of the Army's requirements for an installation of the future without the need for a large financial investment. He described the mutual support the city and fort give each other, citing several joint programs.
Others spoke about the excellent quality of education on and off post, and Fort Huachuca's aggressive water and natural resource conservation programs.
McLaurin took notes during the entire process. When it ended, he told the audience that Army leadership is facing "hard decisions. … "We don't know what's going to happen with the budget," he said, adding that the decision will be made on strategic needs. He also said he heard how important Fort Huachuca is to national defense needs.
Community input will help the Army make the best decisions about reorganizations and mitigate, as much as possible, the impact on local communities.
Last year's Programmatic Environmental Assessment addressed an Active Component reduction of 80,000 Soldiers, from 570,000 to 490,000 by the end of fiscal year 2017. The Supplemental Programmatic Assessment addresses potential impacts if the Army is forced to reduce the Active Component to 420,000 personnel. Reductions of the magnitude described in the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review exceed those assessed in the 2013 Programmatic Environmental Assessment.
As outlined in the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review, the Army will continue to reduce its AC end-strength from a war-time peak of 570,000 to 440,000 -- 450,000 by the end of fiscal year 2017. This is a cumulative reduction of 120,000 Soldiers (21 percent).
If sequestration level cuts are imposed in fiscal year 2016 and beyond, end-strength would be further reduced to 420,000 Soldiers by fiscal year 2019. This is a cumulative loss of 150,000 Soldiers (26 percent).
Timely end-strength reductions and structure adjustments in all Army components are necessary to shape a force that can best meet defense strategic requirements within constrained funding.
The Army is evaluating the impact of end-strength reductions and potential realignments on communities surrounding military installations. The Army must ensure it can field and sustain a force of sufficient size, capability and configuration to meet the nation's current and projected future security and defense requirements.
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