The Boston Globe
December 10, 2004

Expansion dismissed as factor in fate of Hanscom

By Rick Klein, Globe Staff

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon will not take into account the planned expansion
of Hanscom Air Force Base when deciding which military bases to close this
year, according to a senior Defense Department official, undercutting the
strategy of Governor Mitt Romney and Senator Edward M. Kennedy to save the
Bedford base by expanding it.

In a letter sent in October to the chairman of the House Armed Services
Committee, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Raymond F. DuBois wrote that
expansion plans for Hanscom and other bases won't be considered when
decisions are made regarding base closings, because "military value" is the
main consideration.

Romney and Kennedy have met with military officials this fall to tout the
proposal to expand Hanscom and build on its expertise in communications,
intelligence, and other high-tech operations as the state begins a fight to
protect the installation from the 2005 round of base closures. Massachusetts
officials have said the $410 million expansion proposal would double the
research capacity of Hanscom through a public-private partnership and create
5,000 jobs. The Pentagon is seeking to cut as much as one-fourth of its
military base capacity in next year's closure process.

"While the Department welcomes any actions that improve military-community
relationships and the quality of life for our nation's armed forces, it will
not include such promised considerations within the [base-closings]
process," DuBois wrote to Representative Duncan Hunter, a California
Republican. "Proposals from the public do not constitute certified data that
our analysis relies upon."

DuBois sent his letter after Hunter expressed anger over the lobbying by
Romney, Kennedy, and other Massachusetts officials. Massachusetts officials
met with Air Force personnel at the Pentagon in September and traveled to an
Air Force base in Ohio in early October, and Romney highlighted the
state-funded Hanscom expansion plans in a private meeting with White House
Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr. shortly after last month's presidential
election.

Hunter warned in a letter to the Pentagon that the meetings could set "a
very dangerous precedent," because they encourage meddling by lawmakers and
because the promises made may not be fulfilled after the base is saved.
Hunter added that proposals like the one for Hanscom "frequently may not
translate into reality."

Hunter represents San Diego County in Congress and has been involved in
protecting the sprawling military bases of Southern California. The base
closings are handled by the independent commission, but the Armed Services
Committee and other members of Congress take an intense interest in the
closures, especially those in the lawmakers' home districts. Some lawmakers
have, for example, steered federal money to hometown bases to expand the
role of their favored base in an effort to save it from closure.

DuBois's letter undermines one of the primary rationales for the Hanscom
expansion, by making clear that the proposal won't be a factor in deciding
whether the base remains open. But a Kennedy spokesman said last night that
Massachusetts officials are still hopeful the expansion plans will be viewed
positively by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission because the plans
would contribute to the base's military value by creating a more vibrant
military research community at Hanscom.

"It'd be foolish for the Air Force not to recognize that reality in the base
consolidation process," said David Smith, the senator's spokesman. "The base
can add so much to the Air Force and to national security as a whole."

Representative Martin T. Meehan, a member of the House Armed Services
Committee, echoed that sentiment yesterday, saying that the Hanscom
expansion would leave the base on the "cutting edge of modern military
technology."

"Fortunately, the Department of Defense has said that military value is the
most important factor in the BRAC process," said Meehan, a Lowell Democrat.
"I am hopeful that as the BRAC Commission undertakes its work they will
determine that Hanscom's military value and capacity to expand are as
essential to our country's security as we all believe it to be."

Massachusetts officials defended their lobbying in Washington, saying they
are trying to point out the value to the military of keeping Hanscom open
and the importance of the base to the region. The base narrowly avoided
being shuttered in a round of closings in 1995, and now has about 4,200
military personnel and civilian workers.

"We recognize that Hanscom and Natick have enormous potential for growth,
and it is the job of the governor and Senator Kennedy to do everything they
can to tell that story," said Shawn Feddeman, a Romney spokeswoman. Natick
is a separate installation that is home to the Soldier Systems Center,
another military base that state officials are trying to keep open through
expansion.

The Hanscom expansion would add 1.25 million square feet of space, 800
housing units, and access to the area via new roads, intersections, and mass
transit. The state would cover $241.6 million for the expansion, with the
remaining costs generated by rent on military housing that would be built on
and near the base.

"This forward-thinking initiative to expand Hanscom will create thousands of
new jobs and save the ones that are already there by making the base more
indispensable to the Pentagon's research and development needs," Romney said
after the meeting with Pentagon officials in September.

Keith Ashdown, vice president for policy at Taxpayers for Common Sense, a
nonpartisan group that seeks to eliminate government waste, said there's
nothing unusual about the efforts by Massachusetts officials to keep Hanscom
open. Last year, the state of California gave $50,000 to seven local
governments to mount campaigns to protect bases that could be targeted for
closure, and the city and county of San Diego spent $30,000 each to hire a
consultant who helped protect military bases there.

Ashdown noted that Hunter and other leaders of the House Armed Services
Committee have helped delay base closings because of local considerations.

"The politics of base closures are that pretty much everybody and anybody's
coming out of the woodwork to protect their local base," he said.

Hunter's office did not respond to calls seeking comment late yesterday.

Susan Milligan of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Rick Klein can
be reached at rklein@globe.com.
© Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company
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