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Senate Vote Suggests No Delay in Base Closings
WASHINIGTON -- What looked like a window of more opportunity to make the case for preserving operations at the Youngstown Air Reserve Station appeared to close yesterday on Capitol Hill.The U.S. Senate defeated, by a vote of 49-47, an amendment to the fiscal year 2005 Defense Authorization Bill that would have required the Defense Department to close overseas bases before it could proceed with the next round of domestic base closings. Last week the U.S. House Armed Service Committee approved an amendment to the spending bill that would postpone until 2007 the 2005 round of military base closings. U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio 17, is a member of the Armed Services Committee and voted in favor of the amendment. Ryan is also co-chairman of the Mahoning Valley campaign to spare the Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna Township from being closed by the Defense Department. "Tuesday's vote in the Senate to go forward with the current round of base closings underscores that we cannot let up in our efforts to promote our base," he said in a statement."I believe that the base closing process can still be delayed," Ryan continued, "but the Senate vote makes it clear that we must keep working as hard as we always have to save our base and reservists. I will keep fighting in Washington for more federal investment into the Youngstown Air Base. By increasing the government's stake in our base, we improve its position that much more."The House Senate conference committee still must work out the differences in the two authorization bills, and Ryan pledged to "work with my colleagues to keep that language in the final bill."All U.S. military bases around the country are under review as part of a process known as Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). The conventional wisdom holds that 25% of the military and naval bases will be closed after the next BRAC round.The current timetable, which the House amendment would extend by two years, calls for BRAC to submit its base-closing list to the president by Sept. 8, 2005. By November 2005, the president must recommend the realignments -- all or nothing -- to Congress, which would have 45 legislative days to act.The Youngstown Air Reserve Station is one of the area's five largest employers and, along with the Navy and Marine reserve operations located there, contributes an estimated $100 million into the local economy. The base is home to 1,400 reservists and 400 Air Reserve technicians and civilian employees who work full-time at the Vienna Township facility. More than 500 reservists stationed at the base are currently deployed in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The community campaign to keep the base open, known as SOAR -- Operation: Save Our Airbase Reservists -- has retained a Virginia consulting firm to study the base's strengths and weaknesses and make recommendations on improvements. The campaign is being funded by contributions from local business leaders and a state grant."