Navy Brass Must Hold Fire on Base Closure Proposals

Even as the military goes ahead with marching orders from Congress to close or realign bases like the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, the Pentagon is already gearing up for the next downsizing round, scheduled to begin in less than a year.

But this time, the Navy wants base commanders to do a better job of remaining neutral when the Pentagon submits its list of targeted bases in early 1995. The Marine Corps is a part of the Navy.

“In effect, the commanders are being reminded to keep their mouths shut,” said a Navy official familiar with the directive, issued by the Navy Department on April 15.

“Naval personnel must remain neutral at all times,” according to a copy of the directive that was obtained by The Times. “Base officials should avoid the appearance of taking sides related to the prospects of a decision to close or realign a certain base.”

Last year, Marine Maj. Gen. P. Drax Williams, commander of El Toro Marine Corps Air Station and all other Marine air stations in the West, raised eyebrows by publicly questioning the cost estimated by the Navy for closing El Toro by 1999. He questioned whether moving the Marines to Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego was cost-effective.

And in March, 1993, after the Pentagon put El Toro on the list of base closures, Williams told a Leisure World audience: “We are not going to make a stupid decision here. If in fact this is too hard to do or it’s too expensive, or if it’s immoral to dump 4,600 Marine families on the economy in San Diego . . . then El Toro will not close.”

The Navy memo, sent down the chain of command last week, warns base commanders against making statements “which could be considered inconsistent with Defense Department policy.”

Last Friday, Marine spokeswoman Capt. Margaret A. Kuhn said that Williams always supported the move to Miramar. But she said Williams was concerned that the move “would be painful” unless the Marines receive enough money to complete it.

She said the shortage of housing in San Diego for the Marines and the quality of life for their families worries Williams. As it is, the Marines have been ordered to begin the move without the money to pay for it, officials said.

As for the Navy memo, Kuhn said that Williams had not seen it. But she quoted Williams as saying: “We all follow the law once the decision is made. My responsibility as commander of a base . . . is to make sure the folks in Washington understand the total costs of a move.”

While expressly forbidding commanders to comment on the Pentagon’s plans to close or realign a base, the memo also encourages them to address the “people factors” associated with the closure and realignment issue, “while remaining impartial.”

The Pentagon has until March 1, 1995, to submit a list of bases recommended for closure or realignment to a bipartisan, eight-member commission whose members have yet to be named. The independent commission can accept or reject the Pentagon’s recommendations and has to submit its own list to the President and Congress by July 1, 1995.

By law, every U.S. military base has to be equally considered for closure or realignment. This means that Miramar, where the Marines are scheduled to begin moving to this summer, is also a candidate for closure. The Navy will also continue to occupy the base through 1997.

Base commanders are required to fill out a 12-page “data call,” that includes questions about a base’s “current missions,” its personnel numbers and its funding source. Base commanders and other officials are required to sign the questionnaire, certifying that the information is accurate, as it goes up the chain of command.

The Pentagon will review the data calls for each base and submit its closure and realignment recommendations to the 1995 commission. In effect, bases whose missions are considered less important are the most likely candidates for closure and realignment.

Since both the Marines and Navy will occupy Miramar next year, there is some question about who will fill out the data call for the base.

“At this point, it looks like both services will probably make the call. It appears that the Navy will take the lead but won’t send it up until the Marines buy off on it. That’s how it’s shaping up now,” sad Glenn Flood, Pentagon spokesman in Washington.