Published in the Chambersburg Public Opinion, by Marcus Rauhut

October 31, 2013

The state is looking to shield its military installations from future Defense budget cuts.

Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley, who heads the Pennsylvania Military Community Protection Commission, toured Letterkenny Army Depot Wednesday as part of a statewide tour of military facilities.

Cawley said that Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has called for another round of base closure hearings and the White House may include this in the preliminary 2015 budget. Congress has been reluctant, Cawley said.

"Whether those hearings take place or not, every day the Department of Defense is making decisions on military assets, both here in the commonwealth and through the country," he said. "We want to prepare to tell the story of why our Pennsylvania facilities are so critical."

Letterkenny is the county's largest employer, accounting for 3,757 jobs between the government, contractors and tenants. The depot generates an annual payroll of $215 million and a regional economic impact of $250 million.

The depot north of Chambersburg lost thousands of positions to Base Realignment and Closure decisions in the 1990s but grew since the last round of BRAC, which came in 2005.

"We want to be prepared," Cawley said. "We want to advocate as aggressively as possible, not only for their existence, but we want the rest of the nation to recognize what we already know. We have some state-of-the-art facilities that are uniquely positioned to grow, not only exist. Certainly that opportunity exists at Letterkenny."

During the tour, depot leaders touted partnerships with private industry as well as major recent capital investments. Finding efficiencies have allowed the depot to cut costs and reinvest that money.

The Pennsylvania Military Community Protection Commission was established last year through executive order by Gov. Tom Corbett. Sen. Rich Alloway, R-Chambersburg, was appointed to serve on the commission.

"These are tough economic times all around. We want to make sure that if the Department of Defense is looking to place missions from around the country, we want to put the best face forward for Letterkenny and show them what our workers can do here," Alloway said.

The stop Wednesday at Letterkenny was part of a statewide tour of all of Pennsylvania's military installations. Cawley recently visited Tobyhanna Army Depot and the New Cumberland Defense Depot. He's scheduled to visit the Pittsburgh Air Reserve Station, which had been threatened with closure by the Air Force.

(Marcus Rauhut, "Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley tours Letterkenny to curb possible Defense cuts," Chambersburg Public Opinion, 10/31/13)