6. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT-Continued (d) Laboratories and support facilities-- Army: $10 million, major projects at Edgewood Arsenal, Md.; Navy: $19 million, major projects at Carderock, Md.; San Diego, Air Force: $22 million, major projects at Edwards AFB, Calif.; Total 7. GENERAL SUPPORT 51 106 This is the largest of the construction programs for the principal missions and covers all other facilities required by the military departments and the defense agencies. The highlights of this $438 million program are as follows: (a) Military training facilities__. Academic, technical, and recruit training facilities, and troop housing: Army, $113 million to support recruit, technical, and flight training at 25 installations in the United States; Navy, $29 million to support recruit, technical, professional, and flight training at 19 school and training stations in the United States; Air Force, $16 million to support professional training at 15 bases in the United States. (These amounts would be increased should this committee give favorable consideration to the supplemental request of the Secretary of Defense to provide $18.7 million for cadet housing and training facilities at the Army Military Academy, and $16.1 million for similar facilities at the Air Force Academy. These facilities are required to accommodate an initial increase of 800 cadets at each Academy as related to the authorization contained in Public Law 88-276, Mar. 3, 1964.) (b) Medical facilities---- Hospitals, new additions (14), dental clinics and dispensaries, to the above, the Secretary of Defense in his letter of March 6, (c) Communications, navigational aids, and detection systems-- Includes security service site facilities: Army, $23 million; (d) Missile and space program support‒‒‒‒‒ For advanced space technology and ballistic missile support. (e) Defense agencies facilities- Primarily administrative space: DASA, $7 million; DSA, $4 million; DSA, $4 million; DIA, $18 million; and NSA, $2 million. (After restudy, the amount of $4 million initially requested for DSA may be reduced to $2 million, in accordance with our letter of February 28, 1964.) (f) Other facilities__ Modernization and improvement of utilities, miscellaneous operational, supply, maintenance and administrative facilities: Army, $18 million; Navy, $24 million; Air Force, $47 million. Total----- Millions $158 77 72 11 31 89 438 8. EMERGENCY UNFORESEEN REQUIREMENTS Sections 103, 203, and 303 request contingency unfunded authorization for the three military departments in the amount of $17.5 million each-a total of $52.5 million. This authorization amounts to less than 5 percent of the total authorization requested. Its availability during the past years has enabled the Department of Defense to proceed with construction made necessary by changes in missions and responsibilities due to unforeseen security considerations, new weapons developments, new and unforeseen research and development requirements, or improved production schedules. We have and will continue to request the use of this authority only when justified by these criteria. The amount requested is thus a ceiling figure and we would use only that part found necessary after careful review by my office in each case. As you know, Mr. Chairman, unused portions of this emergency authorization automatically expire on September 30 of each year following enactment, thus preventing the accumulation of unused balances. In this way it serves as a true emergency contingency, available for use if needed, but automatically rescinded if not used. Senator STENNIS. May I interrupt you? This is a splendid statement. It is of good solid value to us and to the staff. But talking about these unused balances, if your statement doesn't cover it, I wish you would give us the facts on the amount of the unused authorizations broken down for the services. When I say unused, I mean where construction has not started and no contract has been let, and then show the amount that has been funded and that which has not been funded, and also the dates when those authorizations will expire. Mr. MORRIS. I would be pleased to, Mr. Chairman. Senator STENNIS. That will bring us up to date on what you have done with what we have already approved. I hope you can get that in soon so we will have it to go with your statement. Mr. MORRIS. I will be pleased to, Senator. Status of unused military construction authorization as of Apr. 1, 1964 1 of the unfunded authorization, $12,666,000 is emergency authorization under secs. 103, 203, and 303 of each annual bill for which appropriations are not requested. When it is necessary to use such authority, funds already available for other projects must be reprogramed. Does not include unfunded fiscal year 1963 and fiscal year 1964 authorization for the Air Force in the amount of $19,180,000 which is planned for financing during fiscal year 1965. Project expiration date of Public Law 87-57 (fiscal year 1962) and Public Law 87-554 (fiscal year 1953). Project expiration date of Public Law 88-174 (fiscal year 1964). Senator STENNIS. Without downgrading your statement, could you summarize some of your paragraphs here and we will put in the record all of your statement, and thereby save a little time? Mr. MORRIS. I will be pleased to, Mr. Chairman. Senator STENNIS. Before you continue, Senator Smith is the ranking member of the Space Committee, and you have to leave at 9, I believe. Senator Smith, is there something you would like to say before you go? Senator SMITH. No, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to look the statement over before I ask any questions. Senator STENNIS. As I have said before, this is a special Subcommittee on Authorization of the Armed Services Committee for the whole military construction program, and we have invited the members of the Appropriations Subcommittee who pass on the appropriations bill to come and sit with us and ask questions if they wish, but it will be our responsibility to mark up the bill. Senator SMITH. A very great responsibility, I would say, Mr. Chair man. Senator STENNIS. Senator Young, do you have any questions? Senator STENNIS. All right, will you proceed with the rest of your statement. Mr. MORRIS. Departing from procedure followed in prior years the House made changes in the emergency construction provisions of the bill, which will require that the use of this authority be accomplished only upon relinquishing an equivalent amount of authorization contained in the individual titles of the military departments for specific line items of construction in the current year bill. The effect of this legislation is to require the deferral of valid projects whenever emergency situations must be met. We feel that this places an unjustifiable penalty upon projects which have already been approved by the Congress in support of proven defense needs. As stated in our letter of April 11, Mr. Chairman, we urge that the original language as included in S. 2467, governing the use of sections 103, 203, and 303, be retained. 9. BALANCE OF PAYMENTS As Secretary McNamara pointed out in his statement, a continuing concern in recent years has been the deficit in the Nation's balance of international payments, and the impact of our defense expenditures abroad on that deficit. We have been making a special effort during the last 3 years to reduce the impact of the defense program on our balance of payments without adversely affecting our combat capabilities or creating hardships for military personnel and their families. In the area of construction, we give emphasis to the use of U.S. contractors and materials wherever feasible, and are willing to pay a premium in total costs if we can save significant amounts in foreign exchange. In our fiscal year 1965 program, the foreign exchange cost has been reduced from $95 to $64 million-a reduction of $31 million, or 32 percent, at a premium cost of only $9 million. B. MILITARY FAMILY HOUSING The fiscal year 1965 MCA program includes authorization for the total appropriation to defray military family housing costs. We are asking for authorization of $711 million for the following costs: Although there will be a separate presentation to the committee on the urgent need for the fiscal year 1965 housing program. I would like to highlight some of its principal elements. Last year Secretary McNamara in testimony before this committee outlined a 5-year plan for 62,100 family housing units to satisfy our outstanding deficit. This plan proposed 12,100 units last year and 12,500 units for fiscal year 1965. Although the Congress provided funds for only 7,500 units last year, we have decided to leave our request for fiscal year 1965 at the 12,500-unit level. Accordingly, this year's program requests $223 million to finance 12,500 new housing units, distributed by military departments as follows: In addition, we propose to construct 638 trailer spaces which will be rented to military personnel who desire to own their own trailer. The cost of these trailer spaces will be amortized in approximately 15 years from the rent received by the Government. Improvements to existing public quarters are planned at a cost of about $11 million. Considering our inventory in fiscal year 1965 of over 335,000 adequate public quarters, we feel that this is a very modest request. I would like to mention a few of the improved housing management practices which have been inaugurated in the past year. Last year the Congress provided all of the funds for housing in a single appropriation. We find this to be extremely advantageous, both in developing our budget and in executing the approved program. A single appropriation allows both ourselves and the Congress to view the housing program as an entity. Our cost accounting system for operation and maintenance has been in effect since July 1962. We are now able to measure cost effectiveness by military service, type of housing, and by installations. Currently we are introducing acceptable cost ranges covering maintenance work. The accounting system will allow us to monitor compliance with these cost ranges. Cost reductions achieved in fiscal year 1963 were $6 million and are expected to increase to $25 million annually by further improvements to be introduced during fiscal years 1964 and 1965. În programing new housing requirements, we have revised our former cost and distance criteria in accordance with the desires of Congress for more stringent criteria. The distance criterion has been increased from 45 minutes to 1 hour as the normal driving time one way from home to installation. The criterion for determination of excess cost has been substantially increased above the basic allowance for quarters. This recognizes that during his career a serviceman will pay rental costs above his BAQ during some tours, as well as rents less than his BAQ during other tours. In addition, we have strengthened our requirements review by requiring more comprehensive annual surveys and more extensive field visits to validate requirements. We now have uniform inventory and occupancy reporting by all services to my office and are now able to monitor closely the utilization of all of our housing assets. A uniform rental policy is now in existence as well as a uniform policy on furniture and furnishings. However, we are still studying our furniture inventory and its location, and have budgeted only minor amounts for furniture this fiscal year pending the completion of this analysis. In the construction of family housing a great many major improvements have been made. We have just recently completed a portfolio of standardized designs which will be utilized in execution of our fiscal year 1965 program is scheduled so that all housing will be under congraphical areas and site conditions. This will materially assist in placing our projects under contract in a timely fashion as well as standardizing design practices among the services. Our schedule for the fiscal year 1965 program is scheduled so that all houisng will be under contract within 7 months after final passage of the appropriation bill. We are also investigating methods of compressing the construction time in order to have beneficial occupancy of new houses at the earliest possible time. For our oversea housing program we will continue to use the U.S. Army home concept which was adopted in fiscal year 1963. This concept of providing U.S. manufactured, componentized units for erection overseas has significantly reduced foreign exchange costs for housing from about 88 percent to about 18 percent without increasing total construction costs. C. OTHER IMPROVEMENTS IN REAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT Having summarized the fiscal year 1965 military construction program, I now would like to report to you on our management of construction and the operation and maintenance of real property facilities. These activities are among the most challenging of our business responsibilities, and we are constantly exploring new avenues for increased economies and efficiencies. 32-509-64 |