Under 10 USC 2662, Congress has a period of 30 days following

receipt of a disposal report, within which to interpose objections to a proposed action. In the absence of such objection, the holding military department is free to proceed with the disposal action.

In the case of installations in communities where economic adjustment programs have been initiated in response to closure or realignment actions, the desire of the community that all or portions of the installation property be reported excess by DoD in order to become available for implementation of the community's reutilization plan can further complicate the DoD screening process. In these situations, the communities usually avail themselves of the good offices of the DoD Office of Economic Adjustment in seeking modification or elimination of property requests on the part of military departments.

Once DoD excess property has been identified, the second important milestone in the disposal process is the submission of a disposal report by DoD to the Armed Services Committees of the Congress as required by 10 U. S. C. 2662. This is required where the excess property has an estimated value in excess of $50,000. The disposal report is a summary statement of the proposed disposal action indicating, inter alia, the rationale for the action, the acreage to be retained for further military use, if any, and the acreage to be reported excess to DoD needs. Normally, disposal reports may be submitted to the Armed Services Committees only on the last working Friday of a calender month.

If Congress interposes no objection to the proposed disposal report, the excess military installation property is reported to the GSA for disposal. This report is a detailed one on the property concerned. It includes schedules for the listing of buildings, structures, utilities, and miscellaneous facilities; land; and related personal property, i.e., equipment and furnishings to be excessed along with the real property. Preparation of an excess report may require as much as 60 days because of the amount of detail required.

DoD provides GSA with a preliminary report of excess at the time the disposal report is submitted to the Armed Services Committees. The preliminary report enables GSA to undertake immediate screening of other Federal agency requirements for excess property.

An expedient of major significance in expediting the transfer of excess property to civilian use may be the issuance of an interim lease by the holding military department with GSA concurrence in anticipation

of an eventual conveyance to the lessee. Issuance of an interim lease places the prospective transferee of real property in immediate possession so that operations contemplated can be carried on without the delay involved in receiving a deed. Examples of effective use of the interim lease expediting conversion of facilities to civilian use are as follows:

Closure of a military installation will leave the installation
golf course unutilized and without proper maintenance
during the summer months. The comprehensive use plan
prepared by the community calls for the eventual conveyance
of the golf course to the municipality for use as a public
facility. The GSA and the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation of
the Department of the Interior have agreed that such a con-
veyance could be consummated under a public benefit allow-
ance for park and recreation use. Issuance of an interim
lease by the holding military department permits the
municipality to take over and operate the golf course
immediately, thus providing for productive use and the
avoidance of deterioration.

Excess land and buildings at a military installation are
desired by the local school system or an established educa-
tional institution for educational use. Such use is provided
for in the community's comprehensive plan for reutilization
of the installation, and the GSA and the Department of
Health, Education and Welfare agree that the property
could be transferred under public benefit allowance for
educational purposes. Issuance of an interim lease by the
holding military department gives immediate possession to
the educational institution, thus permitting the institution
adequate time to make preparations for the beginning of the
operations well in advance of the start of the school year.

It should be noted that the interim lease-

Is issued with GSA concurrence for a period not to exceed
one year and is revokable on 30 days notice.

Does not serve as a guarantee that the property will eventually be conveyed to the lessee.

Must be issued pursuant to a comprehensive reutilization plan prepared by the community for all the excess property which has been accorded preliminary approval by the cognizant EAC agencies, i.e., GSA, HEW, Interior, etc.

May include personal as well as real property.

In some impacted communities, the local housing market is weak, and a relatively large number of military family housing units is found to be excess. To avoid dumping the military housing on an already depressed market, it is sometimes feasible for the holding military department to award a Protection and Maintenance (P&M) contract to a local governmental body under which, for a period of time, the authority maintains the housing and handles the rental of as many units as the local market will absorb. The contractor does not profit from the contract and is protected against loss. Proceeds from rentals are applied against the cost of the contract and excesses accrue to the DoD Family Housing Management Account for debt service.

The P&M device avoids deterioration of military housing until it can be sold, thus preserving it as an asset for the community for the future; fulfills the obligation of the military department for care and custody of the housing after the installation closure; and enables the government to obtain a fair price for the housing when it is eventually sold.

Under DoD Directive 5410. 12, special procedures apply to the disposal of personal property where the closure and subsequent excessing of a military installation, in whole or in part, cause a Defense impact. The end objective is to report to the GSA, wherever possible, complete packages of land, buildings and related personal property for disposition in a manner that permits the community to make immediate use of the facilities acquired. The essential features of these procedures are as follows:

• The impacted community develops a use plan, subject to GSA approval, for the military installation property expected to

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education, health, recreation or civil aviation and to be
acquired under public benefit allowance.

In the interim, DoD components identify related personal property that is excess to DoD needs and could be reported to GSA, together with the real property.

With the concurrence of the Federal agencies concerned, the community is permitted to request inclusion in the report of excess to GSA those items of personal property essential to its plan.

After receipt of a report of excess covering military installation property, the GSA screens all Federal agencies that could reasonably be expected to have a use for the excess property. The agencies typically screened are the property holding agencies, but any Federal agency may apply for excess property.

Within 30 days of receipt of a notice of availability of excess property from the GSA, a Federal agency that desires all or part of the property must file a notice of tentative or firm requirement for it with GSA.. This is followed within 60 days by submission to GSA of a request for transfer.

If no Federal agency applies to GSA for all or a portion of the excess military installation property, the property is determined to be surplus to the needs of the Federal Government and therefore becomes available to non-Federal public agencies for a variety of public purposes.

As noted above, initiation of Federal screening is expedited by the forwarding of a preliminary excess report to GSA by DoD. In appropriate circumstances also, GSA can reduce the screening period from 30 to 10 days.

Once military installation property has been determined by GSA to be surplus to the needs of the Federal Government, regulations provide for notice of its availability to be given to eligible public agencies. The notice is given prior to any public advertising, negotiation or other disposal actions and is sent to the Governor of the State in which the

property is located, to the county clerk or other appropriate official of the county in which the property is located, and to the mayor or other appropriate official of the city or town in which the property is located. Notice is also given to any regional and metropolitan comprehensive planning agencies. In addition, a notice is posted in the Post Office which serves the area in which the property is located and in other prominent places, such as the State Capitol building, county building, court house, town hall or city hall.

Concurrently, copies of the notice are sent to the regional offices of the Federal agencies, such as the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, the Department of the Interior and the Federal Aviation Administration, which are authorized by law to participate with the General Services Administration in the disposal of property for specialized uses.

Eligible public agencies are allowed a period of 20 days from the date of notice to inform the GSA regional office of their desire to acquire the surplus property. If no notice is received within the specified period, GSA assumes that no public agency desires to acquire the property and proceeds with plans to dispose of the surplus property by public sale.

If a public agency is interested in acquiring the property, its response to the notice must:

Disclose the contemplated use of the property;

Contain a citation of the applicable statute or statutes under which the public agency desires to procure the property;

Disclose the nature of the interest if an interest less than
fee title is contemplated;

State the length of time required to develop and submit formal application for the property. (Where a payment to the government is required by law, there must also be included a statement as to whether funds are available and, if not, the period of time required to obtain funds.);

Give the reason for the time required to develop and submit a formal application.