Centcom Funding a DoD Challenge as War Nears End - Military: As the command responsible of overseeing two wars, U.S. Central Command saw huge increases in personnel and budget at its MacDill Air Force Base headquarters after 9/11. Since 2001, the commands Tampa-based contingent of military and civilian personnel jumped 70 percent by 2013, to nearly 2,730, with another 1,300 positions allocated to its subordinate commands. Funding rose to almost a billion dollars the previous year, according to a recently released report by the Government Accountability Office mandated by Congress. But with the war in Iraq over and the war in Afghanistan drawing to a close, Centcom poses a vexing challenge for the Pentagon, according to the GAO. On the one hand, it is responsible for one of the worlds most dangerous regions, including Syria, Iran and Egypt and isnt about to close up shop just because one major ground war is over and the other will end in December. On the other hand, Centcom draws the bulk of its funds from money allotted for war -- called overseas contingency funds -- and the Pentagon has yet to figure out how to pay for future operations out of its base budget. Centcom Funding a DoD Challenge as War Nears End | Military dlvr.it/5yzYNx fl-dc.org
Posted on: Thu, 12 Jun 2014 21:52:41 +0000