ARTICLE

March 2004

Washington Pulse

by Geoff S. Fein

‘05 Defense Bill Will See ‘Smooth Sailing’
Congressional staffers predict the fiscal year 2005 funding for the Defense Department will move quickly through the appropriations process, despite widening concerns about the administration’s reluctance to disclose projected cost estimates on the war in Iraq.

The president’s request of $401.7 billion for the Defense Department in 2005 does not include any money for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or for the 30,000 additional soldiers the Army requires to meet pressing wartime needs.

The 30,000 troops alone will cost at least $3.6 billion, according to Charlie Houy, minority staff director for the Senate defense appropriations subcommittee. He said the administration’s decision to postpone a supplemental funding request until after the November 2004 elections is likely to generate “controversy,” because many members of Congress may not want to be kept in the dark about the estimated cost of the war for fiscal year 2005. His subcommittee, he said, would much rather receive the supplemental request by mid- or late summer.

Defense Department Comptroller Dov Zakheim defended the administration’s decision, claiming that it is too early to predict funding requirements for conflicts where the situation changes on a daily basis.

Steven Kosiak, director of budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, predicts the defense budget will be under enormous pressure as the federal deficit surges, but he nevertheless expects annual increases for defense of $10 billion each year until 2010.

“The president has no incentive to have a budget that reflects reality, because he has an incentive to receive supplemental funding,” said a congressional source.

In Kosiak’s view, 2005 will be a good year for procurement, but the long-term picture is rather “pessimistic,” as the deficit will start “sinking in” by the end of the decade.

The Pentagon’s decision to direct most of the procurement funding increases in 2005 to missile defense and space programs also has triggered concerns on Capitol Hill. “That is not good news for the Army,” Houy said.

J.J. Gertler, a senior staff member on the House Armed Services Committee, said the services must continue to update their “unfunded requirements list.” Those lists, although discouraged by the Pentagon leadership, are important for members for Congress to have in hand when it’s time to make budget decisions.

$5B To Be Awarded for Iraq Reconstruction
The Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the Department of Defense are expected to award $5 billion in reconstruction contracts this month to help rebuild the country’s infrastructure. High up on the list of needs are power generators, sewage and water systems, and rebuilding airports, highways and ports.

Each award is for two years with three additional one-year options. Contractors will have 14 days, from the date of award, to establish bases of operation in the Middle East. They will have 30 days to set up the capability to handle the design-build work, said Francis Sullivan, contracting officer, for the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, headquartered at the Washington Navy Yard.

Projects must be staffed fully within 70 days of award, said Nancy Gunderson, acquisitions and contracting group leader for the Pentagon Renovation Program.

Each contract requires the eventual transfer of work to Iraqi ministries. Participation by women and Iraqi companies is mandatory. Additionally, between 10 and 23 percent of the work must go to small businesses. No current Ba’ath Party members may participate in the reconstruction efforts, said Gunderson.

Three contracts of $500 million each will be awarded to reconstruct Iraq’s electrical sector. Work will include rehabilitation and new construction of the country’s power generation facilities and building transmission, distribution, communication and control systems.

Three contracts will be awarded for rebuilding Iraq’s water system. Work will include restoration of the country’s drinking water, increasing sewage service in cities, fixing or replacing critical pumping equipment and improving solid waste management systems.

One contractor will be selected to support the Iraqi National Defense ministry, as well as reconstruction efforts at 10 military bases. There is also a need to upgrade 150 police stations and 150 fire stations.

The transportation contract will encompass reconstruction of three major airports and three port facilities, 38,400 kilometers of highways and 1,963 kilometers of existing railroad.

Communications work will include one contract to build a nationwide telephone service, create a wireless network for business operations and install air traffic control communications system. Another contract will cover Iraq’s hospitals, clinics, schools and government buildings.

Additional information is available at www.rebuilding-iraq.net.

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Combatting Soldiers’ Stress in Iraq
William Winkenwerder Jr., assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, reported that, as of December, at least 10,128 service men and women had been airlifted out of Iraq for stress and other related medical conditions.

Winkenwerder said the Defense Department has put programs in place to treat stress. The Army has nine combat stress teams with company attachments. The Air Force and Marine Corps each has a couple of teams too. The teams include social workers and counselors.

There have been 21 confirmed suicides during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Winkenwerder said some deaths whose causes could not be confirmed also could be suicides.

He criticized a judge’s decision in December to halt the Pentagon’s efforts to immunize soldiers against anthrax. In January, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia lifted the injunction, and the military has resumed vaccinating soldiers.

“Vaccines are an important part of our capability to protect servicemen,” said Winkenwerder. “There is work going on for a new vaccine, one to two shots, that could be mass produced.”

While there have been no reports of soldiers in Iraq being exposed to biological or chemical agents or toxic industrial chemicals, there were 19 reported cases of eosinophilic pneumonia, said Winkenwerder. Some of those cases could be due to smoking, he added.

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