Sequestration requires
across-the-board cuts of $85 billion — $43 billion for the Defense
Department, $29 billion for non defense agencies and $13 billion for
Medicare and other social programs — by Sept. 30. Defense reductions
will affect about two-thirds of the Pentagon's $648 billion 2013
budget. Military personnel accounts are protected.
The uncertainty has lasted for weeks and months, as agencies, technically, do not have to make the required cuts until September 30,2013. Although the longer they wait, the more pronounced the cuts will have to be toward the end of the fiscal year.
Assuming the major weapons systems battles will be fought and the smoke will clear by default on those that are not affordable, the next largest target in the agency cuts will be manpower -- military, civil service and contractors.
From what we are reading, the
major issue is whether or not the cuts will occur at the top of the hierarchy
where the brass (corporate big boys, civil servants the generals/admirals) sit
or from the bottom – enlisted men and their benefits and small business.
Below are 3 different
perspectives on this issue for your reading enjoyment, courtesy of our stymied
Congress whose budgetary laziness has created the Sequestration Drama. We
suggest you choose the one you favor and advise your congressman of your
choice.
THE PROJECT ON GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT
("POGO")
".............for the first time in the more than 200 years that the U.S. has had a standing military, there are fewer than five enlisted personnel for every officer. In other words, today’s military is the most top-heavy force in U.S. history.
Former Secretary of Defense Gates remarks on this issue per POGO:
"In his August 2010 speech on Efficiency Initiatives, Gates referred to these perks as “the overhead and accoutrements that go with” senior positions, be they military or civilian, within DoD. In an interview with Newsweek, Gates bemoaned these accoutrements and entourages that surround generals and admirals, which he believes are indicative of a military leadership that is “suffering from an inflated sense of entitlement and a distorted sense of priorities"
http://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2011/11/todays-military-the-most-top-heavy-force-in-us-history.html
"DOD
BUZZ"
"The head of the U.S. Defense Department vowed to cut 20 percent of some areas of the military bureaucracy in a move estimated to save as much as $2 billion.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made the announcement while speaking to troops during a trip to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla.
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little in a statement e-mailed later in the day said the reductions would affect the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff and the Military Service Headquarters over a five-year period beginning in 2015. They will occur whether or not lawmakers agree on a plan to avoid automatic budget cuts known as sequestration, he said.
“These headquarters reductions should be pursued now, regardless of future fiscal circumstances,” Little said. “These cuts will be implemented even if Congress lifts sequester-level budget caps.”
Little didn’t specify how many personnel would be affected. The move may eliminate more than 4,000 jobs, according to an unofficial headcount of those areas. That’s less than one-fifth of 1 percent of the Pentagon’s 2.1 million active-duty troops and civilian employees.
What’s more, the Pentagon bureaucracy has only increased since 2010, when former Defense Secretary Bob Gates made a similar pledge, raising questions about whether Hagel — or any defense secretary — can succeed in thinning the ranks of the military’s top-brass and senior civilians.
The number of positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff and the combatant commands increased 24 percent, to 21,952 in 2012 from 17,765 in 2010, according to a graphic accompanying a recent analysis by Marcus Weisgerber, a reporter for Defense News.
More than half of the overall increase came from the Joint Staff, which simply absorbed positions from Joint Forces Command after Gates ordered the latter to be shuttered in 2010, according to the analysis.
Hagel’s announcement is based on a strategic review of spending priorities in the wake of across-the-board budget reductions, Little said.
"The head of the U.S. Defense Department vowed to cut 20 percent of some areas of the military bureaucracy in a move estimated to save as much as $2 billion.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made the announcement while speaking to troops during a trip to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla.
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little in a statement e-mailed later in the day said the reductions would affect the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff and the Military Service Headquarters over a five-year period beginning in 2015. They will occur whether or not lawmakers agree on a plan to avoid automatic budget cuts known as sequestration, he said.
“These headquarters reductions should be pursued now, regardless of future fiscal circumstances,” Little said. “These cuts will be implemented even if Congress lifts sequester-level budget caps.”
Little didn’t specify how many personnel would be affected. The move may eliminate more than 4,000 jobs, according to an unofficial headcount of those areas. That’s less than one-fifth of 1 percent of the Pentagon’s 2.1 million active-duty troops and civilian employees.
What’s more, the Pentagon bureaucracy has only increased since 2010, when former Defense Secretary Bob Gates made a similar pledge, raising questions about whether Hagel — or any defense secretary — can succeed in thinning the ranks of the military’s top-brass and senior civilians.
The number of positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff and the combatant commands increased 24 percent, to 21,952 in 2012 from 17,765 in 2010, according to a graphic accompanying a recent analysis by Marcus Weisgerber, a reporter for Defense News.
More than half of the overall increase came from the Joint Staff, which simply absorbed positions from Joint Forces Command after Gates ordered the latter to be shuttered in 2010, according to the analysis.
Hagel’s announcement is based on a strategic review of spending priorities in the wake of across-the-board budget reductions, Little said.
The Defense Department faces
$500 billion in automatic cuts over the next decade."
"WASHINGTON
TECHNOLOGY"
"The Small Business Administration reported that the federal government again missed the mark for small business contracting during fiscal 2012, but the gap has narrowed for primes.
Overall, $89.9 billion in government contracts went to small businesses last year, that’s 22.25 percent of all contracts, according to the SBA report. The goal for small businesses is 23 percent. In fiscal 2011, 21.65 percent of contracts went to small businesses.
There also are goals for various sub-categories of small businesses:
"The Small Business Administration reported that the federal government again missed the mark for small business contracting during fiscal 2012, but the gap has narrowed for primes.
Overall, $89.9 billion in government contracts went to small businesses last year, that’s 22.25 percent of all contracts, according to the SBA report. The goal for small businesses is 23 percent. In fiscal 2011, 21.65 percent of contracts went to small businesses.
There also are goals for various sub-categories of small businesses:
- Women-owned: 4 percent or $16.2 billion (goal 4 percent)
- Small disadvantaged: 8 percent or $32.3 billion (goal 5 percent)
- Service disabled, veteran-owned: 3.03 percent or $12.3 billion (goal 3 percent)
- HUBZone: 2.01 percent or $8.1 billion (goal 3 percent)
The annual SBA report also
tracks small business contracting goals. The gap between goal and achievement is
greater there.
Overall, 33.6 percent of subcontracts went to small businesses, with the goal being 36 percent; however, women-owned small businesses surpassed their 5 percent goal with 5.6 percent achieved. Small disadvantaged businesses also were over their 5 percent goal with 5.1 percent.
But service-disabled, veteran-owned businesses fell short with 1.8 percent versus a goal of 3 percent, as did HUBZone, which had 1.3 percent of subcontracts against a goal of 3 percent.
SBA’s annual release of its small business goals isn’t without critics. The American Small Business League criticized the report saying it was “completely false and totally unsupported by the facts.”
The group claims that SBA miscalculated the actual federal acquisition budget, and according to ASBL, small businesses only received 8.2 percent of prime contracts.
In addition, the group claims that a significant number of large businesses are receiving small business contracts."
Overall, 33.6 percent of subcontracts went to small businesses, with the goal being 36 percent; however, women-owned small businesses surpassed their 5 percent goal with 5.6 percent achieved. Small disadvantaged businesses also were over their 5 percent goal with 5.1 percent.
But service-disabled, veteran-owned businesses fell short with 1.8 percent versus a goal of 3 percent, as did HUBZone, which had 1.3 percent of subcontracts against a goal of 3 percent.
SBA’s annual release of its small business goals isn’t without critics. The American Small Business League criticized the report saying it was “completely false and totally unsupported by the facts.”
The group claims that SBA miscalculated the actual federal acquisition budget, and according to ASBL, small businesses only received 8.2 percent of prime contracts.
In addition, the group claims that a significant number of large businesses are receiving small business contracts."
