Lamborn, Crow to AFSEC Kendall: Moving U.S. Space Command is Risk to National Security

Press Release

Today, Congressmen Doug Lamborn and Jason Crow sent a letter to Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall, insisting that in the interest of national security, he consider the findings of the two investigations by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General (DoD OIG) regarding the previous U.S. Space Command basing decision. Both reports found serious flaws in the process and made recommendations for remediation. In the letter, the Colorado lawmakers urged Secretary Kendall to carefully consider these findings and incorporate the recommendations made in his final decision.

In the letter, the lawmakers wrote, "In the interest of national security, we believe that careful consideration of all decision criteria for the final six locations being evaluated is paramount.

They wrote, "In their findings, GAO documented the fact that certain basing criteria were not appropriately deliberated, were arbitrarily weighed, or were changed throughout the process making the outcome fundamentally flawed. Specifically, the number of personnel required in the headquarters building fluctuated significantly, calling into question the size of building required and whether existing buildings at the final six locations could be repurposed.

They continued, "The DoD OIG report substantiated issues with the decision process, and specifically emphasized another criterion that was not adequately considered in the previous basing decision: the importance of reaching FOC as quickly as possible. As America's competitors rapidly advance their space warfighting capabilities, organizing our own space assets rapidly is of the greatest importance. General Dickinson has said this is the most important thing ever.

"As representatives of the state of Colorado, we urge that you provide us with certainty that the findings and recommendations of the GAO and DoD OIG reports are incorporated into the final decision regarding the location of USSPACECOM headquarters," the lawmakers concluded.

Questions posed by lawmakers in the letter include:

-An evaluation of the time and resources necessary for USSPACECOM to reach FOC at all six installations identified as final candidates;
-Current requirements for the number of personnel needed for the headquarters, and how those requirements were implemented in the decision;
-A full evaluation of the time and resources, including indirect costs such as workforce attrition and training, necessary to reach FOC at each of the six final candidate locations evaluated under the conditions revised utilizing the GAO and -DoD OIG reports; and
-Recommendations for any changes to the basing decision based upon this reevaluation.

Congressman Lamborn (CO-05) serves on the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Current Intelligence and Special Operations, and as the Ranking Member for the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.

Congressman Crow (CO-06) serves on the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems, and the Subcommittee on Readiness.

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