The General Accountability Office stated in late December that the federal government will ‘spend more and save less’ with the current round of base closures than it originally thought.  In fact, the point at which the closure will break even is nearly a decade away.  That is four years later than anticipated.

Senator Susan Collins said that the GAO report is cause for greater scrutiny.  “The Department of Defense’s numbers show that it greatly underestimated the costs of the closure,” said Senator Collins.  “I argued that point before the BRAC commission.  I will continue to urge the Chair of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support to hold an oversight hearing ... so that these numbers can be thoroughly reviewed.”

But Steve Levesque, the executive director of the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority (MRRA), which is the successor to the BLRA (Brunswick Local Redevelopment Authority), said that there was no reason to believe that the BNAS closure decision would be reversed.  “There’s no change that I know of,” he said.  “They’re just going to need more money to close [the base] than they originally thought.”

A good part of the increased cost comes from the continual surprises during the environmental clean up process.  A year ago, it was revealed that the environmental cleanup of the Brunswick Naval Air Station will cost at least $16 million, money that the Pentagon didn't include in its initial estimates of base closure costs, according to government auditors.

Congress debated providing fewer funds to clean up all the BRAC sites, but in mid-December, a Navy official dealing with base closures said that federal funding for the environmental cleanup of Brunswick Naval Air Station will continue to be a high priority.

“It seems clear that the cost of remediation is higher than anticipated,” Representative Tom Allen said. “But I want the (MRRA) and the people of Brunswick to know that we’re going to hold the DOD accountable for remediation.”

Allen acknowledged the extent of remediation is up for debate. The U.S. Navy has previously said it would clean up BNAS consistent with existing uses. The BLRA, however, had been pushing for cleanup consistent with the uses of the redevelopment plan.

The cleanup may also impact the 2008 U.S. Senate race, as both Tom Allen and Susan Collins strive to prove to be the most ‘concerned’ candidate in the race.  Allen, who is taking on Collins, last week endorsed a hearing by the House Armed Services Committee that sought to review the BRAC decisions.

Another issue that might impact the eventual total to close the base is the cost overrun in Jacksonville, where runways are being constructed that can accommodate Brunswick airplanes. Currently, the costs are greater than expected, but Jacksonville, too, is dealing with BRAC funding issues.

Other costs, such as emergency grants for workers displaced by the closure, and grants to develop the technology cluster, were also not included in the original total.