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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Friday, May 27, 2005

Bill includes $214M for Hawai'i

By Dennis Camire
Advertiser Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — Hawai'i military bases would receive almost $214 million for construction next year under a spending bill the House approved yesterday.

Most of the money would go for transforming a 25th Infantry Division brigade into a Stryker unit and modernizing Schofield Barracks.

The Hawai'i money is part of an $85.2 billion appropriations bill, approved 425-1, that provides funds for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and other military health and housing programs next year. The next step is Senate consideration of the bill.

Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawai'i, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, said the projects were examples of improving the state's bases to help Hawai'i-based military carry out the nation's strategic interests.

"Obviously, the military has agreed, because I don't believe there has been much in the way of argument with us about these things," he said.

Final passage came after House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., had to cast a rare vote to defeat an amendment that would have cut $169 million for the upcoming round of military base closures and spend it instead on veterans' benefits. It was defeated 214-213.

Both Abercrombie, a longtime opponent of the base-closing process, and Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawai'i, who supports it, voted for the failed amendment.

Case said the overall bill didn't contain enough money for veterans' needs while the $1.5 billion in the measure for base closing was too much.

"From my perspective, it was very easy to increase veterans' services by taking out a relatively small portion of the money allocated to the (base-closing) process," he said.

The Stryker projects at Schofield Barracks include $41 million for Drum Road to Helemano, $24.7 million for a vehicle maintenance facility and $5.9 million for an urban assault course.

At the Big Island's Pohakuloa Training Area, $34 million would go for a battle area complex and $9.3 million for a tactical vehicle wash facility.

The Army is converting seven brigades to the Strykers, which are lightly armored vehicles far quicker than heavily armored tanks, meant to help respond to unconventional, fast-developing threats around the globe.

An additional $48 million would go to improve living conditions at Schofield Barracks.

Other projects include:

• $5.7 million for a squadron operations building, $2.5 million for an F-15 fighter rinse facility and $6.5 million for an Air Force Reserve consolidated training facility at Hickam Air Force Base.

• $1 million for cleaning up the Ford Island hanger complex the Pacific Aviation Museum will use.

• $5.7 million for a new fire station at Camp H.M. Smith.

One project not in the bill was $7.7 million to continue upgrading Hickam's electrical distribution system. A separate spending bill for Pentagon programs is expected to include the money, said Mike Slackman, spokesman for Abercrombie.