00                      SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 14                                                                    
01 Urging the United States Department of Defense to protect military bases and military                                   
02 personnel in the state.                                                                                                 
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04       WHEREAS United States Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta recently announced                                   
05 that the Pentagon will seek new rounds of military base closures as part of the budget cutting                          
06 process; and                                                                                                            
07       WHEREAS United States Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta stated that, in an                                   
08 effort to cut $487,000,000,000 over the next decade, the number of soldiers in the United                               
09 States Army will drop over the next five years from 562,000 to 490,000, and the number of                               
10 marines in the United States Marine Corps will drop over the next five years from 202,000 to                            
11 182,000; and                                                                                                            
12       WHEREAS the nation's primary concern must always be national defense and the                                    
13 security of the United States, including Alaska; and                                                                    
14       WHEREAS the geographic location of Alaska provides a vital strategic advantage for                              
15 current and future missions, force mobilization, and offensive and defensive operations,                                
16 including the state's strategic importance for polar air routes; and                                                    

01       WHEREAS the state's strategic global position has been recognized since World War                               
02 II and is very important to the United States, providing a prime location to defend the United                          
03 States against the potential aggression of hostile nations; and                                                         
04       WHEREAS, from bases in Alaska, the United States Air Force can gain quick access                                
05 to the Pacific and European theaters and can transition across the Arctic to arrive in Europe                           
06 faster than if flying from the East Coast of the United States; and                                                     
07       WHEREAS, with 32 military installations, more than 23,000 active duty service                                   
08 members, and more than 37,000 family members of active duty service members, the military                               
09 force in Alaska is economically important; and                                                                          
10       WHEREAS the 63,000 square mile range of the military complex in the state                                       
11 provides a unique training and readiness compound unlike any other in the world; and                                    
12       WHEREAS Alaska serves as a site activation command for the United States Missile                                
13 Defense Agency; and                                                                                                     
14       WHEREAS the United States Department of Defense recognizes Alaska as an                                         
15 important strategic location, recently increasing and upgrading the missile defense capability                          
16 in the state;                                                                                                           
17       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature strongly urges the United States                               
18 Department of Defense to protect Alaska's military bases and to keep the number of military                             
19 personnel in the state intact for the defense and protection of the state and the United States.                        
20       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Leon E. Panetta, United                                
21 States Secretary of Defense; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Mark                                    
22 Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the                                 
23 Alaska delegation in Congress.