An effort to arrest the planned drawdown of military service end strength that also would establish minimum active duty troop levels has gained a major backer in the Association of the United States Army.
Rep. Christopher Gibson (R-N.Y.) was able to shoehorn the title of the bill into the acronym POSTURE Act, which stands for Protecting Our Security Through Utilizing Right-Sized End Strength Act of 2016.
Versions of the bill were introduced to both houses of Congress in February by Gibson and Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) “to recognize the importance of the land forces of the United States Armed Forces and … specify new permanent active duty end strength minimum levels.”
“Given the volatile, uncertain, and ambiguous world and the need for trained and ready Land Forces of the United States, in conjunction with joint and multinational forces, to deter threats, shape the international security environment, respond to emergent situations and crises, and, if necessary, to fight and win the Nation’s wars, it is the sense of Congress that the planned drawdown of Land Forces should be immediately stopped,” the House bill reads. The Senate version more formally declares the drawdown “should immediately cease.”
The Army’s 2016 budget request calls for a decrease in end strength to 475,000 active duty soldiers and 540,000 reserve component troops. The service’s targeted end strength is 450,000 active troops by the end of fiscal 2018 and 530,000 total soldiers for the Guard and Reserve by the end of fiscal 2017.
A final report from the National Commission on the Future of the Army (NCFA) published in February calls for an Army of 980,000 soldiers that should consist of 450,000 active duty troops, a National Guard 335,000 strong and 195,000 troops in the Reserve.
The POSTURE Act is more restrictive than both plans and would retain more soldiers in all three Army components. Under the legislation, active duty troop levels would legally bottom out at 480,000 for the Army, 392,200 for the Navy, 184,000 for the Marine Corps and 317,000 for the Air Force under the legislation.
It also calls for a minimum troop level for the Army National Guard of 350,000 soldiers and 205,000 for the Army Reserve.
Gibson’s bill has been referred to the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) and has attracted 26 cosponsors, including 19 Republicans and seven Democrats. Moran introduced the Senate bill Feb. 22, and has picked up two co-sponsors, Sens. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.).
AUSA has thrown its weight behind arresting the Army end strength slide at 480,000, which is about where the active component stood on Sept. 12, 2001.
“At a time when our Army is confronting growing threats and increasing operational demands, it would be wise to pause the current budget-driven force reductions and allow the next administration time to assess land force capabilities and needs before determining troop levels,” AUSA president and retired four-star Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, wrote in a letter to Gibson.
Senior Army officials have welcomed an end to end strength cuts, but warn that mandating troop levels without attendant funding would mean stripping other budgets. The Army in its fiscal 2017 budget request gutted its aviation accounts to pay for readiness because it could not pull funds from an end strength account that already is waning.