A new Department of Defense Inspector General report reveals the back-and-forth debate between top defense officials on choosing a permanent home for Space Command, including the time it would take to transition the headquarters and how to keep civilian workers.
Alabama lawmakers remain confident Huntsville will ultimately get the headquarters. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, requested the report. He said it signals again that the headquarters belongs at Redstone Arsenal rather than in Colorado and shows a “lack of transparency” from the Biden administration.
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“After years of promises about ‘due diligence’ and ‘careful consideration,’ political employees at the White House cut out the Air Force and senior defense leaders to select Colorado over Alabama as the site for SPACECOM headquarters,” Rogers said in a statement.
The report posted publicly on Tuesday (April 15) is partially redacted. It found that Redstone Arsenal was the Department of the Air Force’s preferred location for the headquarters despite possible risks to military readiness that could come from the move.
The Air Force asserted those risks could be mitigated by hiring more personnel at Redstone Arsenal and Colorado Springs and phasing in the transition. The report highlighted that moving the headquarters to Huntsville was $426 million cheaper than keeping it in Colorado “because of lower personnel costs and construction savings.”
Finding a home
However, the commander of U.S. Space Command was focused on operational risk when considering the permanent home for Space Command, according to the report.
“USSPACECOM assessed that its readiness would begin to be negatively affected by a loss of civilian personnel following the announcement of a relocation from Colorado Springs,” the report read.
The report highlights officials’ concerns that most of the 1,000 civilian workers at Space Command would not relocate to another location if the headquarters moved.
The investigation also revealed that it could take three to four years to build temporary facilities at Redstone Arsenal that would have the same capabilities that already existed in Colorado Springs.
Alabama lawmakers expect Secretary of Air Force nominee Troy Meink to announce that Space Command will move to Huntsville once he’s confirmed to his post. The Senate is out on recess until April 28, so no confirmation votes will happen until they return to Washington. Rogers said in a podcast earlier this month that he expects the decision to be made in April.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Alex Angle and originally published by Alabama Daily News.
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