II

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2177

To ensure effective Congressional oversight of overseas military base support

carried out by NATO host countries for the United States as paymentsin-kind for release of United States overseas military facilities to such

countries and to reduce the deficit.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 9 (legislative day, JUNE 7), 1994

Mr. LAUTENBERG introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Armed Services

A BILL

To ensure effective Congressional oversight of overseas military base support carried out by NATO host countries

for the United States as payments-in-kind for release

of United States overseas military facilities to such countries and to reduce the deficit.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress makes the following findings:

5 (1) The United States has invested

6 $6,500,000,000 in military infrastructure in North

7 Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries.
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1 (2) As part of an overall plan to reduce United

2 States troop strength in Europe from 323,432 in

3 1987 to 100,000 by the end of 1996, the Depart4 ment of Defense plans to close or reduce United

5 States military presence at 867 military sites over6 seas.

7 (3) Most of the overseas military sites an8 nounced for closure are in Europe where the United

9 States has already closed 434 such sites.

10 (4) When the United States closes military sites

11 in Europe, the United States brings the military

12 personnel home but leaves buildings, roads, sewers,

13 and other real property improvements behind.

14 (5) Through a series of so-called ‘‘residual

15 value’’ agreements, some allies have agreed to pay

16 the United States for the value of the real property

17 improvements left behind.

18 (6) Although the United States military

19 drawdown has been rapid since 1990, European al20 lies have been slow to pay the United States the re21 sidual value of the sites released by the United

22 States.

23 (7) As of 1994, the United States has recouped

24 only $33,300,000 in cash, and most of that was re25 covered in 1989.
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1 (8) Although the United States has released to

2 Germany over 60 percent of the military sites

3 planned for closure by the United States in that

4 country and the current value of United States fa5 cilities to be returned to the German government is

6 estimated at approximately $2,700,000,000, the

7 German government has budgeted only $25,000,000

8 for fiscal year 1994 for payment of compensation for

9 the United States investment in such improvements.

10 SEC. 2. POLICY.

11 It is the sense of Congress that—

12 (1) the President should redouble efforts to re13 cover the value of the United States investment in

14 the military infrastructure of NATO countries;

15 (2) the President should enter into negotiations

16 with the government of each NATO host country

17 with a presumption that payments to compensate

18 the United States for the fair market value of im19 provements will be made in cash and deposited in

20 the Department of Defense Overseas Military Facil21 ity Investment Recovery Account;

22 (3) the President should enter into negotiations

23 for payments-in-kind only as a last resort and only

24 after informing the Congress that negotiations for

25 cash payments have not been successful; and
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1 (4) to the extent that in-kind contributions are

2 received in lieu of cash payments in any fiscal year,

3 the in-kind contributions should directly offset costs

4 that would otherwise be incurred by the Department

5 of Defense for overseas base support that has been

6 approved by Congress or for overseas base support

7 requested by the President in the budget submitted

8 to Congress for the succeeding fiscal year.

9 SEC. 3. REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS RELATING TO

10 PAYMENTS IN KIND.

11 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR JUSTIFICATION FOR NEGO12 TIATIONS FOR PAYMENTS-IN-KIND.—Subsection (e) of

13 section 2921 of the National Defense Authorization Act

14 for Fiscal Year 1992 (10 U.S.C. 2687 note) is amended—

15 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘NEGOTIATIONS

16 FOR PAYMENTS-IN-KIND.—’’;

17 (2) by striking out ‘‘a written notice’’ and all

18 that follows and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘to the con19 gressional defense committees (and one additional

20 copy to each of the Subcommittees on Defense of the

21 Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the

22 House of Representatives) a written notice regarding

23 the intended negotiations.’’; and

24 (3) by adding at the end the following new

25 paragraph:
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1 ‘‘(2) The notice shall contain the following:

2 ‘‘(A) A justification for entering into negotia3 tions for payments-in-kind with the host country.

4 ‘‘(B) The types of benefit options to be pursued

5 by the Secretary in the negotiations.

6 ‘‘(C) The specific overseas base support activi7 ties (for which funding has either previously been

8 approved by Congress or requested in the latest

9 budget transmitted by the President to Congress

10 pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United

11 States Code) that could be curtailed, eliminated, ter12 minated, or withdrawn to reduce the amount of

13 United States overseas base support spending by an

14 amount not less that the fair market value of the

15 improvements to be released to the host country in

16 exchange for the payments-in-kind.’’.

17 (b) DEFICIT REDUCTION THROUGH PAYMENTS-IN18 KIND.—Such section is amended by adding at the end the

19 following new subsection:

20 ‘‘(h) DEFICIT REDUCTION THROUGH PAYMENTS-IN21 KIND.—(1)(A) Not less than 30 days before the Secretary

22 of Defense enters into an agreement with a host country

23 to accept from the host country any improvement as a

24 payment-in-kind, the President shall—
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1 ‘‘(i) submit to Congress a request for rescission

2 of appropriations for overseas base support;

3 ‘‘(ii) submit to Congress a message recommend4 ing a reduction in the request for appropriations for

5 overseas base support that is set forth in the budget

6 transmitted to Congress pursuant to section 1105(a)

7 of title 31, United States Code, for the fiscal year

8 that begins in the year that the President submits

9 the message to Congress; or

10 ‘‘(iii) a combination of actions under clauses (i)

11 and (ii).

12 ‘‘(B) The total amount of the reductions proposed to

13 be achieved in the proposed actions submitted pursuant

14 to subparagraph (A) in the case of a payment-in-kind of

15 a host country may not be less than the fair market value

16 of the improvements to be released to the host country

17 in exchange for such payment-in-kind.

18 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of Defense may not accept as a

19 payment-in-kind any improvements to real property that,

20 if undertaken to be made by the Department of Defense,

21 would be subject to—

22 ‘‘(A) the requirement for authorization of ap23 propriations for military construction set forth in

24 section 114(a)(6) of title 10, United States Code,

25 and
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1 ‘‘(B) the requirement set forth in section 2802

2 of such title, relating to authorization of military

3 construction projects by law,

4 unless such improvements comprise a military construc5 tion project that is authorized by law.’’.

6 (c) OVERSEAS BASE SUPPORT DEFINED.—Such sec7 tion, as amended by subsection (b), is further amended

8 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

9 ‘‘(i) OVERSEAS BASE SUPPORT DEFINED.—In sub10 sections (e) and (h), the term ‘overseas base support’

11 means—

12 ‘‘(1) military construction (as defined in section

13 114(b) of title 10, United States Code) outside the

14 United States;

15 ‘‘(2) maintenance of real property outside the

16 United States for the Department of Defense; and

17 ‘‘(3) contributions for the North Atlantic Trea18 ty Organization Infrastructure Program as provided

19 in section 2806 of title 10, United States Code.’’.

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