Lawmakers vow to support Drum

FORT DRUM — U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer and Rep. William L. Owens pledged Monday to work together to support the Army post, including by trying to restore some of the more than $36 million in funding Fort Drum expects to lose for fiscal year 2010.

"Frankly, I was shocked when I heard about it," Mr. Schumer said during a joint appearance with Mr. Owens. "Thirty percent is a huge cutback. It affects the quality of life here at the base, and it affects civilian employment rather significantly here in Jefferson County."

If the proposed reduction figure sticks, the cut will reduce the post's operating budget from $119 million in fiscal year 2009 to $82.7 million in fiscal year 2010, which began in October, Fort Drum spokeswoman Julie Cupernall said Monday. The Associated Press reported last week that military bases across the country are facing significant cuts in funding for non-war-fighting services.

Mr. Schumer and Mr. Owens toured the post Monday morning, then attended a briefing with its leadership before speaking with reporters in the early afternoon at Hayes Hall, where the command leadership is housed.

"We met both with civilian leaders, community leaders, as well as military leaders to get our homework — a list of things that we should do this year, both for the base itself and for the community," Mr. Schumer said.

Both elected officials emphasized the importance of Fort Drum to the regional economy. They identified affordable housing and increasing the number of health care providers in the area as priorities.

Mr. Schumer said he wanted to "fill some of the gaps in the hospitals here because of a shortage of certain types of physicians, so that soldiers or civilians who, for instance, have cranial injuries don't have to go all the way to Syracuse."

The senator said he hoped to re-create with Mr. Owens the close partnership he had with former Congressman and now Army Secretary John M. McHugh.

"I want to assure the community that it will be the same strong, cooperative partnership to help Fort Drum in every way that we can," Mr. Schumer said.

Following the press conference with Mr. Owens and Mr. Schumer, Ms. Cupernall offered more details about Fort Drum's preparations for the cuts, saying a concrete plan would be made public soon.

"We've had a list for some time that we're working off of," she said. "It's not an absolute said-and-done. Hopefully by the end of the week we're going to be able to release that."

Cuts will be made to areas such as grass cutting, snow removal and similar services, she said. The post will preserve services that most directly support its core mission: preparing soldiers to fight, and supporting soldiers and their families.

"It's going to be those things that don't look like a lot on paper," Ms. Cupernall said. "But when they translate into a family member perhaps waiting twice as long to get their ID card, those are going be the things that hurt — because you're stressing out a family that's already under stress."

Garrison Commander Col. Kenneth H. Riddle has also prioritized preserving civilian jobs, Ms. Cupernall said.

Federal employment rules would prevent Fort Drum from seeing an immediate savings from furloughs or layoffs, since "a reduction in force means you would give those employees first dibs on other jobs on post," she said.

"You don't realize it right away. And beyond that, it's the garrison commander's priority to keep his civilian workforce here because we cannot support soldiers and families without them."

A significant portion of the post's budget reductions will come through postponing filling vacant positions, Ms. Cupernall said.