GA And Other States Get Stimulus Oversight

Georgia is one in a group of 16 states getting federal oversight of how it uses stimulus money, but not out of a reason of suspicion. The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, is following these particular states because since they hold a majority of the nation’s population, the group is getting roughly two-thirds of the stimulus funds.

Of the nearly $800-billion of federal stimulus money available, Georgia officials say the state in the end could realize around $7-billion. Bert Brantley with the Governor’s office says some aspects of Georgia’s own stimulus accountability model are being used by federal officials:

"The GAO actually took a lot of what we were doing, a lot of the templates and the documents we’re using to track the spending and are sharing that with other states as well—kind of a model for other states to look at and use. They really like the way that we had begun our work in tracking and reviewing the spending."

Governor Perdue earlier this year announced Georgians could track the state’s federal stimulus spending through the website: stimulusaccountability.ga.gov.

The GAO already issued a first review at the end of April. Brantley says the next will follow sometime in July, with reviews to continue for the next few years.

Report Cites Rise in Costs of Moving Bases

The cost of closing two Georgia military bases could cost as much as ten billion dollars more than initially expected, according to federal officials.

In 2005, the U-S Department of Defense estimated that closing Fort McPherson and Fort Gillem would cost about 21 billion dollars.

According to the U-S Government Office of Accountability, that number now looks more like 31 billion dollars - an increase of about 48 percent more.

Plans are to turn Fort McPherson into a scientific research park.

Local officials say the Fort Gillem real estate south of Atlanta in Forest Park will attract strong interest from the private sector and is best-suited for a mixed-use development blending residential and commercial uses.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the military's Base Realignment and Closure Program - BRAC.

GAO Report: Sharp Spike in Army Move Costs

Maneuver Center of Excellence. (Fort Benning)

A new report says the massive military relocation project for Fort Benning will have a much larger price tag than previous estimates.

The Base Realignment and Closure Program – BRAC, for short – was projected to cost taxpayers 21-billion dollars. Now, the figure is nearly 700 million dollars higher.

The Army says the added costs are for roads, sewers and infrastructure for the BRAC project which includes opening some bases, closing others, and moving 123,000 service personnel nationwide.

Georgia is the focus of a major BRAC initiative — moving the Army's Armor school from Ft. Knox, Kentucky to Fort Benning, near Columbus. It involves bringing some 30,000 troops and their families to the Columbus area.

The GAO says it may be the most expensive move in US military history. A Pentagon official says nationwide BRAC will, in his words, “enhance defense capabilities."

Click here for more GPB coverage about Ft. Benning.