Air Force May Not Have To Fund Cyber Command HQ
By
Bob Brewin
Earlier this year, I reported that the Air Force planned to pony up $104 million from its 2011 budget to fund development of the new headquarters of the U.S. Cyber Command at Ft. Meade, Md.
I thought that was rather generous of the Air Force, since the service had lost out on its two year fight to own the cyber mission.
But the Air Force may be off the hook for the Cyber Command HQ if language in the conference report on the House version of the 2011 Military Construction/Veterans Affairs appropriations bill makes it through the legislative mill.
That bill says the Air Force had allocated $564 million in its budget for new facilities for the U.S. Strategic Command - which runs the Cyber Command - as well as "an unspecified but probably large requirement to provide new facilities " for the Cyber Command.
The House report said the Air Force should not have to bear this burden on its own, and urged the Defense Department to provide the funds for the new headquarters from its overall budget.
Meanwhile, the Air Fore still get points for playing nice with the other children, which may have been the purpose of its generosity to begin with.