Wall could put Wright-Patterson expansion at risk

$61 million expected for NASIC could be diverted to border.

Dayton regional leaders say they are worried the $61 million that Congress allocated last year for a new intelligence production center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base could be at risk of being spent instead on President Donald Trump’s border wall.

Members of the Dayton Development Coalition, a regional organization that fights for Wright-Patterson and other regional projects, said the $61 million is the first of three installments to fund what is hoped to be a $182 million building aimed at housing the Air Force’s National Air and Space Intelligence Center, NASIC.

The coalition confirmed Friday that the money has not yet been obligated, meaning it could be used for the border wall. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Dayton, said he “strongly” believes that “securing our border should not be done at the expense of previously funded military construction projects,” adding it is “a dangerous precedent” for Trump to declare a national emergency “because Congress refuses to provide necessary funding to protect our country.”

Turner, whose district includes Wright-Patterson, fought for the money for the new NASIC building. His office released a letter he co-signed last week to Trump warning that “diverting funding from ongoing or planned projects

would be incredibly harm- ful and put us back on a path our military cannot afford to travel again after so much progress has been made under your watch.”

Said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio: “Any effort to take funding away from our military to support the President’s vanityproject is reck- less and irresponsible. Work- ers at places like WrightPatt have already suffered enough because of President Trump’s shutdown.”

“The NASIC intelligence facility construction project at Wright-Patterson project is critically important to national security and must be funded without delay as Congress intended,” said Jeff Hoagland, president and CEO of the Dayton Develop- ment Coalition. “Our Congressional delegation fought hard for this. Reallocating funds already approved for this project is not acceptable.

The project would be at risk if it has not yet been obligated – basically, if they haven’t hired a contractor to begin the work, said Michael Gessel of the Day- ton Development Coalition. The money was designed to be spent in three parts under the premise that the proj- ect is so big it can’t be built in one fiscal year. The total $182 million for the project has already been authorized, meaning approved by the federal government, and it’s common for projects such as these to be split into a few installments, Gessel said.

While presidents have o c ca si o nally us e d their authority to “reprogram” or move money from one account to another within specific agencies, it’s rare to move money from one federal agency to another, as Trump would do to build the wall. In order to legally do so, Trump must either declare war or a national emergency.

Last year, the House Appropriations Commit- tee also approved $15 million for the 180th Fighter Wing at Toledo Air National Guard Base. The money was allo- cated for the replacement and upgrading the tempo- rary hangars that are part of the North American Air Defense Command’s mission, according to a press release issued at the time by Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Toledo Democrat who serves on the House Appropriations Committee.

Emily Benavides, a spokeswoman for U.S. Rep Rob Portman, R-Ohio, said “Rob is a strong supporter and advocate for Ohio’s military facilities and research institutions and will work to ensure that key military construction projects at these strategic facilities can continue to move forward.”

Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Upper Arlington, suppor ts Trump’s decision to declare a national emergency.

“I would have preferred for Congress to find a legislative solution to securing our border, but the President has taken action, and I support that action,” he said. “I believe there is unused money to be found for construction from previous ye ars - funds that were not spent on past projects - and therefore current projects would not be impacted. I am hopeful that unused funds are prioritized because ongoing, innovative efforts at bases including Wright-Patterson must be protected.”