Lincoln, Drew Goesl (202) 224-6436
Pryor, Rodell Mollineau (202) 224-2353
Snyder, Jennifer Oglesby (501)324-5943
Boozman, Patrick Creamer (202)225-4301
November 18, 2005
Press Release		  

CONGRESS APPROVES MILITARY CONSTRUCTION FUNDING IN CENTRAL, NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
Funding to Support Camp Robinson, LRAFB, Searcy Armory, and Fayetteville VA Center

WASHINGTON D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln and Representatives Vic Snyder (AR-02) and John Boozman (AR-03), today announced that Congress has passed $20.5 million for Arkansas defense projects in the Fiscal Year 2006 Military Construction Bill. Projects for the Army National Guard facility at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock, the Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville, the National Guard Armory in Searcy, and the VA Medical Center in Fayetteville were all funded in the bill.

Army National Guard, Camp Robinson
$5.6 million to continue construction on the Camp Robinson Regional Institute Training Complex. The complex is essential in maintaining a ready, relevant, and responsive force to support state and federal missions. Funding will allow for site preparation, extension of utilities, force protection, telecommunications, alarm system and furniture.

Little Rock Air Force Base
$6.4 million has been designated for an improved dining facility at the Little Rock Air Force Base to replace the existing facility, which is aged and undersized. The facility will also house a community center mail room.

$2.5 million to construct an All American Landing Zone. The Landing Zone will allow for free aircraft ground movement to permit rapid entrance and exit of traffic enhancing training operations. Currently, training operations are unnecessarily slowed, which could prevent C-130 students from satisfying the high standards of training expected of them in operations such as the war in Afghanistan.

National Guard Armory, Searcy
$186,000 for planning and design for the Combined Support Maintenance Shop at the Searcy Armory. The facility lacks proper and adequate on-site maintenance which could adversely affect the Arkansas National Guard’s ability to attain and maintain required mobilization and readiness levels.

Veterans Medical Center, Fayetteville
$5.8 million from the President’s budget remained in the bill to begin construction on an addition to the Veterans Medical Center.

Delegation members said the $82.36 billion military construction bill includes $10.2 billion to enhance and maintain infrastructure of the nation’s military operations, including military family housing and facilities. A majority of the bill, over $70 billion, is slated for programs administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The VA funding includes $1.225 billion in emergency funding to address an expected shortfall in veterans’ health care funding.

The House and Senate voted on different versions of the military construction bill earlier this year, and this bill is the result of a compromise between the two versions that was completed this week by a conference between the two bodies.

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