US government agency
The
Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation
(OLDCC), formerly the
Office of Economic Adjustment
(OEA), is a
United States Department of Defense
(DoD)
field activity
and provides technical and financial assistance to states, territories, and communities that are invested in the defense mission. OLDCC assistance supports the readiness and resiliency of both defense installations and defense communities.
To assist affected communities, OLDCC manages and directs the Defense Economic Adjustment Program and coordinates the involvement of other
federal agencies
.
[2]
History
[
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]
Founded in 1961 under President
John F. Kennedy
and
Defense Secretary
Robert McNamara
, the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA), later the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC), was tasked with mitigating the adverse impact on jobs and local economies after a government cost-reduction program closed several
military bases
. In the late-1960s and early-70s, OEA opened regional offices in major cities nationwide to facilitate federal grant deliveries.
[2]
In the 1980s, OEA phased out
categorical grants
(grants with specific categories upon which they can be spent) in favor of
block grants
(grants with few or no conditions on spending). Regional assistance waned and all offices not on the
West Coast
were shuttered. No major military bases were closed during the 1980s. In 1988, a
new base closure statute
was enacted, which was designed to shield the process from political manipulation (
Pork barrel
politics, i.e. congresspeople ensuring bases in their states or
districts
remain open for political gain). The law set up a
bipartisan commission
that channeled base recommendations to the president; approximately 100 bases were closed and 50 realigned.
[3]
As a result of the
Base Realignment and Closure
(BRAC) process developed in the late-1980s and 1990s, OEA provided support to many local communities amidst
defense industry
cutbacks. OEA's success served as a model for communities within
former Soviet States
and new
Eastern European
countries to better cope with reductions in military spending brought about by the end of the
Cold War
and the
dissolution of the Soviet Union
.
[3]
In 2013, military operations partially subsided as a result of
budget sequestration
(spending cuts) imposed by the
Budget Control Act of 2011
, harming
Defense Department
-dependent states and communities. Seeking to avert similar economic slowdowns, OEA Director O'Brien began issuing the “Defense Spending by State” report to help state and local leaders cope with potential loss of Defense contracts through economic diversification or technological innovation and
Defense Secretary
Leon Panetta
pledged continuing aid to affected communities.
[4]
[5]
[6]
The
William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021
(NDAA FY2021) included a provision (Section 905) that amended Chapter 4 of
Title 10 of the United States Code
to rename OEA the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC). The provision took effect upon enactment of the Act on January 1, 2021.
[7]
[8]
Executive Order
14008, issued by President
Joe Biden
in early 2021, added addressing
climate change
to OLDCC's goals.
[9]
Operations
[
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]
The Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation provides technical and financial assistance (referred to as economic adjustment assistance) to
states
and local communities supporting the mission of the
Department of Defense
. Such aid is intended to enhance the resiliency and readiness of defense installations and their surrounding communities.
[2]
Economic adjustment assistance provides a community-based context for assessing economic hardships caused by DoD program changes by identifying and evaluating alternative courses of action, identifying resource requirements, and assisting in the preparation of an adjustment strategy or action plan to help communities help themselves.
Public and private partnerships
are employed in areas such as
public infrastructure
to help local communities, the residents of which are often employed by or otherwise support military installations, and reduce
operating costs
.
[2]
OLDCC employees have a range of experience in economic and
community development
,
land use planning
,
real estate redevelopment
, federal real property programs, military programs, and worker adjustment. Project managers also bring a working knowledge of other federal agencies and their respective programs to help communities put together an adjustment program combining federal, state, local, and private resources.
Programs
[
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OLDCC operates several programs of assistance aimed at helping local defense-supporting communities:
[10]
- Community Noise Mitigation Program:
The Community Noise Mitigation Program is designed to address communities impacted by military fixed wing aviation noise for the purposes of installing noise mitigation at covered facilities. Covered facilities are hospitals, daycare facilities, schools, facilities serving senior citizens, and private residences. This program is authorized under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 (Pub. L. 117-35) Section 8120.
- Defense Community Infrastructure Pilot Program (DCIP):
Funds community infrastructure to support defense personnel and families.
[11]
- Defense Manufacturing Community Support Program (DMCSP):
Supports long-term community investments in
national security
innovation and
defense manufacturing industrial ecosystem
capability expansion (i.e. funding
research and development
in defense-critical technologies).
[12]
- Installation Resilience Program:
Funds state and local government improvement of installation sustainability (i.e. resilience against
natural disasters
or adverse environmental changes such as
climate change
and
pollution
). Delivers grants to states, private landowners, and others and drafts plans and provides assistance in finding solutions to
light pollution
,
urban sprawl
,
endangered species management
,
energy security
threats, etc.
[13]
- Public Schools on Military Installations (PSMI)
: An invitation only program based on a Deputy Secretary of Defense prioritization ranking for installations; Funds construction, renovation, repair, and expansion of
public schools
located on
military bases
. Despite their location, these schools are operated by
local education agencies.
- Mission Realingment Program:
After base closures or reductions, deploys project managers to select local redevelopment authorities (LRAs) to represent community members to local, state, and federal agencies. The project manager and LRA develop plans to revitalize the local economy, seek
private
and
public investment
, and support affected workers and businesses.
[14]
Organization
[
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OLDCC is a
Department of Defense field activity
under the
Office of the Secretary of Defense
(OSD); more specifically, within the
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment
(OUSD(A&S)),
[2]
and under the purview of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations and Environment.
While headquartered in
Arlington, Virginia
, OLDCC retains a Western Regional Office in
Sacramento, California
headed by the Deputy Director, Western Regional Office.
[2]
Director
[
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The Director of OLDCC is, by statute, appointed by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and must be a
federal civilian employee
or private individual with "experience in the interagency in the Executive Branch [and] experience in the administration and management of Federal grants programs." He or she is charged with operating the Office and ensuring appropriate aid is sent to Defense-supporting communities.
[7]
The director serves
ex officio
as Executive Director of the Economic Adjustment Committee, a body composed of various
federal department
heads and other agency leaders or their representatives that coordinates interagency economic assistance in response to
Defense
program changes.
[9]
[15]
The current director is Patrick O'Brien, an
economic development
expert and former
HUD
employee.
[1]
Economic Assistance Committee
[
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]
The Economic Adjustment Committee (EAC) is a body composed of various
federal department
heads and other agency leaders (or their designees) that coordinates interagency economic assistance in response to
Defense
program changes. It is not a part of OLDCC, but works closely with the Office. With a membership similar to but greater than that of a typical
presidential cabinet
, the EAC's current roster of 22 is as follows:
Additionally, the Director of the Office of the Local Defense Community Cooperation serves as the EAC's Executive Director
[9]
[15]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"Leadership"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
"OUR MISSION & HISTORY"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
Walleshinsky, David (2016).
"Office of Economic Adjustment"
.
allgov.com
. All Gov.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
Vergun, David (March 19, 2019).
"Defense Economic Director: Military Spending Important to Communities"
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 9, 2021
. Retrieved
August 9,
2021
.
- ^
McDaniel, Darwin (March 21, 2019).
"Patrick O'Brien: Defense Budget Issues Also Affect Local Communities"
.
Executive Gov
.
Archived
from the original on August 9, 2021
. Retrieved
August 9,
2021
.
- ^
Serbu, Jared (August 7, 2012).
"Panetta throws in the towel on 2013 base closures"
.
Federal News Network
.
Archived
from the original on August 9, 2021
. Retrieved
August 9,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021
(PDF)
(National Defense Authorization Act Unknown, Section 905).
United States Congress
. January 1, 2021. p. 411-412.
- ^
"Office of Economic Adjustment Officially Renamed"
.
Association of Defense Communities
. January 7, 2021.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)
(May 2021).
Fiscal Year 2022 President's Budget Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation
(PDF)
(Report).
United States Department of Defense
. p. 2, 15.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
"Program Overview"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
"Defense Community Infrastructure Program"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
"Defense Manufacturing Community Support Program"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
"Military Installation Sustainability"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
"Downsizing"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Federal Assistance Coordination"
.
oldcc.gov
.
United States Department of Defense
.
Archived
from the original on August 8, 2021
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
External links
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