The Impact of Political Factors on Military Base Closures

This paper investigates the political economy of military base closure in the United States. The Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Act was passed in 1988 in an attempt to insulate base closure and realignment from politic influence. The political pressure to influence the process remains strong, however, given the negative effects base closures can often have on a local economy. Using data from the 2005 BRAC round, we examine whether the current process insulates base closure and realignment from traditional political influences. We find no evidence of political influence on base closings.

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