Mobilization Issues
Mobilizing Active Guard Reserve Soldiers under Title 32
The Active Guard Reserve program is designed to ensure that the training and readiness of Army National Guard soldiers are maintained at a high level. These codes have very specific limits on how the Army or the States and Territories can utilize their Active Guard Reserve force in times of need.
The events of September 11, 2001 brought these limitations to the forefront. Under Title 32, Active Guard Reserve soldiers are not authorized to support State missions after 72 hours unless specific criteria are met, such as the imminent loss of life. The inability of State Governors and Adjutants General to utilize all of their full-time soldiers caused some significant organizational and leadership problems within affected formations.
Active Guard Reserve members are critical assets to the force, enabling units to rapidly respond to State emergencies and homeland security efforts.
Medical and Dental Readiness Individual medical readiness of Army Guard soldiers has become a heightened priority since September 11, 2001. Individual medical readiness requirements include immunizations, dental, and medical screenings. The speed at which units deploy today places significant time constraints on the Guard to properly identify or correct medical or dental deficiencies at mobilization stations.
In October 2001, the Army National Guard initiated the Medical Protection System, an automated tracking system for medical and dental records. This system also tracks Physical Exam readiness data, as well as HIV and DNA readiness data on file at the Army and Department of Defense repositories; it is used at mobilization stations to verify Individual Medical readiness in the Mobilization Level Application Software. When fully implemented, the system will allow commanders and human resource managers to monitor individual medical readiness of their soldiers. Resources can then be directed where needed, and early decisions can be made regarding the readiness of individuals and units to be deployed.
It is important to understand that with very few exceptions, Army National Guard soldiers are not entitled to medical or dental care for pre-existing disorders, only for injury or illness incurred in the line of duty. Dental readiness is particularly problematic. Both Congress and Department of Defense have attempted to positively influence dental readiness, but the remedy is not yet available. Units are still arriving at mobilization stations with soldiers in need of dental care to bring them to deployment standards.
If the nation continues to utilize the Army National Guard and Army Reserve in support of the Global War on Terrorism, it must ensure that these Reserve Components maintain the same high level of medical readiness as the active component.
Current Operations Force Protection In Fiscal Year 2002, the Army National Guard provided soldiers for deployments in the continental United States and overseas. Almost 20,000 soldiers worked 1,490,000 mandays conducting force protection missions and executing border security missions at 83 sites owned by the Army Materiel Command; U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command; U.S. Army Forces Command; Immigration and Naturalization Service; and U.S. Customs Service. The National Guard supported homeland security missions by guarding airports, nuclear power plants, domestic water supplies, bridges, and tunnels in support of the State Governors.
Contingency Operations The Army National Guard has assumed the lead as the stabilizing force in the Balkans and in Southwest Asia. Six Army National Guard brigades and numerous battalions participated in rotations as part of the Multinational Force Observers in the Sinai, and in Southwest Asia, providing support to the Air Defense Artillery units in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The Army National Guard is scheduled to provide Division Headquarters and maneuver units to four of the next six rotations to Bosnia.
Partial Mobilization During Fiscal Year 2002, the Army National Guard contributed tens of thousands of soldiers to support the Global War on Terrorism. By September 2002, over 20,000 soldiers were mobilized from within the Army Guard’s ranks, and those numbers are expected to continue to increase. These fine citizen-soldiers were deployed with very little post-mobilization training, yet stand ready to enforce the will of the United States. Military Support to Civilian Authorities Since September 11, 2001, Army National Guard soldiers have responded to 263 requests for emergency support for a total of 645,419 mandays. These soldiers provided security, logistics support, transportation, and family care centers. They worked in support of World Trade Center relief, the Winter Olympics, and security at American icons such as Mount Rushmore, the Boston Marathon, and the Super Bowl in Louisiana. Major wildfires involving 21 States and consuming over 6.6 million acres required 47,519 mandays of support. The Army National Guard provided aviation support with water-bucket drops, security, and command and control as needed. The Guard’s soldiers supported flood recovery operations in Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Texas for a total of 23,882 mandays. Modern Infrastructure and Facilities Army National Guard facilities are vital for the operations, preparation, and execution of emergency assistance and the Global War On Terrorism missions. Readiness centers, maintenance facilities, and training centers provide the citizen-soldier a base from which to train, maintain equipment, and mobilize at a moment’s notice.
Most of the Army National Guard’s existing infrastructure was built prior to 1990, with a very significant number being more than 50 years old. The Army National Guard has refined the method used to validate requirements for its aging facilities. This refinement has given the Army National Guard a much more accurate analysis of what is needed to maintain and improve the Guard’s facilities. The validated requirement in Fiscal Year 2004 is approximately $1.18 billion. Military Construction The Army National Guard’s Military Construction, Sustainment, Restoration and Modernization and Facilities Base Operations programs support construction, maintenance and operations of Army National Guard facilities.
The programs provide facilities for Guard units and personnel to operate, prepare for, and execute required missions. The priority is to afford units with readiness, maintenance, and training facilities that enhance unit capability to effectively mobilize and deploy when called. Military Construction funding in 2004 supports general facilities revitalization, the Army National Guard Division Redesign Study, planning and design for Range and Training Lands Program, Aviation Transformation, and the Stryker Brigade Combat Team. General facilities revitalization consists of restoration and modernization based on 67-year recapitalization of existing facilities for current missions and building out facilities to support existing missions. The Army Facilities Strategy is a component of Facilities Revitalization. The program supports readiness by providing standard facilities to support training of personnel and maintenance of equipment for existing and new missions.
The existing infrastructure is outdated and inadequate with many facilities unable to support current unit training or operational requirements. The ranges do not meet current standards and without adequate facilities, units cannot meet war fighting or homeland security readiness. At present, newly fielded vehicles are unable to fit into existing maintenance bays, and there is insufficient space to store equipment properly to ensure adequate operation. The increased requirements for these programs have been staggering. Funding for Military Construction is on the increase, though not at the same level as requirements. The requirement increases 62 percent in Fiscal Year 2004 and reaches almost 107 percent for Fiscal Year 2009. The funding of Military Construction increases over 5 percent in Fiscal Year 2004 and reaches an increase of about 38 percent in Fiscal Year 2009. The Military Construction funding ramp increases considerably over the next five years to address the Army National Guard’s facilities shortfalls in quality and quantity. A significant portion of this ramp addresses the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Aviation Transformation, Army Range and Training Lands program, and Army National Guard Division Redesign. These transformational programs address the facilities needs of our transforming force structure. A full two-thirds of the Military Construction program addresses facilities revitalization from Fiscal Years 2007 through 2009.
The refinement of the Army National Guard real property inventory has increased the validated requirements for sustainment by an average of $4 million per year for Fiscal Years 2004 through 2009. Funding for sustainment in Fiscal Year 2004 is approximately 93 percent of validated requirements as generated by the Department of Defense Facilities Sustainment Model. Base Operations, requirements have increased significantly; however, funding has not increased at the same rate.
Environmental Programs The Army National Guard Environmental Program is a world-class environmental management program; its core competency is “ensuring the sustainable use of Army National Guard training lands and facilities to enable essential training and support functions critical to operational mission accomplishment.” Through National Guard pollution prevention, conservation, and restoration activities, the Army National Guard maintains compliance with environmental laws and regulations. The Army Guard also practices sound stewardship and promotes innovative ways to ensure compatible use of sustainable natural resources in its charge and military training lands to support national defense.
Within the past year, the Army National Guard has met statutory requirements to develop and begin implementation of Integrated Natural Resource Management Plans for 90 of the Army Guard’s installations. The Army National Guard is aggressively continuing development of Integrated Cultural Resource Management Plans in a similar fashion, in addition to completing many precursor planning-level surveys, such as wetlands and forest inventories that fed the above major environmental management plans. The Army Guard’s Environmental Compliance Assessment System program has innovative technology solutions to maintain the Guard’s leadership role in this program.
There are approximately 42 listed threatened and endangered species on 36 Army National Guard training sites, and the Army National Guard has proven it can maintain compatible use. The Army National Guard has taken the lead in developing a comprehensive computer-based tool that will provide near real-time data on environmental resource sustainment factors at training centers. These facilities are critical to realistic unit and weapons training. The new electronic tool will be used to assess environmental vulnerabilities to ensure ranges and maneuver lands are available for training. This capability has great potential for pre-emptive rather than reactive environmental management.
Homeland Security Ground-Based Midcourse Defense Program The National Guard is playing a significant role in the defense against ballistic missile threat by organizing, manning, and deploying Ground-Based Midcourse Defense Units. The Army National Guard received approval to activate a Missile Defense Brigade, based on the results of the Total Army Analysis 2009. The Brigade Headquarters will be located in Colorado and the first Battalion will be located in Alaska. These organizations will serve as the cornerstone for the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense program.
The Missile Defense Agency, Ground-Based Midcourse Defense-Joint Program Office has agreed to provide pay and allowance for initial personnel required for this program in preparation for Initial Defensive Operations beginning in Fiscal Year 2004.
As critical as this mission component is to the national defense, it requires adequate full-time manning to achieve full operational capability. By offering the needed manpower to the Army Space Command and the Space and Missile Defense Command, the Army Guard will provide this primary land-based homeland security system.
Anti-Terrorism Force Protection The Army National Guard’s Anti-Terrorism Force Protection and physical security programs provide for security and protection of facilities, personnel, and equipment, as well as the monitoring and maintenance of intrusion detection systems that detect and assess threats at 397 critical sites. Intrusion systems, closed circuit television, and access control systems decrease the number of personnel needed to guard facilities as well as prevent personnel from exposure to potentially harmful situations. The security systems save on personnel costs: Fewer soldiers are needed to guard Department of Defense facilities, equipment, and property and are channeled instead into mission deployment or crisis management.
Guard Knowledge Management The Guard Knowledge Management initiative and the Distributive Training Technology Project support the Army National Guard’s ability to maintain and improve individual and unit readiness, the ability to mobilize, and quick, efficient deployment. Through the effective integration of information technology programs and implementation of Knowledge Management initiatives, the Army Guard is enhancing its capability to identify, distribute, and access critical information that directly impacts the Army Guard’s ability to meet readiness goals and mission objectives. For example, the Army National Guard saves money and resources and heightens readiness by providing increased foreign language sustainment and enhancement training using distance-learning technologies. Courseware is being developed at several sites throughout the United States, including Iowa, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Arkansas, and New Jersey. In addition, the Vermont Army National Guard has been conducting Information Operations training since February 1999 for all components of the Army. The Army National Guard made full use of its Knowledge Management capabilities to conduct extensive pre-deployment training for the 29th Infantry Division (Light) Headquarters for their peacekeeping rotation in Bosnia.
The Army Guard has also partnered with the National Air and Space Administration to deliver a wide array of educational content to young people to stimulate interest in science, math, and technology. The Army National Guard is building on these and other success stories to help increase readiness through a vigorous implementation of Knowledge Management principles.
Transformation Legacy Force Sustainment While still experiencing critical modernization challenges in High-Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles, Single-Channel Ground and Airborne Radios, chemical and biological detection equipment, and Night Vision Devices, the Army National Guard continues to improve its overall readiness posture. The redistribution of assets will continue to be a part of the remedy to a variety of shortfalls throughout the Army National Guard’s force. As the Army National Guard completes its Division Redesign, some equipment will be made available for use in other formations. Similarly, as the 56th Brigade in Pennsylvania transforms, equipment will be redistributed.
Over the last decade, the Army National Guard has made significant progress in modernizing the heavy force with the M1A1 Abrams, M2A2 Bradley, M109A6 Paladin, and M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System. It is the Army National Guard’s plan to continue efforts to transform equipment and technologies to ensure interoperability and readiness levels.
Interim Force The Army National Guard modernization strategy provides for a compatible and fully networked force. A key component of the transformation strategy is the activation of the 56th Brigade of Pennsylvania that is expected to become the first Army National Guard Stryker Brigade prior to 2008. Overall, the six Army-wide Stryker Brigade Combat Teams’ mission is to be a rapid deployment force that can be deployed anywhere in the world in 96 hours.
The Army National Guard’s highest priority remains maintaining war-fighting readiness. In support of this imperative, the organization is pursuing a modernization strategy that will provide the nation with compatible, interoperable, and strategically viable forces well into the future. The transformation campaign plan articulates the strategy of how to achieve the Army vision of an objective force that is more responsive, deployable, agile, versatile, lethal, and sustainable in times of crisis. Current forces will continue to be viable long into the future and will provide the margin of security that allows the Army to undertake transformation. The Army will maintain the combat overmatch capabilities of the current force through selective modernization, technology insertion, and recapitalization. The Army’s plan is to have all of Pennsylvania’s Stryker Brigade Combat Team’s facility construction and other infrastructure requirements started by Fiscal Year 2006.
Objective Force The Army National Guard Division Redesign Study is a four-phase transformation project. Phases I and II of this study will involve the conversion of six brigades along with a portion of two divisions. The purpose is to address a long-standing U.S. Army concern regarding a lack of combat support and combat service support in the force structure.
Military construction is required to meet this critical change, and with the assistance of 24 participating States, the Army National Guard is in the process of planning the modification and rebuilding of older facilities to accommodate this new mission. Phases III and IV are under revision, and the pending Army Guard Restructuring Initiative will most likely impact these later stages of restructuring; funding for this initiative is in excess of $370 million.
Restructuring Initiative On September 8, 2002, Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White introduced the Army National Guard Restructuring Initiative at the 2002 National Guard Association of the United States annual conference. Mr. White stated that “in light of our new plan for national defense [we] are now undertaking a new initiative which we will call the Army National Guard Restructuring Initiative. Whereas the original initiative Army Division Redesign Study converts combat formations to support structure, the new initiative restructures a sizeable portion of the National Guard combat formations to better support our combatant commanders’ requirements.” The concept is to convert existing heavy and light combat structure to new designs that better support Combatant Commanders (including the new Northern Command) under the new defense strategy. Tentatively called Multi-Functional Divisions and Mobile Light Brigades, these new organizations will be first and foremost war-fighting organizations prepared for full-spectrum operations. The first unit could begin conversion as early as Fiscal Year 2005. The conversion to these new organizations, combined with efforts already under way as part of the Army National Guard Division Redesign Study effort, will result in a 30 percent decrease in the current number of tracked vehicles in Army Guard Combat Divisions and Brigades. Although this constitutes a reduction of heavy assets, the National Guard is determined to ensure that the Army Guard does not maintain obsolete systems that are inconsistent with future Army operational concepts including unit design, support and sustainment. Aviation Transformation Army National Guard aviation is one of the nation’s highest value assets for both wartime and peacetime missions. In wartime, these Army National Guard aviation units provide the sustaining and reinforcing power required for successful execution of the National Military Strategy, as well as the most readily available Army aviation assets for homeland security. In peacetime, these critical aviation assets are equally important for the widest possible range of missions at both the State and Regional levels. These peacetime missions range from Air Ambulance, Search and Rescue, and Counterdrug support in areas having no such civilian capacity, to wide-scale and timely response to both natural and man-made disasters. The Army National Guard’s aviation units continue to contribute almost half of the Army’s aviation structure, including Counterdrug Reconnaissance and Aerial Interdiction Detachments in 37 States and Territories, which use specially modified OH-58 observation aircraft to support federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies with counterdrug efforts in the U.S. These units are also postured to support homeland security efforts. Six of these units were deployed along the Northern Border supporting the US Border Patrol and Operation Noble Eagle during Fiscal Year 2002.
Since Fiscal Year 2002, the Army’s Aviation Transformation effort, coupled with other aviation modernization and recapitalization improvements, has not only significantly improved the readiness and capabilities of Guard aviation units, but also has reduced the overall aviation footprint. While significant quantities of modern series UH-60, CH-47, and AH-64 aircraft have been cascaded from active Army units to Army Guard units, the associated equipment (tool set, tool kits, test equipment, and parts) critical for the successful support of these aircraft has not kept pace. Current Army procurement levels will leave the Army Guard permanently short of its required number of aircraft. In addition, many of the remaining allocated aircraft are not scheduled for upgrade to the most current standard configurations:
• AH-64 “Apache”: Army National Guard will receive 254 of 296 required (42 short). Of the 254 AH-64s to be provided, only 63 will be the most modern AH-64D model. • CH-47 “Chinook”: Army National Guard will receive 136 of 150 required (14 short). Of the 136 CH-47s to be provided, only 93 will be the most modern CH-47F model. • UH-60 “Blackhawk”: Army National Guard will receive 687 of 775 required (88 short). All 687 are scheduled for eventual upgrade to most modern UH-60M model. • Homeland Security/RAID Aircraft: The OH-58A/C aircraft currently used for this mission are nearing the end of their useful life span. Personnel Transformation The Army Guard’s Permanent Electronic Records Management System is a web-based system utilizing digital imagery to store and retrieve personnel records. The importance of the Permanent Electronic Records Management System lies in its seamless records management capability throughout the Army, enhancing both mobilization and personnel readiness.
By consolidating the administrative operations of human resources in one place, the Permanent Electronic Records Management System allows personnel records to follow a soldier regardless of component. In the past, the system was slow and labor-intensive, resulting in pay problems, promotion delays, difficulties in making new assignments, and low personnel morale. Fixing the problem involves the conversion of paper files to electronic files; and is a practice currently used by the Department of the Army for all of its personnel actions. At present the Army National Guard is the only military component that lacks electronic records storage capability.
Under the Department of Defense’s vision for a “paperless environment,” the Army National Guard will be required to provide electronic capabilities for personnel records in the 50 States, three Territories, and the District of Columbia.
The Army National Guard will adopt an Automated Selection Board System to support and improve the process under which information and votes regarding personnel actions are processed by military personnel boards.
Departing from an obsolete “paper” system to a digital system that views data and images from the Permanent Electronic Records Management System and the Department of the Army Photo Management Information System is a time-consuming process. However, once the Automated Selection Board System is adopted, it will save the Army National Guard more than $150,000 per year in microfiche production and postage costs. This system is essential to achieve and fully support Personnel Transformation. The Army National Guard must remain interoperable with the Army and the Army Reserve by adopting this system. The conduct of boards at the State level will become extremely cumbersome due to unavailability of routine printed information. By failing to adopt the Automated Selection Board System, the Army National Guard will be required to download paper copies of an automated viewing and storing system.
Strategic Readiness System The Army National Guard’s Strategic Readiness System was developed pursuant to the Chief of Staff of the Army’s guidance for a more holistic assessment of readiness information. The Strategic Readiness System is an integrated strategic management and measurement system that ensures that all levels of the Army, including the National Guard Bureau and the Army National Guard, recognize and align their operations to the vision, objectives, and initiatives of the Army Plan. The system also measures each element’s success in achieving these goals. The Army Scorecard is the tool used to measure progress toward stated goals and objectives. This tool will enable the Army National Guard leadership to see the resource and readiness linkages throughout the system and better predict a modeling capability that improves the allocation of resources to achieve the highest degree of readiness.
Conclusion The Army National Guard comprises diverse individuals from all walks of life united by the desire to keep the American people safe and secure. Many soldiers in the Guard leave behind promising career tracks and loving families to serve their country without compromise or hesitation. These soldiers lead dual lives; their sacrifices are overwhelming and should not be forgotten or discounted.
Army National Guard soldiers have accomplished much work “behind the scenes” in the past fiscal year, providing relief to victims of catastrophes, security at numerous vulnerable locations, and mobilization to various military operations world-wide. The Army National Guard, the crucial foundation of the Army, reinforces and augments the efforts of fellow soldiers to ensure that objectives are achieved and initiatives are met.
While it has succeeded on many fronts, certain challenges still face the Army National Guard. The issues of recruitment, retention, and subsequent development of junior officers continue to be areas of discussion. Dental and medical care remain sub par or lacking for many soldiers in the Guard. Furthermore, the dearth of cutting-edge, state-of-the-art facilities and equipment hampers the efforts of the Army National Guard to perform at an optimum level. The Army National Guard is a stalwart entity that is ever ready to protect and defend the US with zeal and determination. With proper and judicious funding over the coming years, its continued transformation will ensure brighter prospects for the Army itself and the American people.
