LA County fires off missive against military base closure

One day after officials with the Defense Department in Washington submitted their budget asking Congress to approve a Base Closure and Realignment Commission in 2016, Los Angeles County Supervisors sent off a letter saying the Los Angeles Air Force Base shouldn't be on a closure list.

The base, which is in El Segundo, was threatened with closure during the last mass base closures and relocations in 2005.

"We're not going to sit around on our hind legs here, and just wait for things to happen," said Supervisor Don Knabe, who authored a motion to send the letter to the Pentagon.

Supervisors are also asking mayors throughout the county to write similar letters, even though base closures are seen as a controversial move that may not get congressional approval.

"We’re trying to get aggressive. We’re getting everyone involved to make sure that they understand, we want the jobs and the operation to stay here," Knabe said.

L.A.’s Air Force Base has no jets or runways. It houses a prominent space and missile center that does research and development, employing hundreds of people. Knabe said the base has attracted private aerospace firms to Los Angeles, so any potential closure could threaten thousands of high-paying jobs.

Knabe said officials from Colorado and New Mexico had lobbied for L.A.’s defense jobs to be moved to their states in 2005, and indicated they'd try again if the realignment process is approved for 2016.