Economic Impact In addition to providing Georgia with a robust capability to respond to contingencies, the Guard is clearly a significant economic engine for the state as well. Despite its budget woes, the state has continued to support the Georgia National Guard, as evidenced by the new $26 million Cumming Regional Armory and the $16 million Lorenzo-Benn facility. While the Cumming armory is the first new armory in Georgia in many years, the Ga. DoD has seen $300 million in renovation and construction over the last 10 years, after seeing virtually no such funding over the course of the previous 40 years. The state’s investments in its National Guard have more than paid off, as the Georgia Guard has had a significant positive impact on the State’s economy. Because most of the organization’s funds come from federal sources, Georgia actually sees more tax revenue from the income of its Citizen-Soldiers than it spends on the Georgia Guard as a whole. That’s to say nothing of the profoundly positive
and direct economic impact the Guard’s armories, bases and other facilities have on their surrounding communities and businesses. As an illustration: the Guard receives $10 million in Georgia state funding annually. This money pulls down another $30 million in federal matching funds into the Georgia Guard’s state account. The Georgia National Guard’s federal budget is about $500 million. So, Georgia’s $10 million investment annually generates $500 million for the state’s economy. Additionally, Guardsmen in Georgia pay about $25 million in state income tax. One could look at the original $10 million funded by the state as a loan that the Guard uses each year to generate a halfbillion dollars in revenue, then pays the loan back with 250% interest. With the National Guard, the nation gets a capable military force that is able to carry out both domestic and overseas missions with only five percent of the total base budget of the Department of Defense. The central reason for the National Guard’s cost-effectiveness is the part-time/full-time force mix. Until called upon and placed
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into paid-duty status, traditional National Guard members incur minimal cost to the Department of Defense. Cost savings include fewer pay days per year; lower medical costs; lower retirement expenditures; lower training costs; virtually no cost for moving families and household goods every two or three years; fewer entitlements, such as housing and food allowances; and lower base support costs in terms of services and facilities, including commissaries, base housing, base exchanges, and childcare facilities. The Georgia National Guard provides a broad array of capabilities to the state and nation. Three main elements — domestic support missions, overseas defense missions, and the Ga. DoD’s ability to do both missions cost-effectively — prove that the Georgia National Guard is a great value for the state. In upcoming years, the U.S. Armed Forces will be expected to continue to provide services at the highest level without continued budget increases. The Georgia National Guard will certainly be a major consideration in providing a solution to this challenge.
Armories Built by Decade 21
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