Belt Tightening

One of the first casualties of the Pentagon's latest belt-tightening -- cutting back due to the uncertainty over what Congress will do over the next few months on the sequestration issue -- is a Navy information technology conference scheduled for the end of this month.

According to a notice posted on the Navy chief information officer website:

In response to DoD and DON guidance, the DON IT Conference, West Coast 2013 has been cancelled. The conference was scheduled for Jan. 28-30, 2013, at the San Diego Convention Center. Please cancel all travel and lodging reservations as soon as possible.

The AFCEA West Conference, scheduled for Jan. 29-31, 2013, at the San Diego Convention Center will still take place.

Several senior DoD and DON leaders are scheduled to appear as speakers and panel participants. Local commands are encouraged to attend when no travel costs will be incurred.

A number of sessions may still be offered via Defense Connect Online (DCO). Details on these sessions are forthcoming.

On Jan. 13, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus issued guidance on how the Navy and Marine Corps should operate under the current continuing resolution until Congress passes a final deficit-reduction plan. In that guidance, Mabus writes:

GIVEN THE GREAT UNCERTAINTY WE FACE, WE MUST ENACT PRUDENT, BUT STRINGENT BELT-TIGHTENING MEASURES NOW THAT WILL PERMIT US TO OPERATE THE NAVY AND MARINE CORPS THROUGH THE REST OF THIS FISCAL YEAR IF THE CR IS EXTENDED.  EACH OF THESE STEPS ARE DESIGNED TO BE REVERSIBLE, AT LEAST TO SOME EXTENT, SHOULD CONGRESS PASS AN FY-13 BUDGET.  ACCORDINGLY, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS LEADERSHIP HAS ADVISED THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE THAT THEY ARE CONSIDERING A SERIES OF ACTIONS, EACH SUBJECT TO EXCEPTIONS FOR MISSION-CRITICAL ACTIVITIES.  ACTIONS INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:

- CURTAIL ADMINISTRATIVE CONTRACTING SUPPORT SERVICES

- REDUCE TRAVEL

- DELAY ALL DECOMMISSIONINGS AND ANY DISPOSALS OR LAY-UPS

- REDUCE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ADMINISTRATIVE BUDGETS

- CURTAIL REMAINING FACILITY SUSTAINMENT RESTORATION AND MODERNIZATION PROGRAMS

- CUT FACILITIES SUSTAINMENT, EXCEPT FOR SAFETY OF LIFE

- REDUCE SPENDING ON BASE OPERATING SUPPORT

- CANCEL ANY PLANNED FACILITIES DEMOLITION

- TERMINATE TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES, EXCEPT THOSE SUPPORTING MISSION-CRITICAL ACTIVITIES SUPPORTING THE WARFIGHTER

- IMPLEMENT A CIVILIAN HIRING FREEZE.

View the full Mabus memo.

In related news, the Army has issued its own sequestration-related guidance, as InsideDefense.com reports this afternoon:

Army Begins To 'Plan For the Worst' On Sequestration
The Army has issued guidance on how to reduce spending to mitigate "significant budgetary uncertainty in the coming months," according to a memo signed today by the Army secretary and chief of staff.

Here's the Army memo:

Army Memo On 'Risk Mitigation In The Face Of Fiscal Uncertainty'
In a Jan. 16, 2013, memo, Army Secretary John McHugh and Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno issue guidance on how to reduce spending to mitigate "significant budgetary uncertainty in the coming months."

And here's our reporting on what the Air Force is doing:

Air Force Tells Commands To Implement Sequestration-Related Cost Savers (Jan. 15)
Air Force leaders yesterday instructed the service's major commands to begin implementing small-scale cost-saving actions linked to sequestration, moves laid out by the secretary and chief of staff last week.

Donley, Welsh Predict 18 Percent Cut In Flying Hours Under Sequestration (Jan. 10)
The Air Force's secretary and chief of staff this week described in detail the cuts, reductions and delays the service would have to put in place to mitigate the negative impacts of sequestration, the most eye-popping of which is a possible flying stand-down this summer.

DOCUMENT: Air Force Memo On 'Near-Term Actions To Mitigate Sequestration Impacts'
In a Jan. 7, 2013, memo to Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh "identify near-term actions we are taking to accommodate possible reductions to the FY-13 budget."