Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter have instituted a review of the organization of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. This review is aimed at cutting headquarters’ costs by 20 percent.

Former Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley was asked to lead this review and to submit findings and recommendations by the end of this month.

On September 11^th, Representatives Bill Young and Peter Visclosky sent a letter to Secretary Hagel. This letter points out that the memorandum from the Deputy Secretary of Defense establishes goals of 20 percent cuts in both civilian and military personnel but not for contractor personnel. They state their belief that all three categories of worker should be made part of this review.

At Taxpayers for Common Sense we agree that the contractor personnel bloat of the last decade must be addressed. We applaud Representatives Young and Visclosky for their efforts to ensure all categories of personnel are included in this important review.

Click below for the full text of their letter to Secretary Hagel.