Should a Cabinet appointee oversee military affairs?
An advisory group on military issues for Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue has recommended the creation of a new Cabinet-level position, perhaps called the secretary of military affairs.
The appointee would oversee the long-term sustainability of the state's military bases, economic development, base relocation measures, support services for members of the military and their families and identifying places for training.
"Base sustainability (that is, protection against inappropriate development near bases that is inconsistent with the military function of the bases) is an issue of immediate concern that could be addressed by the cabinet-level office," the report notes. "The secretary could (also) oversee land use planning to protect effective military use of bases."
The report argues the position would open "clear channels of communication" between military and civilian leaders in North Carolina.
If created, the position would become the 11th member of the governor's Cabinet, and the first since the secretary of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention was added in 2000.
The legislature would have to approve the position.
One member of the advisory group on aging also recommended creating a new Cabinet post to look into issues of the elderly, while a group on energy split on whether to identify a "point person" on that issue.
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Re: An N.C. secretary of military affairs?
"Should a Cabinet appointee oversee military affairs?" No.
Military jobs are no more important to N.C. than work in any other industry, and one could argue that other employers with accountability to the state and local communities would be more beneficial in the long term.