European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 17, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse Thursday february 17,. 1994 the stars and stripes Page 3 budget squeezes army Secretary of vim a vow re. By Joseph Owen Heidelberg Bureau Heidelberg Germany deployments an troop draw Down costs will hamper the army s ability to meet All its goals in Europe for several years army Secretary Togo d. West or. Said wednesday. But president Clinton recognizing those problems has included $1.2 billion for the army in the proposed 1995 defense Jik get to try to offset previous budget shortfalls West said. Is that going to give us All the Money to do All the things to do or All the things we want to do i doubt it West said but added that the budget is being drawn up at a time when americans Are especially conscious of where their tax dollars go. West addressed the budget and other army issues during a visit to . Army Europe Headquarters in Heidelberg one of several stops on a dizzying six Day visit with . Soldiers stationed or deployed in Italy Macedonia and Germany. West said he expects the number of soldiers stationed in Europe will not drop below the current Post draw Down target of 65,000. Clinton s recent state of the Union message appears to fall in line with the army s conclusions that 65,000 troops is the base Lin of soldiers needed in Europe he said. The cold War May be Over but there Are a number of other concerns out there and we re learning there Are new ones almost on a daily basis West said. I think that the belief on the congressional committees that control our authorizations and appropriations is that the minimum that . To do today s Job is the size that was the current army troop strength in Europe is about 84,000, he said. West welcomed the interest of b Nai b Rith in allegations of religious discrimination against jews at the foreign area officer language Institute in Garmisch Parten Kirchen Germany. He said he spoke with the Institute s director during a visit there this week. He has great Confidence in b Nai b Rith s ability to be helpful and he has extended an invitation to them to Send a representative Over West said of the director he added later the army won t tolerate discrimination. That was the army s official policy when i was a Cap Tain. It is its policy now. Over the years we May do a better or a poorer Job in impressing that attitude in our employees and in All of our people military and civilian.". By and Large the army. Has had a Good reputation and much Success. I expect that while i am Secre tary that Success will continue and be c a " civilians provide information is in a org Sarah Sewall assistant Secretary of defense for peacekeeping 5th quartermaster det from Kaiserslautern Germany listens discusses operation provide Promise with Brig. Gen. Donald e. To the discussion of Rhein main s role in the operation that de Loranger jr., commander of Rhein main a Germany. At left livers humanitarian Aid to those suffering in the War in Bosnia chief warrant officer 3 Ken Studer operations officer for the and Herzegovina. Pay to decline Heidelberg Germany is . Army civilian employees in Belgium and Germany will Start receiving less Money for Post allowance in their pay checks this week according to the . Army Europe. The adjustment effective Jan 28, cuts by half the amount of Money most work ers receive to compensate for the differ ence Between the Cost of living at some overseas duty stations and that of the Washington d.c., area. Those affected by the reduction were in a 10 percent Post classification and now will receive Only a 5 percent differential. An employee for example at pay Grade gs-11 who is supporting a spouse and two children would see a Post allow Ance reduction from $83.70 per two week pay period to $41.53. Workers in Bonn Berlin and a few other places where the Post allowance was higher than 10 percent also Are los ing an amount equal to 5 percent of their pay the state department uses Cost of Liv ing indexes annual surveys and other data to determine the Post classification rates which Are set in increments of 5 percent. The current decrease reflects the . Dollar s increased strength against the belgian franc and the Ger Man Mark. The last Post allowance change occurred about a year ago and also was a 5 percent reduction. Soldiers can win Cash in army essay contest Washington is service members can win up to $1,000 in the first Ever army mag Azine essay contest sponsored by the association of the . Army. The essay should address important issues concerning the . Army in the 21st Century association officials said appropriate themes in clude applying lessons of the past to the future army discussing the army in peacetime operations and exercising initiative and leadership. Three essays will be selected for Cash prizes and publication. Top prize is $1,000, second prize is $500, and third prize is $250. Entries must be postmarked no later than May 31. For Complete contest rules and requirements write army Magazine attn essay contest 2425 Wilson blvd., Arlington a. 22201. Some americans can beat increase in turkish Auto registration fees by Marian Hamilton Mediterranean Bureau in Ciurlik a Turkey timing is everything for some americans in Turkey who want to save Money while registering their cars. Last Friday the Cost of registering a privately owned vehicle in Adana which is near in Ciurlik a nearly Dou bled from 650,000 turkish lire to 1,160,000 lire. Turkish citizens Are already paying the newer rates. However americans can still pay the old Price if they renew their registrations while an on base Supply of 500 old registration forms lasts said air Force master sgt. Robert Whiten our of the in Ciurlik pass and registration office. Once the forms Are gone the Price will be 1,160.000 lire he said. Even at the new Price americans when exchanging dollars for turkish lire Are benefiting from the . Currency s increased buying Power. The . Dollar that bought 9,000 turkish lire in february 1993 now buys 18,000 lire. Last february it Cost about $72 to pay the 650,000 turkish lire registration Cost. This month $36 will buy that Many lire. As of today about $64 is needed to pay the new 1,160,000 lire registration fee. The increase of registration fees in turkish lire is not tied to the Dollar s jump in Exchange value Whiten our said. The turkish system is being changed to computer generated registration cards. The administrative costs Are higher he said. Not All americans will be paying less because of the Exchange rate. Americans at Izmir air station will have to pay More. Car registration costs for american customers in Izmir went from 840,000 lire about $93 in february 1993 to 1,330,000 lire about $74 today
