STARBASE Closure Details

You may have learned by now that STARBASE Alpena will close its doors to program operations on Friday, February 7, 2025. This closure will impact not only your community’s site but all 90 programs across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Guam, including the additional two Michigan sites in Battle Creek and Selfridge. At this time, we do not know if this is a temporary or permanent closure.

Why did this happen?

STARBASE is part of the Department of Defense. Each year, Congress passes funding bills for the federal government, which, when signed by the president, become law. We entered our current fiscal year on October 1, 2024, with no budget in place. The federal government is currently operating on a continuing resolution, providing limited funds. We’ve been told the funds for STARBASE are fully expended.

How did we get here?

As the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate navigate the path forward for funding the federal government, they disagree on how much to allocate for the 90 STARBASE locations. Currently, the House has proposed $60 million; the Senate has proposed $20 million. As a result of this disparity, the DoD comptroller (the financial reporting and accounting office) is acting conservatively and only released $20 million for all STARBASE locations during the continuing resolution. On Wednesday, January 29, our DoD program manager informed us that we must close our operations on Friday, February 7, because the DoD comptroller will not release additional funds.

How long will this last?

We do not know if this shutdown is temporary or permanent. We will only learn this once Congress passes the appropriations budget and the president signs it into law. If the Senate concedes to the House and increases the STARBASE budget to $60 million, we’ve been told we can resume operations. If the House concedes to the Senate and lowers the budget, we likely face permanent closure to STARBASE.

What can you do?

STARBASE, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that operates STARBASE One at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. We can fully accept any monetary donation you would like to make. (Your contributions may be tax deductible.)

With your critical financial contribution, we can supplement the shortfall in our budget while Congress makes a determination. The funds we raise can help us function in some form during this time.

Your support is vital and will make a difference. We will update our fiscal status regularly to keep you up to date.

Donate Here

All of us at STARBASE thank you for your time and support. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@starbaseone.org or 989-354-6332.

Respectfully,

The STARBASE Alpena Team