Defense Secretary Leon Panetta recently asked a Senate panel to support the Pentagon’s budget request for fiscal year 2013, the American Forces Press Service reports.
Panetta told the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on defense that the DoD’s budget request are based on the military spending projections from department leaders.
Some of the changes made by the House give him concern, including a lack of provisions for old ships and aircraft maintenance.
Currently, the Pentagon plans to reduce the active Army from roughly 560,000 to 490,000 and the Marine Corps will from 202,000 to 182,000 over five years, according to AFPS.
In May, Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter also asked lawmakers to support the Pentagon’s budget request, saying that adding funding to unnecessary programs detracts from the department’s priorities.
