Fort Meade/BRAC

Fort George G. Meade, the epicenter of Cyberspace and Information Assurance for the Department of Defense and Homeland Security, is located in the heart of West Anne Arundel County. Home to the National Security Agency (NSA) since the 1950s, the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission decision to relocate three major commands and 5,800 positions added to already-projected growth for a total of over 26,000 new positions on the installation between 2005 and 2015. This number is likely an underestimate of the impact on regional growth, as Fort Meade depends significantly on the private sector to fulfill its mission, with 2/3 of the intelligence mission being accomplished by defense contractors and 85% of its workforce of over 56,000 residing off the installation.

The three BRAC agencies, now in place at Fort Meade, include:

DISA Building Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA)

  • DoD combat support agency providing real-time IT and communications support to the President, Vice President, Secretary of Defense, military services, and combatant commands. The AT&T, OnStar, and Google of the Defense Department.
  • 4,272 Personnel/Positions (2010), of which 392 are military, 2,407 government civilians, and 1,473 embedded contractors, with a 2.5 to 3.0 Contractor “Tail”
  • 1 million square feet/7 building complex is the largest office building in Anne Arundel County

DMA Building Defense Media Activities (DMA)

  • Consolidation of Armed Forces Radio and Television Service, DoD imagery archiving, Hometown News Service, Public Web infrastructure, Stars and Stripes
  • 663 Personnel/Positions (2011), of which 217 are military, 315 government civilians, 132 embedded contractors
  • 178,000 square foot building
  • Additional expansion of Defense Information School Students from 3,200 to 4,000

Defense Adjudication Consolidation

  • Provides adjudication, personnel security, hearing and appeals support across the Department of Defense for military, civilian, contractors and other personnel.  Responsible for security clearances.
  • 760 Personnel/Positions, military and civilian, predominantly attorneys
  • Consolidation of 10 agencies/departments (13 locations across the US)
  • 151,590 square foot  building

With the BRAC relocation completed by law on September 15, 2011, these agencies are now an established part of the fabric of Fort Meade, we are Beyond BRAC and the installation moves onto its next growth phase: NSA and Cyber Command.  Take a minute to view this video, which describes the role Maryland plays in our nation's defense, including the role of Fort Meade.