1. Vol. 4, No. 16
April 24, 2013
“Providing global contracting support to war fighters.”
AGILE PROFICIENT TRUSTED
By C. Todd Lopez
Army News Service
WASHINGTON – The Army’s
undersecretary said with sequestration in
place and deep cuts requested, the Army
is concerned about how it can train, equip
and sustain Soldiers to be ready when
called upon.
Undersecretary of the Army Joseph
W. Westphal was on Capitol Hill early
morning April 18 to have breakfast with
and address a delegation of civic leaders
from Lawton, Okla., that had come to
the nation’s capital to meet with their
senator. Lawton is the civilian community
outside Fort Sill.That military installation
is home to more than 50,000 Soldiers,
civilian employees and military family
members.
The undersecretary told those at the
gathering the Army sees budget cuts as
a threat to readiness, the ability to keep
Soldiers and their units prepared to go
off to war when called upon. He said
he doesn’t want to see an Army that is
unprepared to meet the demands of the
nation.
“We don’t ever want our president to
have to call up to the Army, and that’s the
message he gets, an Army where Soldiers
aren’t trained, a force that is not ready
to go at a moment’s notice, that’s not
equipped to go.That’s the challenge of
readiness.”
Now, Westphal said, the Army is
having to “back off training” due to
new budget realities. Commanders
are “modifying, reducing, potentially
eliminating some of the training due to
these fiscal limits.”
See WESTPHAL, page 3.
Budget cuts will affect
readiness, Army leaders says
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Bernardo Fuller)
Undersecretary of the Army Joseph W.
Westphal addresses members of the
Lawton Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce
during their annual Washington, D.C.,
Fly-In, on Capitol Hill, April 18.
By Rachel Clark
409th Contracting Support Brigade
Kaiserslautern, Germany
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – The
409th Contracting Support Brigade
hosted the first European contracting
coordination board March 29 in
Wiesbaden, Germany.
The board was established by
direction of Kim Denver, former
deputy assistant secretary of the
Army (procurement) in an effort to
synchronize contracting support,
leverage organizational expertise and
to resolve common issues across the
European theater.
More than 30 attendees representing
13 different acquisition and
contracting organizations in the
medical, finance, logistics and
engineering communities attended.
According to Col. William Bailey,
409th CSB commander, the board
set the framework for strategic
collaboration on contracting business
across Europe.
“We can accomplish so much
more as a collective, in regards to
coordination, resources and support.
We need to be talking to each other
and this is a great step in the right
direction,” said Bailey.
Each organization presented its
mission, structure and capabilities,
which increased everyone’s situational
awareness.
“With the current fiscal limitations,
this board provides the opportunity to
identify and eliminate redundancies.
The response was overwhelmingly
positive about the need for and the
opportunity provided by this forum for
value-added change,” said Bailey.
409th CSB hosts first European contracting board

2. April 24, 2013
2
U.S. Army Contracting Command
The NewsBlast is a weekly newsletter authorized and produced by the U.S. Army Contracting Command’s
Office of Public and Congressional Affairs editorial staff in accordance with AR 360-1 (The Army Public
Affairs Program) to inform, educate and entertain the ACC community on people, policies, operations,
technical developments, trends and ideas of and about the Department of Defense, the Department of the
Army and this command.
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily the official views of, or endorsed
by, the U.S. government, the U.S. Army or this command.
Send submissions and correspondence to the U.S. Army Contracting Command, Office of Public and
Congressional Affairs, ATTN: Editor, NewsBlast, 3334A Wells Road, Redstone Arsenal, AL 35898-5000.
Telephone: 256-955-7634, DSN 645-7634 or email at acc.pao@us.army.mil.
Commanding General
Maj. Gen. Camille M. Nichols
ACC Command Sergeant Major
Command Sgt. Maj. John L. Murray
Director, Office of Public & Congressional Affairs
Art Forster
Public Affairs Team Chief
Ed Worley
Editor
David San Miguel
Public Affairs Team
Larry D. McCaskill, Giselle Lyons, Beth E. Clemons
For Spotlight submissions, click on the icon.
Spotlight on...
Sgt. 1st Class Jamie D. Trice is a
contingency contracting noncommissioned
officer assigned to the 603rd Senior
Contingency Contracting Team, under the
413th Contracting Support Brigade at Fort
Shafter, Hawaii.
Describe your current position.
I am currently supporting the
Cobra Gold 2013 exercise, the largest
multinational exercise in the Asia-Pacific
region.
Describe your passion for the job.
“No one is more professional than I. I
am a Noncommissioned Officer, a leader of
soldiers.” (NCO Creed excerpt)
The NCO Creed is the true basis of
what exemplifies a noncommissioned
officer. We must not forget what we
represent. As such, we carry this same
dedication and steadfastness to a highly
critical career field, acquisition, logistics
and technology contracting, to meet the
Army’s continuously increasing need
throughout our armed forces. As NCOs,
we must constantly be proactive and
work cooperatively among our peers to
understand the strategic effects of the
contracting arena and to be able to operate
independently in an ambiguous, dynamic
and politically sensitive environment.This
defines my passion, my enthusiasm, my
utmost devotion as a 51C.
“As a noncommissioned officer, I realize
that I am a member of a time-honored
Corps, which is known as ‘The Backbone of
the Army’.” (NCO Creed excerpt)
Where do you call home? Tell us about your
family? What do you enjoy doing in your
spare time?
My home is a little, but growing
metropolis of a town in North Carolina
named Fuquay-Varina.
I’m nothing without my beloved
family. I’ve been married 14 years to
Angela, my beautiful and virtuous wife.
Together, we have been blessed with three
loving children: Cameron, 13; Ethan, 8;
and Alyssa, 6. For me, there is no better
joy than spending quality time with my
family.
How does your job support the Soldier?
Our efforts are important because
we provide an immediate support to our
service members both in the continental
United States and overseas, ensuring that
they have access to equipment, supplies
and services required for overall mission
success.
What would you like others to know about
you?
I would like others to know that I
greatly appreciate being considered for
recognition here.Thank you!
Sgt. 1st Class Jamie D. Trice
603rd Senior Contingency Contracting Team – Fort Shafter, Hawaii
(Photo by Marine Maj. Benjamin Taggart)
Army Sgt. 1st Class Jamie Trice (center) is flanked by members of the Joint Exercise
Support Group that supported Exercise Cobra Gold 2013 in Bangkok.Team members
include (left to right) Army Maj.Angela Habina,Marine Gunnery Sgt.James Sullivan,
Marine Gunnery Sgt. Denise Shepherd, Trice, Marine Staff Sgt. Eugene Swain and
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Ryan Mehan.

3. April 24, 2013
3
NewsBlast readers now have a feedback tool to provide input about the weekly newsletter. Click on the mailbox icon to the
right and submit your comments or suggestions. Responses will assist the editorial staff in producing a publication to better
meet readers’ expectations and information needs.
WESTPHAL continued from page 1
Those changes to training directly affect
a Soldier’s and unit’s readiness to deploy,
he said. It means it will take more time to
spin those Soldiers up to react, if they are
called upon to react.
Westphal asked civic leaders to take
back to their communities a better
understanding of readiness, to explain
what it means to the nation.
“Readiness is a critical element,” he
said. “When you hear that word, when
you go back to your communities and talk
about that, (ask) is your Army ready to
take on whatever fight the president and
the Congress deem necessary?”
Despite budget cuts, Westphal didn’t
leave visitors from Oklahoma afraid their
Army would fail them. He said the Army
has been around for a long time defending
the nation, and would continue to do so,
despite budget cuts.
“It began 238 years ago tomorrow,
April 19, 1775, in Lexington,
Massachusetts, and will endure forever,”
he said of the Army. “The Army is the
embodiment of the American spirit; a
reflection of its melting pot; a protector of
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
“Regardless of sequestration, partisan
divide, politics, ideology or economic
downturns, your Army will always be on
point for the nation.”
By Raymond Jones
ACC Operations Security Officer
The need to safeguard information can
conflict with what friends and family want
to know or think they need to know. The
Army Contracting Command respects
every employee’s First Amendment rights,
while adhering to security considerations
to ensure good operations security.
Everyone plays a vital role in the
success of ACC’s mission and day-to-
day operations.There is information we
should not share when posting to a blog or
social networking site. Even non-sensitive
information and simple everyday events
may be important to an adversary’s mission.
ACC personnel may have a personal blog,
without the need to consult with the
public affairs office, the OPSEC officer,
or their immediate supervisor, if the
following conditions are met:
• The blog’s topics are not military-
related (i.e., Private Doe publishes a
blog about his favorite sports team).
• The blog does not represent, or act on
behalf of, the Army or ACC in any
way.
• Government equipment is not used in
establishing or maintaining the blog.
Neither the public affairs staff nor
the OPSEC officer monitor or approve
posts made by ACC personnel to social
networking or personal blogs. However,
when establishing a personal blog, ACC
personnel can consult the PA staff and
OPSEC officer for guidance to ensure no
policies are being violated. ACC personnel
should also share OPSEC awareness
training guidance with family members
and encourage them to safeguard both
military and personal critical and sensitive
information.
After receiving OPSEC guidance and
awareness training, ACC personnel are
entrusted to practice good OPSEC when
posting to public forums.
And OPSEC just isn’t about ACC and
our keeping our mission safe. Practicing
OPSEC in your personal life can help
keep you and your family safe as well.
Before you post something to a social
network or blog, ask yourself: Is this
something I would want a criminal to
know? Can this information provide a
link to data that is vital to an adversary? If
you have to think about it, don’t post it!
Practice good OPSEC.
For more information contact Beth
Clemons, ACC Web and social media
manager, 256-955-7648; Raymond Jones,
ACC OPSEC officer, 256-955-8206; or
Carl Brentley, ACC OPSEC coordinator,
256-955-8384.
OPSEC: personal blogging, social networking
By Claudette Roulo
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON – The Defense
Privacy and Civil Liberties Office
ensures that DOD civilians and
service members are able to exercise
their First Amendment rights
when using social media platforms,
Michael E. Reheuser, the office’s
director, said here April 19.
“DOD’s social media policy
requires that personnel follow
certain rules,” Reheuser said.Those
rules aren’t intended to limit free
speech, but only to make sure that
the information being posted doesn’t
compromise operational security.
Personnel are allowed to express
their opinions, he added, as long
as doing so is consistent with the
operational requirements of the
department.
Some rules are different for
service members than for civilians,
Reheuser noted. Under the Uniform
Code of Military Justice, Soldiers
are prohibited from disparaging the
president or other senior leaders,
revealing operational details or
divulging classified information.
“If you have an opinion that is
inconsistent with the Department of
Defense’s, you’re certainly allowed
to say that,” Reheuser said. But, he
added,“if the person looking at it
thinks that you might be working on
behalf of the government, and not in
your individual capacity, you really
need to be careful.”
In some cases, it may be enough
to post a disclaimer on your
account, he said, but if you have
any doubts, the best thing to do is
check with your component’s ethics
professional.
Social media policies
protect DOD employees,
official says

4. By Steve Stark
U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center
JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON
HALL, Va. - There’s more than meets
the eye in the world of contracting and
“Charlie” has a lot to offer.
The military occupation specialty 51C
classification trains noncommissioned
officers to be contracting professionals,
provides significant career and educational
opportunities and is one of the few areas
of the Army that is expected to grow in
the near term.
But for Master Sgt. Jason Pitts, the
thing that really caught his eye was a
map.
Specifically, it was the chart of all the
missions that 51C supported.
The chart, he said, showed “where
contracting guys were, whether it was
Australia, Japan, Mongolia - and to me
that was like, ‘Wow, that’s awesome. I
can go see all these cool places and still
support the war fighter and make an
impact?’That was the ‘aha moment,’”
said Pitts, chief proponent NCO for
MOS 51C at the U.S. Army Acquisition
Support Center, the proponent for
51C reclassification and the agency
responsible for ensuring a trained and
ready contracting NCO corps.
Pitts said that the variety of things
contracting NCOs could do, and the
variety of places they could go to do
them, piqued his interest because “a lot
of guys get stuck in the same experiences
over and over again.”
For Pitts, the option of doing
something that was vital to Soldiers, but
that also got him out of that routine,
looked like a winner.
“The contracting command was in
49 different countries last year, doing 86
different missions supporting the war
fighter,” he said.
Worldwide assignments
The NCO contracting corps offers a
career path ripe with the opportunity to
serve in a variety of locations.
“Opportunities are endless,” said
Command Sgt. Maj. John L. Murray,
Army Contracting Command. “After
completing the basic contracting course,
NCOs are assigned to a contracting
office where they first focus on becoming
proficient in simplified acquisitions and are
then able to progress and hold positions
starting as a contingency contracting
NCO all the way to the rank of command
sergeant major.”
Murray is the ACC command sergeant
major and advises the ACC commanding
general on all enlisted-related matters,
particularly in areas affecting Soldier
training and quality of life.
“NCOs can get assigned across
the globe supporting contingency,
humanitarian and disaster relief
operations. Today we have NCOs
assigned and deployed to locations such
as Italy, Germany, Korea, South America,
Africa, Guantanamo Bay (Cuba),
Korea, Kuwait, Afghanistan and every
installation in the continental United
States,” said Murray.
See 51CHARLIE, page 5.
April 24, 2013
4
MOS 51C offers NCOs what may be Army’s best opportunity
By C. Todd Lopez
Army News Service
WASHINGTON – Beginning Aug. 1,
every Soldier who elects to transfer their
Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to a family
member will incur an additional four years
in the Army, without regard to their time
in service.
That news comes in a message to
military personnel, dated April 15.The
new rule largely affects senior officers
and enlisted Soldiers who are retirement-
eligible. As of now, these Soldiers may be
able to transfer benefits to their loved ones
with anywhere from zero to three years of
additional service.
Soldiers who are not retirement
eligible, electing to transfer their GI
Bill benefits to a family member means
re-enlisting for an additional four years.
Come Aug. 1, that rule will apply to all
Soldiers, whether they are retirement-
eligible or not.
“This is a benefit. Soldiers are entitled to
the benefit for their own use, but to transfer
to dependents: that is used as a recruiting
and retention tool,”said Lt. Col. Mark
Viney, chief of the Enlisted Professional
Development Branch, Army G1.
Viney also serves as the policy
proponent for the Army’s Post-9/11
GI Bill Transfer of Education Benefits
Program.
“We want Soldiers to be informed of the
impact of this change in policy,”Viney said.
“This is going to impact their decisions and
their families, and whether or not they are
going to have this money available to fund
their dependent’s education.”
Veterans Affairs also has eligibility
requirements for transferability. A Soldier
must have six years of active duty in order
to transfer GI Bill benefits.
In some cases, if a Soldier has incurred
additional time in service in order to
transfer GI Bill benefits to a family
member, and is afterward unable to serve
that additional time in service, he or she
may be required to pay back those benefits.
Viney said that as the Army draws
down, some Soldiers will be involuntarily
separated under force-shaping initiatives.
Soldiers who are separated early under
such circumstances and who had
previously transferred their Post-9/11 GI
Bill education benefits to their dependents
may retain the transferred benefits,
without needing to repay them to the VA.
Army changes requirements for transfer of GI Bill benefits
(U.S. Army photo)
Beginning Aug. 1, Soldiers who elect to
transfertheirPost-9/11GIBillbenefitsto
a family member will incur an additional
four years in the Army, without regard to
their time in service.

5. April 24, 2013
5
51CHARLIE continued from page 4
51C NCOs not only provide
procurement support for anything a unit
might need, but also serve the commander
as business advisers.
“The NCOs in this MOS come from all
branches of the Army which enables them
to understand the unique requirements
of a specific unit,”said Murray.“They are
never at rest, they are always supporting
real-world, real-time operational and
installation support; where if they don’t
get it right, the mission fails. It is a great
MOS to be in if you are a high-energy,
multifunctional, adaptive and the utmost
Army professional.”
‘Charlie’ sends you to school
While the “aha moment” was travel and
variety, for other NCOs, Pitts said, it’s the
educational opportunities offered by the
51C MOS.
MOS 51C is a career field established
in December 2006 to meet the Army’s
increasing need for contingency
contracting officers.The Army is currently
recruiting NCOs, in both the active and
reserve components, who are interested
in reclassifying. Selected NCOs not
only learn a new craft, but also, through
the training, education and professional
development aspects of the MOS, gain
valuable transferable skills.
The education benefits are excellent, but
the expectations are also high.
“The majority of our NCOs work in
the daytime, learning contracting, writing
contracts with the government ‒ that’s
their craft ‒ and at night they have to go
to school online,” Pitts said.
“Training opportunities for a 51C
NCO exceed those of other military
occupational specialties in the Army,”
Murray added. “The norm is for 51C
NCOs to complete college courses and
mandated contracting courses through the
Defense Acquisition University as part of
their daily battle rhythm.”
“Thirty percent of the NCOs we select
already have their degrees,” Pitts added.
“The remaining 70 percent are required
to get their degrees ‒ either a bachelor’s
in business or a degree that affords them
24 hours in business. We have degree
completion programs to help them do it.
We send some NCOs to school full-time
for 12 months to finish their bachelor’s
degrees.That way they can achieve
contracting certification and then come
back to the workforce.”
USAASC also has an acquisition
tuition assistance program that pays an
additional $7,750 a year for NCOs to go
to school, Pitts said.
In addition to a bachelor’s degree,
NCOs will receive the same training
opportunities in the contracting field that
are available to the Army’s acquisition
officers and civilians. Active component
Soldiers will attend the Mission Ready
Airman Contracting Apprentice Course,
Lackland Air Force Base,Texas, or
the Army Acquisition Basic Course,
Army Acquisition Center of Excellence,
Huntsville, Ala. Reserve component
Soldiers will take courses through Defense
Acquisition University distance learning.
The 51C MOS is one of the few in the
Army that’s projected to grow over the
next few years, with the USAASC looking
to add approximately 150 new NCOs to
its workforce by October.
“One thing a decade of war has taught
the Army,” Pitts said, “is that contracting
is a vital skill, and you cannot conduct
anything in the Army without it.”
Application process
“Soldiers must be deployable
worldwide, able to operate in a deployed
environment wearing a full complement
of personal protective equipment, have
no financial hardships or indicators
of insolvency, and have no record of
information which might adversely reflect
against the character, honesty or integrity
of the soldier,” said Murray.
Applicants must be in the ranks of
sergeant, staff sergeant or sergeant first
class with less than 10 years of service.
Those with 10 to 13 years of service may
request waivers. Soldiers selected may
qualify for a $2,000 transfer bonus.
There are two more boards of selection
this year, in May and July. Packets received
now through April 26 will go before the
May selection board.Those packets received
April 27 to July 19, will be reviewed during
the late July board. Selections are generally
released 30 days following the board and
are posted to the USAASC website and
emailed individually.
For more information, visit http://asc.
army.mil.
Brig. Gen. Kirk Vollmecke, commanding general, Mission and Installation
Contracting Command (third from right), is accompanied by a team of MICC
employees in a show of support for the 9th Annual Walk for Autism held April 13 at
the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. MICC team members from left to right
include: Troy Foster, Velia Anstadt, Vollmecke, Nancy Williams-Vollmecke and Beth
Coronado. The two-mile walk raises awareness of Autism Spectrum Disorder and
helps provide support to affected families and individuals.
MICC team walks for a cause
(Courtesty photo)

6. Click on the image for
ACC safety messages.
April 24, 2013
6
ACC in the News
These articles mention Army Contracting Command.
AUSA Winter heading to Huntsville
By Paul McLeary
(Posted in the DefenseNews digital edition, April 18, 2013)
WASHINGTON — The long wait is over. After announcing earlier this year that it would no longer hold its annual winter
symposium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., as it had done the previous 14 years, the Association of the United States Army (AUSA)
announced today that its 2014 AUSA Winter Symposium and Exposition will be held in Huntsville, Ala., instead.
http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130418/DEFREG/304180022/AUSA-Winter-Heading-Huntsville
Budget impacts mowing
By Nondice Thurman
Courier interim editor-in-chief (Published in the Fort Campbell Courier, April 18, 2013)
It’s the time of year when the smell of freshly cut grass often fills the air. Mowers can be seen across the installation helping
to maintain more than 7,000 acres of grass.
There is a change, though, to this yearly routine brought on by sequestration and budget cuts.
“(The Directorate of Public Works) was able to reduce the garrison’s mowing cost by approximately $1.2 million from
the previous year,” explained Ted Reece, DPW acting director.“To accomplish these savings, DPW and (Mission and
Installation Contracting Command) renegotiated the contracts to reduce acreage mowed and frequency.”
http://www.fortcampbellcourier.com/news/article_ce42757a-a863-11e2-af94-001a4bcf887a.html
402nd FA supply sergeant earns multiple accolades
By Maj. Thomas Kitson
BlackAnthem Military News (Published April 16, 2013)
FORT BLISS,Texas - Tight budgets have always been a challenge for supply sergeant Sgt. 1st Class Gidget Borst, but the
awards and commendations she has received show that she only exceeds limits when it comes to accomplishments.
http://www.blackanthem.com/News/Military_News_1/402nd-FA-supply-sergeant-earns-multiple-
accolades25155.shtml
USASAC at Redstone Arsenal facilitates sale of 36 Apache
helicopters to South Korea
By Leada Gore
(Posted on AL.com April 22, 2013)
With tensions on the Korean peninsula at the highest level in decades, the Republic of Korea’s Defense Acquisitions
Program Administration is purchasing 36 U.S. Army Apache helicopters, a transaction facilitated by U.S. Army Security
Assistance Command based at Redstone Arsenal.
http://blog.al.com/breaking/2013/04/usasac_at_redstone_arsenal_fac.html#incart_river