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WASHINGTON — Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said they were "disappointed" after a meeting with the Air Force secretary, who did not commit to withdrawing a proposal to transfer some Air National Guard units to the U.S. Space Force.
Governors across the country have been pushing back on a proposal from the Pentagon they say would undermine their authority over guardsmen in their states by allowing the reassignment of some space-focused guard units to the recently created Space Force. Cox, a Republican and chairman of the National Governors Association, asked the Pentagon to back off from its proposal during a virtual press conference alongside Polis Monday.
U.S. law currently prevents relocation or reorganization of Guard units without approval from the governor.
Polis, a Democrat, previewed the Wednesday meeting with Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall on Monday, when both governors appeared unimpressed with Kendall's initial response to a letter signed by 53 governors last week. Wednesday's meeting did little to reassure them.
"Governors from both parties in all 55 states and territories unanimously object to the proposal to transfer certain National Guard units out of states, and the continued failure of the Air Force to meaningfully consider gubernatorial authority is very concerning," the pair said in a statement released Thursday. "We appreciate the opportunity to speak directly with Secretary Kendall, and we are disappointed that he did not commit to withdrawing the proposal."
The proposal by the U.S. Department of Defense was submitted to the Senate Armed Services Committee in March. If approved, it would impact about 1,000 Air National Guard troops in Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, New York and Ohio, according to the National Guard Association of the United States. Air National Guard troops use space resources to respond to wildfires or other natural disasters.
Polis on Monday said Colorado has used those guardsmen in every response for decades.
He said the majority of guardsmen affected by the proposal would ultimately resign rather than transfer from their state National Guard units to the Space Force, an argument that has also been made by the National Guard Association.
"We would simply lose them to their careers and their lives," Polis said.
Kendall has said a recently passed bill would create full- and part-time positions within the Space Force, and a March 27 memo to service members said the legislative proposal would allow the flexibility for Space Force Guardians to "move between the two."
"The flexibility ... is going to allow people to manage their lives and their careers much more flexibly than traditional means have allowed," Kendall told Air and Space Forces Magazine.
But bipartisan efforts to push back against the proposal continue, as scores of lawmakers signed a letter on Monday urging the leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees to reject the Pentagon's request, which would be included in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2025.
Twenty-nine senators and 56 representatives — including Utah's Reps. John Curtis, Blake Moore, Burgess Owens and Celeste Maloy — signed the letter, which calls the proposal "deeply flawed" and something that would "undermine our National Guard system."
"The original intent of the National Guard was to have a force ready to respond to the needs of their state and country," the letter states. "Because of this, authority was placed in the hands of each state's individual governor."
The lawmakers add National Guard troops serve a "dual mission" to respond to domestic emergencies or disasters and be ready for national security missions. By transferring guardsmen to the Space Force, they argue, the proposal would undercut states' abilities to respond to disasters.
Fiscal year 2025 begins Oct. 1.
