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To: ALTERN8 who wrote (7758)	4/12/2002 6:17:47 PM
From: Bucky Katt	Respond to of 48461

Wait till we get this tax bill, and it will keep increasing> Afghanistan War Will Cost $10.2B Fri Apr 12, 5:42 PM ET By ALAN FRAM, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The war in Afghanistan probably will cost $10.2 billion this year, Congress' nonpartisan budget analyst is estimating, a figure that seems roughly in line with projections the Pentagon (news - web sites) has been making. The Congressional Budget Office estimate covers the federal fiscal year that runs through Sept. 30. It assumes that the Defense Department will follow through on announced plans to withdraw some troops and ships from the area, and that fewer targets remain than existed when the war began last October. "If operational conditions change from those assumed in the estimate, however, then the costs may be higher or lower than CBO estimates," the budget agency said in an April 10 letter providing the data to Sen. Pete Domenici R-N.M. The estimate excluded the Defense Department's broader costs of battling terrorism in the United States, such as providing combat air patrols over some American cities, or in other parts of the world besides central Asia. It also omitted the price tags of economic and humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and nearby nations. So far this year, Congress has provided $17.4 billion to the Defense Department for the overall war against terrorism abroad and at home. In March, President Bush requested another $14 billion for the Pentagon for the remaining months of this fiscal year. Lawmakers have yet to begin writing that bill. The Pentagon and Bush administration have provided little public information about precisely how much anti-terrorism money has paid for costs of U.S. operations in and around Afghanistan, which have involved hundreds of aircraft, 80,000 troops and dozens of ships. Pentagon officials estimated in February that the war was running about $1.8 billion per month, but that included the costs of Defense Department activity in the United States. According to figures the Pentagon privately provided lawmakers in recent weeks, the Afghanistan war had cost $4.4 billion through Feb. 12. For the same period, the Defense Department said it spent nearly $3.5 billion at home, mostly for calling up National Guard and Reserve troops and for air patrols over U.S. cities. Republicans said the budget office estimate seemed reasonable, but some Democrats said they believe it is too low. "We've been told this is extremely expensive, with the overall war in the neighborhood of $30 billion" this year, said David Sirota, spokesman for Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee. Sirota said that figure included the costs of action against terrorists beyond Afghanistan and came from Pentagon officials. He provided no details. Of the CBO cost estimate, the biggest share was $7.9 billion for operating aircraft and ships, equipping ground troops, replacing munitions and repairing equipment. Another $1.2 billion was for moving troops and equipment to central Asia, and $1.1 billion was for salaries and other personnel costs. The estimate covered only costs incurred because of the fighting in Afghanistan. For example, the regular salaries of troops was not included, but combat pay was.