Lawmakers plan counterattack against base closings.

Although they're a year away, states are gearing up to fight proposed Pentagon base closings in 2005. And the military says the cuts, the fifth since 1988, will be the biggest yet--an estimated 20 percent to 25 percent of all facilities.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is planning to close at least 100 of the nation's 425 military bases in an effort to slash military infrastructure costs--more than the four previous rounds combined. He is expected to recommend closing down a third of the Army, a quarter of the Air Force and a smaller percentage of Marine and Navy bases.

Although no official list has been released, officials in Alabama, California, Hawaii and other states are preparing to fight back.

Military bases pour tens of billions of dollars into state and local economies, and thousands of jobs outside the military are dependent on them. San Diego, which has the largest number of U.S. bases and service personnel of any region in the world, has hired a Washington-based defense consultant and has been preparing for months to fight any cutbacks.

In Alabama, which has four major military bases within its borders, the Legislature appointed a committee to find ways the state can protect its military presence.

Communities also have pitched in, wining and dining key military officials, forming booster clubs, lobbying for new weapons programs and even building homes for generals to keep bases alive and revenue flowing. About 45,000 soldiers and civilians work for the military in Alabama. The armed forces spend approximately $14 billion a year in the state.

Hawaii Representative Cynthia Thielen recently introduced five bills trying to protect that state's bases from closure in 2005. Defense spending in Hawaii amounted to $3.47 billion in 2000.

Through her legislation, Thielen is tackling "encroachment" issues, which sometimes give the military reasons to close a base. Encroachment is anything that impedes testing of weapons and military training. It can include environmental laws, civil lawsuits and complaints from civilians about noise, dust and inconveniences that arise from living near military activity.

"We need to be proactive, because if we don't protect military installations from civilian encroachment, all of a sudden we're going to be faced with, 'These bases should be shut,'" Thielen says.

Ninety-seven bases were closed in 1988 and 1995. California alone lost more than 20 facilities, which translated to about 100,000 civilian and military jobs.

Congress required Rumsfeld to prepare a list of bases to be closed or realigned by May 16, 2005. From that, the nine-member federal Base Realignment and Closure Commission must submit a list to the White House by Sept. 8, 2005.