San Antonio — It’s been 13 years since the Defense Department shut down unneeded military bases and facilities around the U.S.

Military communities, like the ones here in San Antonio, are hard at work to avoid seeing their bases on the chopping block.

“Base Realignment and Closure is a real threat,“ said Senator Donna Campbell, chairwoman of the Texas Senate Veterans Affairs and Border Security Committee.

Preventing what's referred to as BRAC was the main topic of discussion at an interim state senate hearing Wednesday morning held at Port San Antonio.

“As you know, San Antonio installations generate $49 billion to the state’s economy. That’s roughly one third of the $130 billion plus generated by the military statewide,” said San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg.

The Texas Senate Veteran Affairs and Border Security Committee took public testimony on how to improve relationships between the public and private sector to help protect jobs and avoid possible base closures.

“How do we grow the military? How do we grow the defense contractor business in the state of Texas? So, by coming on the road, we can give them advice and guidance on the types of program enhancements that they can make to make our job easier to attract those jobs at the region,” said Port San Antonio President and CEO Roland Mower.

The governor and other state leaders placing a heavy focus on military bases, especially since Defense Economic Adjustment Assistance Grants (DEAAG) totaling $20 million were awarded to eight installations last December, including $5 million to Port San Antonio.

“We use the funding that the governor and the Senate finance and House finance agree on. We use those dollars to shore up vulnerabilities or how we can strengthen our bases,” said Campbell.

Grant funding goes to initiatives or infrastructure, such as operation upgrades and improvements at Port San Antonio’s airfields.

“We’ve got advanced manufacturing, logistics, cyber security, new industries coming to the Port, which again, add a certain level of vibrancy and jobs, and you know, moving from just being an aerospace dominant to four or five industries out here providing high paying jobs to San Antonio in the future,” said Mower.

“We are on the right track. All of our military installations do a great job of strengthening their base locally and the people of the community are very supportive of their installations,” said Campbell.