Combined, the two San Antonio commands, U.S. Army North and U.S. Army South, have roughly 1,000 personnel including civilian staff in San Antonio, according to a press release from the city.<\/p>\n
Jones, who served as Air Force Under Secretary under the Biden Administration, said Thursday that her trip to Washington D.C. brought some clarity about the administration\u2019s plans for San Antonio-based soldiers.<\/p>\n
Army leadership\u2019s preliminary recommendations are to move about 200 San Antonio-based soldiers to Ft. Bragg in North Carolina \u2014 while roughly 750 positions would remain here, between U.S. Army North and U.S. Army South, according to Jones\u2019 office.<\/p>\n
The idea has alarmed Texas lawmakers<\/a>, who don\u2019t want to see service members moved out of state but have little leverage to stop it as they await a formal announcement in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n Five lawmakers who represent San Antonio in Congress, led by U.S. Rep. Tony Gonazles (R-San Antonio), announced Thursday that they\u2019re pushing for the new headquarters to be located in San Antonio, through\u00a0a proposed amendment<\/a>\u00a0to the 2026 Defense Appropriations Act.<\/p>\n The city expects an executive order detailing the realignment plans to be issued in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n Based on this week\u2019s conversations, however, Jones\u2019 office said the impact on San Antonio jobs could be almost \u201cnegligible\u201d \u2014 if a number of currently vacant positions at U.S. Army North and U.S. Army South are filled in the reorganization.<\/p>\n The new single headquarters, called the Western Hemisphere Command, is expected to be operational by October 2026.<\/p>\n On the visit, Jones said she also discussed bringing other Army missions to San Antonio as part of the broader realignment of the service branch.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to be proactive,\u201d Jones said. \u201cWhich is why I shared a short list of Army missions currently performed elsewhere that if realigned to San Antonio would further help them achieve their goals around cost-savings and operational efficiencies.\u201d<\/p>\n City and county leaders have been working to establish dominance in area of military medicine, including courting the Virginia-based the Defense Health Agency<\/a> to base more workers here, as well as growing the city\u2019s cybersecurity footprint<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will continue to position San Antonio and our unique civil-defense ecosystem to attract additional missions and contribute to the defense industrial base,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n Jones traveled with just a handful of local officials: Assistant City Manager Jeff Coyle and Government Affairs Director Sally Basurto went with her to D.C., as well as (Ret.) Maj. Gen. Juan Ayala, who serves as the city\u2019s director of Military and Veterans Affairs.<\/p>\n They met with Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll and Air Force Under Secretary Edwin Oshiba, as well as leaders of an operational planning team tasked with implementing the Trump administration\u2019s consolidation. <\/p>\n The group also visited Capitol Hill to confer with U.S. Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo).\u00a0<\/p>\n As part of the trip to Washington, D.C., Jones made a stop<\/a> at the Democratic National Committee headquarters and met with DNC Chair Ken Martin. <\/p>\n![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/scott-stephen-ball_swri-camp-building-groundbreaking-development-southwest-research-institute-sakai-.jpeg\")
U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales attends a groundbreaking ceremony in San Antonio in June 2024. Credit: Scott Ball \/ San Antonio Report<\/p>\n