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FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. – The threat of major military budget cuts has prompted leaders to rally the community surrounding Fort Campbell to stand up and be heard.

If the cuts are mandated, Fort Campbell could lose half its civilian and military workforce, which would be approximately 16,000 people. The maximum proposed cuts equal $863 million.

State Rep. Joe Pitts spoke with Tiffany and Tyler of Z Mornings on Z97.5 Monday to discuss the impact of these cuts and how citizens can help.

“This is not a drill. This is the real deal and we have to take our future and our destiny in our own hands by writing letters, making calls, sending emails, whatever it takes to ward off the potential cuts and the devastation that could affect our state and Kentucky,” Pitts said.

He stressed that the cuts would have an impact not only on active duty soldiers and family members, but veterans, civilians, and the community as well. Pitts said veterans in the area could potentially lose several benefits and the local economy would suffer.

“This will be the biggest blow to Fort Campbell ever. This will affect generations,” he said. “When you look at reducing Fort Campbell by half, almost every industry and business in this community is touched by Fort Campbell in some way. This would be something that would be difficult to recover from.”

Pitts feels Congress is “operating in a vacuum” and not heeding the needs of the Department of Defense. He hopes the voice of the community can influence the decisions of Congress when the budget is discussed next year.

Citizens are encouraged to write letters or send emails to plead the case for Fort Campbell. A form letter can be found at cityofclarksville.com and mctn.org. The public can sign the form and send it by August 25. There are no requirements to sign the form, according to Pitts. “You don’t have to live in Clarksville, you don’t have to be a registered voter, you don’t even have to be an adult,” he said.

Following the deadline, the letters will be summarized and analyzed, but no decisions will be made right away.

“We need volume,” Pitts said. “We need thousands of letters, not hundreds, to let them know how important Fort Campbell is.”

The deadline to submit a letter or email is August 25.

Listen to the full interview with Rep. Joe Pitts here.