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JBSA News
NEWS | Sept. 10, 2021

New IGSA will provide wounded, recovering service members with transportation

By Lori A. Bultman 502nd Air Base Wing Public Affairs

The Alamo Area Council of Governments will soon provide bus service for service members assigned to the Joint Base San Antonio Soldier Recovery Unit, or who are participating or enrolled in the medical recover program at Brooke Army Medical Center, thanks to a newly established Intergovernmental Support Agreement.  

“An Intergovernmental Support Agreement, or IGSA, is a legal instrument – an agreement with a State or local government to provide, receive, or share installation support services,” according to Steve Langelier, contracting officer, 502nd Contracting Squadron.  

“Before this project was offered to AACOG, the government compared options, using existing Federal government contracting procedures or partnering with AACOG under an IGSA,” he said. The decision was made to utilize the IGSA, saving the government money and resources.  

Through the agreement, AACOG will provide qualified vehicle operators to drive government furnished buses, as well as dispatch services and administrative personnel, said Cesar Fuentes, contracting officer representative at BAMC. 

“The contractor will safely transport wounded service members, designated non-medical attendants, and family members for scheduled appointments, rehabilitation programs, and in- or out-processing, to and from all locations on JBSA as necessary for rehabilitation, administrative, or subsistence needs,” Fuentes said. “Transportation secondary to medical care will also be supported within a 25-mile radius of JBSA.” 

Transportation services through the IGSA will be coordinated by the JBSA Soldier Recovery Unit and are expected to begin Dec. 1, Fuentes said.  

The new bus service IGSA is prime example of how community partners can support JBSA missions.  

“We are so very honored to have the opportunity to serve our nation in this way,” said Diane Rath, AACOG executive director. “Alamo Regional Transit already provides similar services for veterans, the elderly, and people with disabilities in the Alamo Region, and it just makes sense for us to do this for the military as well.”  

In the future, Rath looks forward to adding more Blanket IGSAs to support the joint base. 

“As we add services to this agreement, we are strengthening the ties between our community and the women and men, and their families, who serve our nation so selflessly,” she said. “Our goal is to enable our local government members to provide more base operating support services for JBSA, freeing the military to focus efforts and resources on their mission, the defense of our Nation.”