BOSTON – Backed by several hundred military workers and their families, a well-rehearsed Maine delegation made its case before the Base Realignment and Closure Commission on Wednesday in hopes of sparing three Maine military installations targeted for closure or deep cutbacks.

“The plan will result in a federally induced major economic recession,” warned Maine Gov. John Baldacci in his testimony before the independent panel charged with reviewing Defense Department plans to close or scale back operations at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Brunswick Naval Air Station and the Defense Finance and Accounting Center in Limestone.

“The statewide impact will be massive,” he said.

In total, the Pentagon has proposed closing or cutting back about 60 major U.S. military bases. But the stakes are especially high in Maine, with 7,000 workers – the second highest total in the country after Connecticut – set to lose their jobs if the proposals are adopted.

Hundreds of workers and their families clad in bright yellow shirts, streamed into the Boston Convention and Exposition Center, where the commission considered Pentagon recommendations to close or cut back bases in New England. As in previous rounds of base closings, the region is among the hardest-hit areas in the country.

Armed with detailed charts, graphs and harsh criticism of the Pentagon’s rationale for its plans in Maine, delegation members defended the missions of all three facilities and warned of dire military and economic consequences should they close.

U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said closing the Defense Finance and Accounting Center in Limestone – and putting nearly 400 people out of work – would exacerbate the region’s economic woes, caused in large part by the 1994 closure of Loring Air Force Base.

“Hitting this area twice within 15 years would be a cruel blow to the area that is only now beginning to recover,” said Snowe, whose fellow delegation members said the commission should consider expanding Limestone as part of the Pentagon’s plan to consolidate the 26 DFAS centers into three sites.

“DFAS has proven itself,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, citing a willing work force there and room to expand the Limestone facility, which sits on 15 acres at the former air base.

After the hearing, delegation officials and many of those in attendance, including Troy Whitehead, a 43-year-old account technician at Limestone DFAS, said they were pleased with the presentations, which ran a total of five hours.

“I thought it supported our case well,” said Whitehead, encouraged by one commissioner’s request he be provided the specifics of expanding Limestone to 1,000 employees. “It demonstrates the commission is open-minded and willing to entertain other options.”

While Limestone would be hit hard in relative terms, the Defense Department recommendations would spur major job losses at the southern Maine bases.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said the decision to close Portsmouth, one of the Navy’s oldest but most efficient shipyards, was unfounded considering the military could save an additional $760 million over 20 years if it closed its shipyard in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, rather than Portsmouth.

Last week, in a letter to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, BRAC commissioners asked why the Pearl Harbor base wasn’t considered for closure.

During the hearing, Collins also asked the commission to reject the Pentagon’s calls to cut in half operations at Brunswick Naval Air Station. With about 4,000 military personnel, it is the only active air base left in New England.

“By any fair and complete assessment, [BNAS] more than measures up and should be retained as fully operational,” Collins said, contending the closure would have far-reaching “national security implications” by leaving the strategic Northeast devoid of any air bases.

The Defense Department plan would move Brunswick’s P-3 aircraft squadrons to Jacksonville, Fla.

Snowe said the defense secretary, Navy secretary, chief of naval operations and fleet commanders have stated that Brunswick is “vital” to the nation’s maritime defense.

“Why then, has the Department of Defense deserted the northeastern United States, leaving us devoid of any active military aviation assets?” Snowe said.

Wednesday’s hearing included all the New England states. New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch said the DOD’s economic analysis ignored his state – where 40 percent of shipyard workers live – in calculating the economic impact of closing Portsmouth. Shutting down the yard, he said, would mean the loss of 12,000 total jobs in Maine and New Hampshire.

While the delegation presented a detailed case for removing the three Maine military centers from the Pentagon’s list, past efforts have not been so easy. In four previous rounds of base closures, the commission has approved 85 percent of Pentagon recommendations.

While the commission has until Sept. 8 to submit its recommendations to President Bush, it is expected to announce its findings Aug. 23. On July 19, the commission will announce any additions to the list.