Defense Infrastructure: Changes in Funding Priorities and Strategic Planning Needed to Improve the Condition of Military Facilities
GAO-03-274
Published: Feb 19, 2003. Publicly Released: Feb 19, 2003.
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Highlights
GAO prepared this report in response to its basic legislative responsibilities. Its objectives are threefold: (1) to examine the historical funding trends and their impact on the condition of the active forces' facilities, (2) to evaluate the consistency of the services' information on facility conditions, and (3) to assess the Department of Defense's (DOD) long-term strategic plan and objectives to improve facility conditions.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the secretaries of the military services to reassess the funding priorities the services have attached to sustaining and improving the condition of their facilities relative to other needs and funding limitations. |
Closed – Implemented
In January 2003, DOD completed the fiscal year (FY) 2004 program-budget review. At that time, OSD directed the services and Defense agencies to provide adequate funding to achieve a sustainment rate of 93 percent in FY 2004, with a plan to achieve 100 percent sustainment in FY 2006. In addition, the department plans on funding that achieves a 67-year recapitalization rate DOD-wide by FY 2008. To achieve 67-year recapitalization for the reserve components, the department has programmed significant funding in the out years to buy back their facility deficit and to improve the quality of their existing facilities.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should instruct the military services to implement a departmentwide process to consistently assess and validate facility conditions. |
Closed – Implemented
Consistent with Executive Order 13327, which directed all major agencies to improve the management of facilities, DOD has resolved to transform and improve its facility condition reporting system. This system, called the Q rating system, collects condition ratings at the level of individual facility records, using standard cost-to-restore scales across the services. These ratings will directly support a departmentwide facilities condition index. In addition, DOD has developed a mission dependency factor--a so-called M rating--for each facility, which will be used to weight the Q rating. According to OSD officials, this process is being tested and will be fully incorporated into the department's web-enabled Defense Readiness Reporting System (DRRS) in 2008.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should revise the Defense Facilities Strategic Plan to identify specific actions needed, time frames, responsibilities, and funding levels--elements of a comprehensive strategic plan. |
Closed – Implemented
In 2004 DOD revised its Defense Facilities Strategic Plan and renamed it the Defense Installations Strategic Plan and updated the plan again in 2005. Both the 2004 plan and the 2005 update contain some elements--such as specific objectives, descriptions of the means and strategies to achieve each objective, specific performance goals, time frames, and responsible officials--of a comprehensive strategic plan.
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| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should clarify DOD's guidance by specifying the organizational level (service, major command, or installation) at which its three objectives to fully fund sustainment, achieve a 67-year average recapitalization rate, and eliminate C-3 and C-4 facility ratings, bringing them up to a minimal C-2 level, should be achieved. |
Closed – Implemented
In its 2004 Defense Installations Strategic Plan and the 2005/2006 update to this plan, DOD specified that each of the military services should attempt to fully fund facilities sustainment, achieve a 67-year recapitalization rate, and improve their facilities condition ratings.
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| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the services to develop comprehensive performance plans implementing the Defense Facilities Strategic Plan, which would provide specific metrics to measure performance and credible and realistic funding plans to sustain and recapitalize facilities. |
Closed – Implemented
The Marine Corps issued its Installations Strategic Plan in June 2004 and the Army and the Navy issued their own individual installations strategic plans in March 2005, which are companions to the 2004 Defense Installations Strategic Plan, formerly named the Defense Facilities Strategic Plan. These individual service plans provide specific metrics to measure performance in the sustainment and recapitalization of facilities.
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Topics
Facility maintenanceMilitary cost controlMilitary facilitiesMilitary facility constructionStrategic planningU.S. Air ForceU.S. ArmyU.S. Marine CorpsU.S. NavyMilitary construction