Military Operations and Capabilities Issue Area Plan--Fiscal Year 1995-97
(Letter Report, 04/01/96, GAO/IAP-96-5).
GAO provided information on its Military Operations and Capabilities
issue area plan, focusing on: (1) military planning activities; (2) the
Department of Defense's (DOD) budgeting for operation and maintenance
(O&M); (3) the capability, performance, readiness, and sustainability of
military forces and weapons; and (4) initiatives to maintain a quality
force.
GAO plans to assess: (1) DOD and the military services' planning and
budgeting for military operations, particularly O&M requests and
potential budget reductions; (2) military capabilities, performance,
readiness, and sustainability, particularly identifying where shortfalls
exist; (3) recruitment, training, and retention of quality military
personnel; and (4) DOD adjustment of its mobilization and deployment
plans to its downsized force.
--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------
REPORTNUM: IAP-96-5
TITLE: Military Operations and Capabilities Issue Area
Plan--Fiscal Year 1995-97
DATE: 04/01/96
SUBJECT: Military operations
Military budgets
Defense contingency planning
Military cost control
Military downsizing
Defense capabilities
Combat readiness
Military recruiting
Military training
Budget cuts
IDENTIFIER: Air Force Civil Reserve Air Fleet Program
C-141 Aircraft
Starlifter Aircraft
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Cover
================================================================ COVER
National Security and International Affairs Division
April 1996
MILITARY OPERATIONS AND
CAPABILITIES ISSUE AREA PLAN -
FISCAL YEARS 1995-97
GAO/IAP-96-5
Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV
DOD -
O&M -
FOREWORD
============================================================ Chapter 0
As the investigative arm of Congress and the nation's auditor, the
General Accounting Office is charged with following the federal
dollar wherever it goes. Reflecting stringent standards of
objectivity and independence, GAO's audits, evaluations, and
investigations promote a more efficient and cost-effective
government; expose waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in federal
programs; help Congress target budget reductions; assess financial
information management; and alert Congress to developing trends that
may have significant fiscal or budgetary consequences. In fulfilling
its responsibilities, GAO performs original research and uses
hundreds of databases or creates its own when information is
unavailable elsewhere.
To ensure that GAO's resources are directed toward the most important
issues facing Congress, each of GAO's 32 issue areas develops a
strategic plan that describes the significance of the issues it
addresses, its objectives, and the focus of its work. Each issue
area relies heavily on input from congressional committees, agency
officials, and subject-matter experts in developing its strategic
plan.
The Military Operations and Capabilities issue area covers programs
of the Department of Defense (DOD), the individual military services,
and other supporting defense agencies. GAO's work in this issue area
includes assessments of military planning activities; DOD's budgeting
for operation and maintenance (O&M); the capability, performance,
readiness, and sustainability of military forces and weapons; and
initiatives aimed at maintaining a quality force. The principal
issues covered are
-- the adequacy of DOD's strategic, operational, and contingency
plans for military operations and the completeness of its
mobilization and deployment plans;
-- the accuracy of budget estimates for DOD's operation and
maintenance account;
-- the capability of military forces and weapon systems to carry
out their expected roles in the National Military Strategy and
their performance in actual operations;
-- the readiness and sustainability of military forces to perform
their assigned missions; and
-- the effectiveness of DOD's efforts to recruit and retain a
quality force.
In the pages that follow, we describe our key planned work on these
critical defense issues.
Because events may significantly affect even the best of plans, our
process allows for updating the plan and provides the flexibility to
respond quickly to emerging issues. If you have any questions or
suggestions about this plan, please call me at (202) 512-5140.
Mark E. Gebicke
Director
Military Operations and Capabilities Issues
CONTENTS
============================================================ Chapter 1
FOREWORD
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:1
1
TABLE I: KEY ISSUES
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:2
4
TABLE II: PLANNED MAJOR WORK
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:3
6
TABLE III: GAO CONTACTS
---------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1:4
7
TABLE I: KEY ISSUES
============================================================ Chapter 2
Issue Significance
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
Planning and budgeting: Have DOD and Congress is concerned that DOD has
its military services adequately overbudgeted for some items that might
planned for conducting military be better spent on other priorities.
operations, and have they prepared Our identification of potential
accurate O&M budgets? reductions can interject greater
accountability into the budgeting
process and permit reallocation of
funds where needed.
With a smaller military force, sound
operational and contingency planning
takes on increased importance.
Mobilization and deployment plans are
crucial if DOD is to respond quickly.
Capabilities and performance: Has DOD Successful military operations are
fielded the forces and weapon systems predicated on the presumption that
that are capable of effectively critical functional force elements and
discharging their assigned missions, weapons can achieve their mission. Our
and are they performing as expected? assessments will identify critical
shortfalls that could jeopardize
operations as well as excess
capabilities that might be eliminated
and thereby assist future decisions on
force structure, training, and capital
investments. Examining performance in
exercises and actual operations
provides the best indicators of
capability.
Readiness and sustainability: Are U.S. Congress wants to avoid a return to a
military forces ready to effectively "hollow" force, unprepared to fight the
carry out their assigned missions, and nation's wars. Readiness problems,
are supporting systems capable of however, may in fact reflect poor
sustaining them? resource allocation decisions rather
than insufficient funding. Better
management of defense resources may be
the key to improved readiness.
Quality of the force: Do DOD and the A smaller military must emphasize
military services have effective quality, continuity, and high morale.
programs in place to recruit and retain Sound recruiting efforts, meaningful
a quality force? training, career development
opportunities, and effective quality-
of-life programs are essential if DOD
is to retain a quality force.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Objectives Focus of work
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
Identify excesses and shortfalls in Critical review of DOD's annual O&M
DOD's O&M budget requests. budget requests to identify potential
savings.
Target selected budget items for
evaluation and potential reduction. Reviews of selected DOD programs
(especially infrastructure) to identify
Evaluate DOD's efforts to adjust its potential reductions.
mobilization and deployment plans to
its downsized force. Reviews of DOD plans for mobilizing
and deploying forces and equipment
(Civil Reserve Air Fleet, C-141
modernization, infrastructure for the
continental United States, and Army/
Marine Corps equipment afloat).
Alert Congress and DOD to shortfalls Reviews of selected military
and excesses in selected operational functions to determine whether their
capabilities. force structure, modernization,
readiness, and means of sustainment are
Evaluate the adequacy of DOD actions properly matched to their expected
taken to properly size forces according role.
to their anticipated missions.
Reviews of the adequacy of actions
Identify performance shortfalls that taken to correct shortfalls and
could undermine success in future eliminate excesses in capability.
operations.
Assessments of the performance of
selected functional capabilities in
recent operations.
Identify ways to maintain readiness Assessments of minimum equipment
at lower cost. needed by reserve forces to conduct
meaningful training.
Determine if DOD training efficiently
and effectively prepares forces for Reviews to determine effectiveness of
operations. training and exercises in preparing
forces for combat.
Assess whether maintenance, supply,
and other support systems effectively Reviews of sustainment functions to
and efficiently ensure readiness. identify excesses that divert funds
from more productive uses and shortages
that hamper readiness.
Assess DOD efforts to provide the Evaluations of DOD's efforts to
necessary incentives to recruit and retain a quality force, such as
retain a quality force. improving military housing, decreasing
enlisted personnel attrition, and
Determine if DOD's drawdown is improving quality-of-life programs.
achieving a balanced active, reserve,
and civilian workforce. Assessments of the force balance
achieved through downsizing
(privatization efforts and military/
civilian and active/reserve force mix).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TABLE II: PLANNED MAJOR WORK
============================================================ Chapter 3
Issue Planned major job
---------------------------- --------------------------------------------------
Planning and budgeting Evaluation of DOD's fiscal year 1997 O&M budget
request*
Review of DOD's airlift scheduled service
operations to identify potential reductions
Review of the Army's plans and priorities for
upgrading U.S. infrastructure for mobilizing and
deploying forces
Assessment of the feasibility of consolidating
DOD's facilities engineering activities
Capabilities and Reviews of selected functional capabilities
performance (e.g., provision of combat medical care, Navy ship
defense, combat engineering)
DOD's experience with and plans for joint force
packaging
Assessment of the potential for reducing DOD's
en route base access and transit refueling
facilities
Review of the cost-effectiveness of DOD's
modernization and retirement plans for its C-141
airlifter
Readiness and Equipment readiness of first-to-fight
sustainability contingency forces
Assessment of the services' training to prevent
friendly fire incidents
Review of ongoing Army efforts to adjust its
forces, doctrine, and tactics to anticipated
challenges of the 21st century (Force XXI)
Quality of the force Possible alternatives to the military retirement
system*
DOD efforts to minimize undesirable attrition*
Review of alternatives for housing military
personnel*
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Ongoing assignments
TABLE III: GAO CONTACTS
============================================================ Chapter 4
DIRECTOR
-------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 4:0.1
Mark E. Gebicke (202) 512-5140
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
-------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 4:0.2
Sharon A. Cekala (202) 512-5140
ASSISTANT DIRECTORS
-------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 4:0.3
Edward M. Balderson
William E. Beusse
Charles J. Bonanno
Reginald L. Furr
Valeria G. Gist
Barry W. Holman
Robert J. Lane
William C. Meredith
James R. Murphy
Donald L. Patton
Elliott C. Smith
*** End of document. ***