Skip to main content

Individual Ready Reserve: Army Needs to Make More Effective Use of Limited Training Funds

NSIAD-90-55 Published: Feb 07, 1990. Publicly Released: Feb 26, 1990.
Jump To:
Skip to Highlights

Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined the Army's Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) training program, intended to train soldiers with previous Army service for swift mobilization and deployment in combat situations, to determine whether the Army focused training funds on skills that required refresher training and were most needed in the early days of conflict.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of the Army The Secretary of the Army should make more effective use of mobilization training funds by establishing overall guidance and controls directed toward ensuring that available training funds are focused on mobilization requirements with special emphasis on IRR members needed in the first 30 days of mobilization.
Closed – Implemented
DOD and the Army developed better methods of focusing the available training funds on refresher training for IRR members needed in the first 30 days of mobilization. The DOD Joint Task Group on Army Manpower Mobilization and Training developed guidance on the overall management of IRR in 1992.
Department of the Army The Secretary of the Army should make more effective use of mobilization training funds by determining the content and frequency of required refresher training.
Closed – Implemented
DOD and the Army developed a policy statement on the training of IRR and a DOD directive. DOD is planning to publish guidance on IRR training in 1992. The Army has also refined its IRR training model by the fourth quarter of FY 1992. The guidance and training model was developed and will be issued once FY 1993 budget and force structure decisions are finalized.

Full Report

Office of Public Affairs

Topics

Armed forces reserve trainingArmy reservistsCombat readinessDefense capabilitiesDefense contingency planningEducation or training costsMilitary budgetsMilitary promotionsMilitary trainingTraining utilization