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- Addressed

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- Partially Addressed

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- Not Addressed

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- Consolidated or Other

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- Pending

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- Closed-Partially Addressed

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- Closed-Not Addressed

Year Identified: 2018

Area Number: 7

Area Type: Fragmentation, Overlap & Duplication

Action:

The Commandant of the Coast Guard should establish a plan with target dates and milestones for closing boat stations that it has determined, through its 9-step process and subsequent analysis, provide overlapping search and rescue coverage and are unnecessarily duplicative.

Progress:

The Coast Guard agreed with GAO's October 2017 recommendation. As of December 2019, the agency had completed additional analyses and reported that it was considering changes in operations for several stations. The Coast Guard estimated that it will continue to consider changes until spring 2020. However, the Coast Guard did not establish target dates or milestones for closing stations. By developing a plan with target dates and milestones for closing stations that are unnecessarily duplicative, the Coast Guard would be better positioned to improve operations and achieve cost savings over time.

Action:

The Commandant of the Coast Guard should take action to close the stations identified according to its plan and target dates. 

Progress:

The Coast Guard agreed with GAO's October 2017 recommendation, and as of December 2019, reported that it was considering changes in operational status for several stations. The Coast Guard estimated that it will continue to consider changes until spring 2020, which, if implemented, will be more than 7 years after it proposed station closures. By closing unnecessarily duplicative stations, the Coast Guard could be better positioned to improve its operations and achieve cost savings over time.