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Potential for Excess Funds in DOD

NSIAD-85-145 Published: Sep 03, 1985. Publicly Released: Sep 03, 1985.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Secretary of Defense's offer to reapply $4 billion from fiscal years (FY) 1984 and 1985 appropriations to the 1986 defense budget to determine whether there were: (1) excess funds in the Department of Defense's (DOD) budget; (2) reprogramming actions and lapsing balances; and (3) possible alternatives to the current inflation compensation system.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Defense The Secretary of Defense should take the following actions: (1) continue to use the GNP deflator as the basic index for DOD inflation budgeting for the portion of the DOD purchases other than pay and fuel; (2) eliminate the use of a multiplier in budgeting inflation for the major weapon systems accounts; (3) distribute the funds budgeted for inflation among the various DOD appropriations accounts in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget; and (4) monitor any annual inflation dividends or shortfalls that occur and report the latest information to Congress at the critical stages in the budget process.
Closed – Not Implemented
Items one and three were encompassed in S. Rept. 99-446, which requests the Comptroller General to study the feasibility of budgeting separately for inflation, code 394189; however, there was no provision in the FY 1987 budget for the multiplier, cited in item two. Item four was included in S. Rept. 99-176, which was tracked by AFMD in the FY 1987 work program.

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Topics

Appropriated fundsBudget authorityFunds managementGross national productInflationMilitary budgetsRevolving fundsUnobligated budget balancesWeapons systemsMilitary forces