NASA Maintenance: Stronger Commitment Needed to Curb Facility Deterioration

Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined the condition of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) facilities for research, development, and flight activities.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected	Recommendation	Status
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	The Administrator, NASA, should establish standards to guide centers in the development of comprehensive maintenance management systems that include all the information needed to identify maintenance needs and plan, budget, schedule, and report maintenance requirements.	Closed – Implemented NASA has developed a comprehensive agency manual and a NASA Management Instruction on facilities maintenance management. Both were approved and issued in late 1991.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	The Administrator, NASA, should direct centers to allocate funds to maintenance in accordance with the annual 2 to 4 percent of facility replacement value recommended by the National Research Council, or at a minimum to demonstrate that sufficient funds are allocated to maintain center facilities at least at a steady-state condition.	Closed – Implemented NASA plans to phase in the recommended 2 to 4 percent maintenance funding level as budget constraints permit.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	The Administrator, NASA, should emphasize responsibility for protecting centers' facilities by making facility maintenance a critical element in annual objectives established for directors of centers and heads of headquarters program offices.	Closed – Implemented Attention to facilities maintenance will continue as a specific part of the center directors' functions and responsibilities. Responsibility was addressed in the new NASA management instruction.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	The Administrator, NASA, should direct the centers to strengthen their procedures for budgeting and accounting for facility maintenance to ensure that maintenance functions are properly controlled.	Closed – Implemented Budgeting and accounting for facilities maintenance is now incorporated into the NASA Maintenance Management Manual.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	The Administrator, NASA, should direct the centers to conduct annual surveys to determine the centers' respective maintenance and repair requirements.	Closed – Implemented The Maintenance Management Manual and NASA Management Instruction address the issue of facility condition assessments.

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Topics

Government Operations

Aerospace researchAppropriated fundsBudget administrationFacility maintenanceFacility managementFederal agency accounting systemsFederal facilitiesMaintenance costsMaintenance standardsResearch and development facilities