Reports & Testimonies

As it modernizes the U.S. nuclear stockpile, the National Nuclear Security Administration is working to ensure its continued safety and reliability. NNSA assesses the weapons prior to releasing them to the military services to ensure that they meet DOD's requirements for safety and performance. NNSA documents any exceptions and limitations that may be found as the weapons age and their parts need to be replaced...

The military services and contractors use warehouses to store and distribute parts to repair weapon systems, among other things. The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) has 400 warehouses, but contractors also use commercial warehouses. In 2017, Congress authorized a pilot program seeking to more fully use DLA warehouses and avoid paying for commercial space. We reviewed the agency's report on this program. We found that DOD...

The Department of Defense can't accurately account for or report on its physical assets or spending. For more than 30 years DOD has tried to modernize its business and financial systems—spending billions of dollars a year on them. That's why DOD's business systems modernization and financial management efforts have been on our High Risk List since 1995. DOD hasn't fully developed guidance for overseeing these...

DOD is working to improve how fast it develops and delivers weapon systems. DOD has been using a streamlined process to do so—known as the middle tier of acquisitions or MTA pathway—which aims to deliver systems within 5 years from program start. We found that certain MTA programs that we reviewed don't fully incorporate 4 key principles of product development, such as dropping less urgent...

Administrative separation from the military can have lifelong implications regarding a veteran's benefits and future employment opportunities. Service members facing discharge for misconduct, unsatisfactory performance, and other reasons may present their case before an administrative separation board. These boards review evidence and recommend either retention or separation. Each service has established policies for convening these boards and selecting board members. These policies generally align with...

The Department of Defense child care program has taken steps to provide quality care. For example, DOD requires its child development centers and school-age care programs to be nationally accredited. DOD also aims to support service members and their families by meeting military-specific child care needs—such as those created by non-traditional work hours or frequent relocations. Families were largely satisfied with the quality of care...

From FYs 2011-2021, the 10 Navy ship classes we reviewed faced persistent and worsening challenges including a decrease in the number of hours a ship is available for operations or training. These challenges included: An increase in the number of working ship parts removed and used elsewhere due to parts shortages An increase in casualty reports—i.e., reports of events that impair a ship's ability to...

Auditors around the world use our Yellow Book—Government Auditing Standards—to perform audits. We maintain the Yellow Book and stay on top of domestic and international auditing standards. This year, we are proposing an update to enhance how audit organizations manage audit quality. Effective quality management can reasonably assure an audit organization that its people, audits, and reports adhere to professional standards and applicable laws. Another...

The United States' adversaries are exploiting social media, IT, and other aspects of the "information environment" to undermine the nation's security. Such actions can include making false social media posts or interfering with GPS data used by DOD leaders to make decisions about their military options, such as troop positions. In response, DOD educates and trains its leaders to address such threats. However, DOD hasn't...

The Navy is planning to spend $132 billion to develop and purchase 12 Columbia class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines—the largest and most complex submarine in its history. It plans to have the first one delivered in April 2027. The Navy lacks insight into the program's schedule because the shipbuilder hasn't conducted a schedule risk analysis, which can help identify and manage risks to achieving planned...

Federal IT systems and our nation's critical infrastructure are at risk of attack from malicious actors, including those acting on behalf of other nations. Such attacks could result in serious harm to human safety, national security, the environment, and the economy. The federal government should: establish a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy mitigate global supply chain risks address the federal cybersecurity worker shortage ensure the security of...

The DOD has struggled for decades to accurately account for government property in the possession of its contractors. DOD estimated that the value of such unaccounted property is over $220 billion—but that amount is likely significantly understated. This is one of the reasons that federal auditors are unable to audit DOD's financial statements. We found that DOD doesn't have a comprehensive, department-wide strategy to address...

The Department of Defense is working to digitally connect its space, air, land, sea, and cyber assets to help military commanders better communicate and share information in real time. This effort will depend on contributions by all of the military services. The Advanced Battle Management System is the Air Force's contribution to this effort. It is a secure communications network that allows commanders and warfighters...

Military personnel who complete advanced cyber training—which may take a year or more and costs DOD hundreds of thousands of dollars—may not remain in the military for a significant time after training. We found that 2 of the 4 military services are not positioned to ensure adequate return on their investment in advanced cyber training. While the Navy and Air Force require 3 years of...

DOD is upgrading its fleet of fighter and attack planes, known as tactical aircraft. Most of these planes—purchased in the 1970s and 80s—have outlived their planned service lives. Over the next 5 years, DOD is proposing to spend nearly $100 billion on major investments and changes to its current mix of tactical aircraft. This includes modernizing existing aircraft buying and developing new aircraft retiring a...

The U.S. military services operate a combined 36 military correctional facilities around the world. As of 2021, these facilities held 1,131 service members who were awaiting trial or had been sentenced by court-martial. Each service branch is responsible for ensuring the health and safety of the staff and incarcerated service members at their respective facilities. We found: Most of the branches routinely assess whether their...

Despite more than 3 decades of government policies to improve diversity in clinical cancer trials, certain groups remain underrepresented, including some racial and ethnic groups, women, and low-income individuals. Diversity in clinical trials aims to ensure safe and effective treatments for any patient likely to use them. To increase diversity in federally-funded clinical cancer trials, agencies broadened eligibility requirements, reimbursed patient out-of-pocket costs to reduce...

The federal government annually spends more than $100 billion on IT and cyber investments—many of which have been ineffectively managed. Congress passed laws to address these issues, including provisions such as the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA). We testified that, since 2015, Congress has issued scorecards to monitor agencies' implementation of FITARA and key IT topics. The scorecards have evolved and served as...

Innovation is critical to U.S. competitiveness, prosperity, and security. In the last 10 years, the federal government has increased funding for research and development (R&D)—investing $179.5 billion in FY 2021. DOD and the Department of Health and Human Services received 77% of the FY 2021 funding. COVID-19 stimulus funding led to large R&D increases for HHS. For example, an HHS agency that helps develop vaccines...

Can gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and other barriers explain why women make up less than 10% of special operations forces? U.S. Special Operations Command may not have the information needed to fully assess barriers affecting women's careers in the command. For example, the command doesn't have full access to timely, complete data on its assigned personnel, including incidents of discrimination, harassment, and sexual assault. Collaborating...