From: | Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org> |
Date: | Mon, 17 Jul 2000 19:39:39 -0700 (PDT) |
Reply: | cpeo-military |
Subject: | [CPEO-MEF] "Use It or Lose It" |
I've just read through the General Accounting Office report, "MILITARY BASE CLOSURES: Unexpended Funds Raise Questions About Fiscal Year 2001 Funding Needs," GAO/NSIAD-00-170, July, 2000. It can be downloaded from GAO's website, http://www.gao.gov, or you can order a single copy by phoning 202/512-6000. This is the report that the Military Construction Appropriations Conference Committee just used to cut the budget for Base Realignment and Closure. It criticizes the Defense Department, not only for its unobligated balances - which I mentioned in a previous message - but for its unliquidated obligations. "Obligations are the amounts of orders placed, contracts awarded, services received, and similar transactions during an accounting period that will require payment during the same or a future period. As services are rendered or good delivered, an agency makes the required outlays (i.e. payments) to liquidate its obligations ..." GAO and Congress seem to be taking the position that if money hasn't been spent, then it wasn't needed. Unfortunately, that shallow logic may force inefficiencies onto the cleanup programs. As I understand it, the armed services may not issue a contract - that is, promise future payments - without first lining up the funds - that is, obligating them. However, I've learned independently that to carry out multi-year operations and maintenance activity efficiently, the armed services - at least, reportedly the Air Force - issue multi-year contracts. That, of course, sets them up to accumulate unliquidated balances. To avoid having its budget trimmed continually, the military will have to stick with less efficient, short-term contracts. The report is difficult for non-accountants (such as me) to follow, so I hesitate to summarize or analyze any more. The key problem is that GAO and Congress are telling the armed services that they care more about the rate of outlays than about the efficiency of the cleanup program Lenny. -- Lenny Siegel Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight c/o PSC, 222B View St., Mountain View, CA 94041 Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545 Fax: 650/968-1126 lsiegel@cpeo.org http://www.cpeo.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You can find archived listserve messages on the CPEO website at http://www.cpeo.org/lists/index.html. If this email has been forwarded to you and you'd like to subscribe, please send a message to: cpeo-military-subscribe@igc.topica.com ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics | |
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