Adequacy of Official Information on the U.S. Defense Industrial Base

GAO discussed the federal government's collection and coordination of data about the U.S defense industrial base. GAO noted that the: (1) federal government lacked a reliable system for identifying foreign dependencies or measuring their impact or extent; and (2) Department of Defense (DOD) used an ineffective, reactive ad hoc approach for data collection and analysis. GAO also noted that efforts to improve data collection, analysis, and coordination included: (1) the Defense Industrial Network project, designed to provide access to more complete, accurate, and timely information for evaluating defense capabilities and reliance on foreign sources; (2) the Army/Census Bureau Survey, designed to assess domestic manufacturers' ability to expand their production capacity and their foreign dependency; (3) revision of a DOD form to ensure that prime contractors accurately reported information; (4) DOD establishment of the Joint Production Base Analysis Working Group for analysis of domestic defense industrial base capabilities in each major defense acquisition program; (5) the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Executable Software System, an automated inventory of databases dealing with emergency management and the defense industrial base; (6) the Department of Commerce's Emergency Preparedness Database, containing information on industrial resources available during emergency situations; and (7) DOD attempts to improve coordination among federal agencies.