Transfer of Army Pacific Support Functions Resulted in Unwarranted Personnel Costs

United States military support in the Pacific has been undergoing manpower redistribution as a result of a Defense Department order in December, 1975. GAO analyzed the ensuing transfers and found unjustified recurring budget increases totaling at least $25 million and possibly $40 million.

The increases came from a series of Defense budget actions which funded personnel slots for the service branches which requested and gained manpower resulting from the redistribution without a corresponding budget cut for the Army, which lost manpower. The discrepency occurred because the services involved did not use applicable work force planning criteria in the requests. The Navy absorbed all personnel positions offered by the Army without justifying their needs. The Navy then was granted a request for additional personnel for positions not involved in the redistribution. The Marine Corps also made unjustified requests. Requests by the Air Force exceeded even their own calculated needs. The finding by GAO stated that the services' manpower requests were unwarranted unless each was accompanied by the proper and detailed justification.

Recommendations

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