DOD Civilians in Europe

In response to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the growth in the number of civilian personnel working for the Department of Defense (DOD) in Europe since 1982, specifically the: (1) types of positions that increased and the reasons for the increases; (2) the cost of DOD civilian personnel in Europe and the workyears they expended; and (3) DOD initiatives for contracting for services that DOD personnel would otherwise have performed.

GAO found that: (1) the DOD statistics showing an increase of 52 percent in the number of personnel it hired in Europe since 1982 were inaccurate; (2) the actual increase was about 34 percent; and (3) DOD is establishing improved procedures to ensure that its future data are accurate. GAO also found that: (1) the overall increase in DOD civilians in Europe from 1982 to 1986 was 14.4 percent; (2) the largest increase occurred in U.S. direct hires, as opposed to foreign national direct or indirect hires; (3) over 70 percent of the growth occurred in the Army; and (4) 54 percent of the Army's new direct hires were dependents of U.S. military personnel located in Europe. Army, Navy, and Air Force officials attributed their civilian increases to: (1) the replacement with civilians of military personnel previously diverted from combat positions to base operations support functions; (2) the conversion of military positions to civilian positions; and (3) the need for more civilians to support an increased force size and expanded operations. The DOD Dependent School System stated that it needed additional staff to handle a 14-percent increase in student enrollment and the introduction of additional mandated special education programs. GAO was unable to obtain comprehensive information on civilian personnel costs, civilian workyears expended, or the extent to which DOD contracted for those services, since DOD did not compile such data.