Homeland Defense
Preliminary Observations on How Overseas and Domestic Missions Impact DOD Forces Gao ID: GAO-03-677T April 29, 2003The way in which the federal government views the defense of the United States has dramatically changed since September 11, 2001. Consequently, the Department of Defense (DOD) is adjusting its Cold War strategic focus (of defending against massed combat forces) to better encompass defense against the asymmetric threats that small terrorist cells represent to U.S. territory. GAO was asked to review DOD's participation in domestic missions. This testimony represents our preliminary work in response to the request. It addresses (1) the primary differences in military and nonmilitary missions; (2) how DOD evaluates requests for nonmilitary missions; (3) how the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act impacts DOD's nonmilitary missions; (4) whether current management organizations, plans, and forces are adequate to support DOD's domestic missions; and (5) the impact of overseas and domestic missions on military personnel tempo. GAO is making no recommendations in this testimony.
DOD's military and nonmilitary missions differ in terms of roles, duration, discretion to accept or reject, and capabilities normally employed. DOD evaluates nonmilitary mission requests on the basis of legality, lethality, risk to DOD forces, the cost, the appropriateness of the mission, and the impact on military readiness. The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act prohibits the direct use of federal military troops in domestic civilian law enforcement, except where authorized by the Constitution or Acts of Congress. Congress has expressly authorized the use of the military in certain situations such as to assist with drug interdiction or assist with terrorist incidents involving weapons of mass destruction. It is too early to assess the adequacy of DOD's new management organizations or plans but some forces may not be tailored for their domestic missions. DOD established an Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and U.S. Northern Command plan and execute domestic missions. U.S. Northern Command's plan for domestic military missions was developed before DOD officials had agreed on the nature of the threat. Forces are not adequately tailored for some domestic missions, and readiness could erode because of it. For example, Air Force fighter units deployed since September 11, 2001 to perform combat air patrols are unable to also perform required combat training. Overseas and domestic missions are stressing U.S. forces as measured in personnel tempo data. In September 2001, about 1,600 Air Force personnel had spent 220 to 365 days away from their homes over the previous year, but by December 2002 almost 22,100 Air Force personnel had been away that long. The Army reported similar increases. To prevent erosion in combat capabilities, DOD issued orders, known as stop loss, to involuntarily retain critical personnel.
GAO-03-677T, Homeland Defense: Preliminary Observations on How Overseas and Domestic Missions Impact DOD Forces
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Testimony:
Before the Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats, and
International Relations, Committee on Government Reform, House of
Representatives:
United States General Accounting Office:
GAO:
For Release on Delivery Expected at 1:00 p.m. EDT:
Tuesday, April 29, 2003:
Homeland Defense:
Preliminary Observations on How Overseas and Domestic Missions Impact
DOD Forces:
Statement of Raymond J. Decker, Director
Defense Capabilities and Management:
GAO-03-677T:
GAO Highlights:
Highlights of GAO-03-677T, a testimony before the Subcommittee on
National Security, Emerging Threats, and International Relations,
Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives
Why GAO Did This Study:
The way in which the federal government views the defense of the United
States has dramatically changed since September 11, 2001.
Consequently, the Department of Defense (DOD) is adjusting its Cold
War strategic focus (of defending against massed combat forces) to
better encompass defense against the asymmetric threats that small
terrorist cells represent to U.S. territory.
GAO was asked to review DOD‘s participation in domestic missions. This
testimony represents our preliminary work in response to the request.
It addresses (1) the primary differences in military and nonmilitary
missions; (2) how DOD evaluates nonmilitary mission requests; (3) how
the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act impacts on DOD‘s nonmilitary missions; (4)
whether current management organizations, plans, and forces are
adequate to support DOD‘s domestic missions; and (5) the impact of
overseas and domestic missions on military personnel tempo.
GAO is making no recommendations in this testimony.
What GAO Found:
DOD‘s military and nonmilitary missions differ in terms of roles,
duration, discretion to accept or reject, and capabilities normally
employed.
DOD evaluates nonmilitary mission requests on the basis of legality,
lethality, risk to DOD forces, the cost, the appropriateness of the
mission, and the impact on military readiness.
The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act prohibits the direct use of federal
military troops in domestic civilian law enforcement, except where
authorized by the Constitution or Acts of Congress. Congress has
expressly authorized the use of the military in certain situations
such as to assist with drug interdiction or assist with terrorist
incidents involving weapons of mass destruction.
It is too early to assess the adequacy of DOD‘s new management
organizations or plans but some forces may not be tailored for their
domestic missions. DOD established an Office of the Assistant
Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and U.S. Northern Command to
plan and execute domestic missions. U.S. Northern Command‘s plan for
domestic military missions was developed before DOD officials had
agreed on the nature of the threat. Forces are not adequately
tailored for some domestic missions and readiness could erode because
of it. For example, Air Force fighter units deployed since September
11, 2001 to perform combat air patrols are unable to also perform
required combat training.
Overseas and domestic missions are stressing U.S. forces as measured in
personnel tempo data. In September 2001, about 1,600 Air Force
personnel had spent 220 to 365 days away from their homes over the
previous year, but by December 2002 almost 22,100 Air Force personnel
had been away that long. The Army reported similar increases. To
prevent erosion in combat capabilities, DOD issued orders, known as
stop loss, to involuntarily retain critical personnel.
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-677T.
To view the full report, including the scope
and methodology, click on the link above.
For more information, contact Raymond J. Decker, (202) 512-6020,
deckerr@gao.gov.
[End of section]
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
I appreciate the opportunity to discuss with you today the demands
being placed on the Department of Defense (DOD) in the post September
11, 2001, environment. DOD's primary mission is to deter aggression
abroad and fight to win if deterrence fails. It does this by
undertaking major combat operations on a global basis. However, the
federal government view of the defense of U.S. territory has
dramatically changed since September 11, 2001. In this regard, DOD is
adjusting its Cold War strategic focus of defending against massed
combat forces attacking allied nations or U.S. territory to encompass
the asymmetric threats that small terrorist cells represent.
You asked us to review DOD's participation in domestic military
missions. We will issue a final report on this issue later this spring.
My testimony today is based on the preliminary work that we have
completed to date on your request. I will address (1) the primary
differences in military and nonmilitary missions; (2) how DOD evaluates
requests for nonmilitary missions; (3) how the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act
impacts DOD's nonmilitary missions; (4) whether current management
organizations, plans, and forces are adequate to support DOD's domestic
missions; and (5) the impact of overseas and domestic missions on
military personnel tempo.[Footnote 1] To determine the differences in
DOD's missions and how DOD evaluates mission requests, we reviewed
appropriate guidance and directives specifying mission types, and
discussed these issues with knowledgeable officials. To identify legal
constraints on DOD's nonmilitary missions, we reviewed the 1878 Posse
Comitatus Act and related laws. To determine the adequacy of
organizations, plans, and forces, we reviewed DOD reorganizations,
visited the new U.S. Northern Command, reviewed campaign plans and
related documents, and compared the types of missions performed by
forces with their primary missions. Finally, to determine the impact of
domestic or overseas missions on personnel tempo, we obtained personnel
tempo databases from DOD for the period October 2000 through December
2002 (the most recent data available) and analyzed the data. We
conducted this work from July 2002 through April 2003 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards.
Summary:
Military missions differ from nonmilitary missions in terms of roles,
duration, discretion to accept or reject, and capabilities normally
employed. In military missions, DOD is the lead federal agency,
operates without a predefined end date, cannot reject the planned
mission, and uses combat power and combat support capabilities for
their intended purposes. Conversely, in nonmilitary missions, another
agency is generally the lead, the mission has a predefined end date,
and DOD has some discretion to reject the requested mission and uses
military capabilities in a noncombat manner to augment U.S. civil
authorities' capabilities.
DOD evaluates all requests by U.S. civil authorities for military
assistance against six established criteria, including legality,
safety, funding, and impact on readiness. DOD has provided a variety of
requested nonmilitary assistance, including over 230 missions in fiscal
years 2001 and 2002, such as assisting in fighting wildfires;
recovering from tropical storms; providing post-September 11, 2001,
assistance to New York City and Virginia; and providing support for the
presidential inauguration.
The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act[Footnote 2] prohibits the direct use of
federal military troops in domestic civilian law enforcement, except
where authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress. Congress has
expressly authorized the use of the military in certain situations. For
example, DOD can use its personnel and equipment in response to
requests from civilian law enforcement to assist with drug interdiction
efforts and terrorist incidents involving weapons of mass
destruction.[Footnote 3] The Commander of U.S. Northern Command has
stated "We believe the [Posse Comitatus] Act, as amended, provides the
authority we need to do our job, and no modification is needed at this
time."[Footnote 4]
It is too early to assess the adequacy of DOD's new management
organizations or their plans for their domestic missions, since the
organizations only recently began operations and the campaign plan was
only recently written, although some forces may not be fully tailored
to the missions. First, DOD has established (1) the Office of the
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and (2) U.S.
Northern Command to provide long-term planning and execution capability
for domestic missions. The new Assistant Secretary is to provide
overall supervision of DOD's domestic missions. U.S. Northern Command
is to provide unity of command for U.S. military actions to counter
threats to U.S. territory and is to provide military assistance to U.S.
civil authorities when directed by the President or the Secretary of
Defense. Neither organization was fully functional at the time of our
review, so we could not yet evaluate the adequacy of these
organizations for their new missions. Second, U.S. Northern Command
recently completed its campaign plan for domestic military missions,
making it unlikely that the services have yet trained or equipped their
forces for these missions. In addition, the plan was developed prior to
issuance of a Federal Bureau of Investigation counterterrorism threat
assessment and before DOD officials had agreed amongst themselves on
the nature of the threat and thus may not take into account the current
range of identified threats. Finally, forces are not adequately
structured for some current domestic missions, and military readiness
may erode. For example, following the September 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks, the President deployed fighter aircraft to protect U.S. cities
under Operation Noble Eagle. In addition, DOD needed to enhance
installation security and deployed military police units. While the
missions are legitimate, these forces' military readiness may erode
because they get limited training benefit from the missions and do not
have the opportunity to conduct required combat training while
performing the missions.
Current overseas and domestic missions are impacting U.S. forces as
measured by personnel tempo. DOD measures personnel tempo based on
three thresholds: 182 days, 220 days, and 401 days deployed[Footnote 5]
away from home. DOD believes that if servicemembers spend too much time
away from home, a risk exists that they will eventually leave the
service and military readiness may suffer. From September 2001 through
December 2002, the number of Air Force personnel exceeding the
personnel tempo threshold of 182 days away from home rose from about
2,100 to about 8,300; the number exceeding the personnel tempo
threshold of 220 days away from home rose even higher, from about 1,600
to about 22,100. Army data also revealed that personnel tempo had
increased during the period. To prevent significant near-term attrition
from the force, DOD has used its stop loss authority[Footnote 6] to
prohibit servicemembers affected by the order from leaving the service.
DOD has acknowledged that stop loss should only be used for a short
period of time and is not to be used as a long-term force management
practice.
DOD's Military and Nonmilitary Missions Differ:
Military missions differ from nonmilitary missions on a variety of
factors, as shown in table 1.
Table 1: Differences between DOD Military and Nonmilitary Missions:
Military missions: Acts as the lead federal agency and follows orders
issued by the President, as Commander-in-Chief; Nonmilitary missions:
Supports a lead federal agency.
Military missions: Performs missions under extraordinary circumstances
that do not necessarily have defined end dates; Nonmilitary missions:
Provides support on a temporary or emergency basis with agreed upon end
dates.
Military missions: Generally cannot reject these missions; Nonmilitary
missions: Has some discretion to accept or reject these missions based
on six established criteria and uses an approval process guided by DOD
Directive 3025.15[A] to determine whether to provide the requested
support.
Military missions: Applies military combat capabilities that only DOD
possesses; Nonmilitary missions: Augments U.S. civil authorities'
capabilities with DOD's own military assets or capabilities from its
existing force, which are applied in a non-combat manner.
Source: GAO analysis.
[A] Military Assistance to Civil Authorities, Feb. 18, 1997.
[End of table]
Military missions involve coordinated military actions, such as
campaigns, engagements, or strikes, by one or more of the services'
combat forces. Operations Desert Storm in 1991 and Iraqi Freedom in
2003 are examples of overseas military missions, and Operation Noble
Eagle is a domestic military mission started on September 11, 2001, and
continuing today. In the latter mission, the President directed the
Commander, North American Aerospace Defense Command, to order combat
air patrols to identify and intercept suspect aircraft operating in the
United States. Since these are military missions, DOD is the lead
federal agency and is prepared to apply its combat power if needed.
DOD Evaluates Requests for Assistance from Civil Authorities Against
Established Criteria:
Requests for nonmilitary missions are evaluated against criteria
contained in DOD's Directive, Military Assistance to Civil
Authorities.[Footnote 7] These requests generally seek DOD support to
help alleviate suffering, recover from disasters or assist indirectly
with law enforcement.[Footnote 8] DOD's directive specifies that
requests for nonmilitary support be evaluated against the following
criteria:
* legality (compliance with laws),
* lethality (potential use of lethal force by or against DOD forces),
* risk (safety of DOD forces),
* cost (who pays, impact on the DOD budget),
* appropriateness (whether the requested mission is in the interest of
DOD to conduct), and:
* readiness (impact on DOD's ability to perform its primary mission).
According to DOD, in fiscal years 2001 and 2002, it supported over 230
nonmilitary missions in a variety of settings, such as assisting in
fighting wildfires, recovering from tropical storms, providing post-
September 11, 2001, assistance to New York City and Virginia, providing
support for the presidential inauguration, and for other purposes.
According to DOD, during this same period, the Department rejected a
handful of missions based on the above criteria.
The Posse Comitatus Act Restricts DOD's Role in Civilian Law
Enforcement:
The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act[Footnote 9] prohibits the use of the Army
and Air Force "to execute the laws" of the United States except where
authorized by the Constitution or Acts of Congress. Federal courts have
interpreted "to execute the laws" to mean the Posse Comitatus Act
prohibits the use of federal military troops in an active role of
direct civilian law enforcement.[Footnote 10] Direct involvement in law
enforcement includes search, seizure, and arrest.[Footnote 11] The act
does not apply to military operations at home or abroad. Further, it
does not apply to National Guard personnel when under the direct
command of states' governors.
Congress has expressly authorized the use of the military in certain
situations. For example, DOD can use its personnel and equipment to:
* assist with drug interdiction and other law enforcement functions,
protect civil rights or property, or suppress insurrection (the Civil
Disturbance Statutes; 10 U.S.C. §§331-334);[Footnote 12]
* assist the U.S. Secret Service (18 U.S.C. §3056 Notes);
* protect nuclear materials and assist with solving crimes involving
nuclear materials (18 U.S.C. §831);
* assist with terrorist incidents involving weapons of mass destruction
(10 U.S.C. §382); and:
* assist with the execution of quarantine and certain health laws
(42 U.S.C. §§97-98).
In March, 2003, the Commander of U.S. Northern Command has stated, "We
believe the [Posse Comitatus] Act, as amended, provides the authority
we need to do our job, and no modification is needed at this
time."[Footnote 13] The President identified as a major homeland
security initiative a review of the legal authority for military
assistance in domestic security, which would include the Posse
Comitatus Act. The President maintained that the "threat of
catastrophic terrorism requires a thorough review of the laws
permitting the military to act within the United States in order to
determine whether domestic preparedness and response efforts would
benefit from greater involvement of military personnel and, if so,
how." [Footnote 14] In addition to this review, the Congress directed
DOD to review and report on the legal implications of members of the
Armed Forces operating on United States territory and the potential
legal impediments affecting DOD's role in supporting homeland
security.[Footnote 15] At the time of our review, neither the
President's nor the congressionally directed legal reviews had been
completed.
The Adequacy of New Management Organizations, Plans, and Forces for
Domestic Missions:
It is too early to assess the adequacy of DOD's new management
organizations or its plans, although forces may not be fully tailored
to the current domestic missions. DOD has established new organizations
for domestic missions at the policy and operational levels, and written
a new campaign plan for the defense of the United States. At the same
time, DOD has used existing forces for these missions since September
11, 2001. However, at the time of our review, the organizations were
not yet fully operational; plans had been developed before issuance of
a counterterrorism threat assessment and before DOD officials had
reached agreement on the nature of the threat; and force capabilities
were not well matched to their domestic missions, potentially leading
to an erosion of military readiness.
New DOD Organizations to Address Military Domestic Missions Are Not Yet
Fully Operational:
Two new organizations--the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense
for Homeland Defense and U.S. Northern Command--together provide long-
term policy direction, planning, and execution capability but are not
yet fully operational, because they have only recently been established
and are not fully staffed. Because these organizations had only
recently been activated and were still being staffed and structured, we
did not evaluate the adequacy of these organizations for their
missions.
The Senate confirmed the President's nominee to be Assistant Secretary
of Defense for Homeland Defense in February 2003, but this office was
not fully operational at the time of our review, with approximately
one-third of the staff positions filled. The new Assistant Secretary is
to provide overall supervision for domestic missions.
U.S. Northern Command was established by the President in an April 2002
revision to the Unified Command Plan[Footnote 16] and was activated in
October 2002. However, the command is not planned to be fully
operational until October 2003. As of last week, only about 46 percent
of the command's positions had been filled. During our trip to U.S.
Northern Command, we found that a key challenge that the command is
grappling with is the need to conduct its ongoing missions while
staffing the command's positions. The activation of the command marks
the first time that there has been a unity of command for military
activities within the continental United States. Prior to U.S. Northern
Command's activation, U.S. Joint Forces Command provided for military
actions to defend U.S. territory from land-and sea-based threats. The
North American Aerospace Defense Command defended the United States
from airborne threats (and still does). The Commander of U.S. Northern
Command is also the Commander of the North American Aerospace Defense
Command providing the new unity of command for the three missions.
The Nature of the Threat Was Still Under Discussion When the Campaign
Plan Was Written:
DOD's planning process requires the Department and the services to
staff, train, and equip forces for their military missions as outlined
in campaign plans and deliberate plans[Footnote 17] developed by the
combatant commanders, including the Commander of U.S. Northern Command.
U.S. Northern Command's campaign plan was completed in October 2002 and
is classified. However, I can note, that although it may reflect
current intelligence from DOD and other intelligence community sources,
it was completed before the January 2003 issuance of the Federal Bureau
of Investigation's counterterrorism threat assessment, so it may not
take all threats into account. Moreover, an official in the Office of
the Secretary of Defense acknowledged that DOD officials continue to
debate the nature of the threat to U.S. territory, thus DOD itself has
not yet reached internal agreement on the nature of the threat facing
the United States.
DOD's Forces Are Not Tailored to Conduct Long-Term Military Missions
Domestically:
Based on our review, DOD's forces are not tailored for some of the
missions that they have been performing since September 11, 2001, and
the result could be eventual erosion of military readiness. To respond
to the terrorist attacks of that day, the President identified the need
to protect U.S. cities from air attack, and in response, DOD deployed
338 Air force and about 20 Navy aircraft within 24 hours of the
attacks. Air Force fighter aircraft flew continuously from September
11, 2001, through March 2002, and intermittently thereafter. These
combat patrols continue today. While these forces may obtain some
training benefit from actually conducting the mission, the benefit is
limited by the narrow scope of maneuvers performed during these
missions. Specifically, Air Force and Air National Guard fighter units
performing domestic combat air patrols are inhibited from executing the
full range of difficult, tactical maneuvers with the frequency that the
Air Force requires to prepare for their combat missions. In one Air
National Guard wing that we reviewed, the average pilot could not meet
their training requirements in 9 out of 13 months between September
2001 and September 2002. Consequently, such units may need to resume
training after domestic combat air patrols end or they are reassigned,
to ensure their readiness for combat operations, their primary
missions. Similarly, DOD identified the need to enhance installation
security, and it subsequently deployed active, reserve, and National
Guard military police units for the mission. However, these units were
designed for a different mission, and received limited training benefit
from the domestic mission. For example, officials at a military police
internment and resettlement battalion told us that while the battalion
can provide installation security, its primary mission is to operate
enemy prisoner of war camps. Instead, for nearly a year, the battalion
carried out a domestic installation security mission, which while
important, prevented the battalion from completing required training
for its primary overseas combat mission. As a result, the battalion's
military readiness may become eroded, which could mean accepting an
increased risk to the battalion if it deploys or resuming training
before it deploys again.
Increased Overseas and Domestic Missions Add to High Army and Air Force
Personnel Tempo:
Current overseas and domestic missions are stressing U.S. forces as
measured in personnel tempo data. DOD believes that if servicemembers
spend too much time away from home, a risk exists that they will leave
the service and military readiness may ultimately suffer.
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000[Footnote
18] requires that DOD formally track and manage for the number of days
that each member of the armed forces is deployed and established two
thresholds--servicemembers deployed more than 182 or 220 days away from
home out of the preceding 365 days. The National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 2001[Footnote 19] established a third threshold,
which requires that servicemembers who are deployed for 401 or more
days out of the preceding 730-day (2-year) period receive a $100 high
deployment per diem allowance.[Footnote 20] Between September 2001 and
December 2002, personnel tempo increased dramatically for Army and Air
Force personnel due to ongoing missions or commitments around the world
and their increasing support of Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring
Freedom.[Footnote 21]
DOD data that we obtained indicated tempo is high and increasing. For
example, as shown in figure 1, in September 2001, over 6,600 Army
personnel (including active, reserve, and National Guard personnel) had
exceeded a desired threshold, spending 182 to 219 days away from home
during the previous 365 days. By December 2002, that number had risen
to over 13,000. During the same period, the number spending 220 to 365
days away, had risen from about 800 to over 18,000.
Figure 1: Army Personnel Exceeding the Desired Personnel Tempo
Thresholds:
[See PDF for image]
Note: Each data point represents the total number of servicemembers
away from home in the preceding 365 days from the last day of the month
indicated.
[End of figure]
The Air Force reported similar trends. As shown in figure 2, in
September 2001, about 2,100 Air Force servicemembers were away from
home for 182 to 219 days, but that had risen to about 8,300 by December
2002. Also, as with the Army, Air Force servicemembers away 220 to 365
days had risen from about 1,600 to over 22,100.
Figure 2: Air Force Personnel Exceeding the Desired Personnel Tempo
Thresholds:
[See PDF for image]
Note: Each data point represents the total number of servicemembers
away from home in the preceding 365 days from the last day of the month
indicated.
[End of figure]
The number of Air Force active, Air Force reserve, and Air National
Guard Air Force personnel exceeding the third personnel tempo threshold
of 401 or more days away from home in the preceding 730-day period also
increased during the latter period of 2002, starting at about 3,700
personnel in September 2002 and rising to more than 8,100
servicemembers in December 2002. Of those, about one-half of these
personnel were Air National Guard personnel, some of whom were tasked
with conducting air sovereignty alert missions in the continental
United States.[Footnote 22] In September 2002, 1,900 had spent more
than 401 days away from home over a 2-year period. By December 2002,
the number of Air National Guard personnel spending more than 401 days
away from home had increased to about 3,900. Exceeding the threshold on
a sustained basis can indicate an inadequacy in the force structure or
the mix of forces.
DOD has recognized the potential for retention problems stemming from
the current high personnel tempo but has balanced that against
immediate critical skill needs to support ongoing operations.
Therefore, to prevent servicemembers with key skills from leaving the
services, DOD issued orders to prevent degradation in combat
capabilities, an action known as stop loss authority. DOD took these
actions because it recognized that individuals with certain key skills-
-such as personnel in Army military police and Air Force fighter units-
-were needed, in some cases, to perform the increasing number of
military domestic missions. These orders affected personnel with
designated individual job skills or in some cases all of the
individuals in specific types of units that were critical for overseas
combat and military domestic missions.
Officials from the four services who manage the implementation of these
orders cautioned that they are short-term tools designed to maintain
unit-level military readiness for overseas combat and military domestic
missions. Moreover, the officials added that the orders are not to be
used as a long-term solution to address mismatches or shortfalls in
capabilities and requirements, or as a substitute for the routine
recruiting, induction, and training of new servicemembers.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my prepared statement. I would be happy to
answer any questions that you or members of the subcommittee may have.
Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments
For future questions about this statement, please contact Raymond J.
Decker at (202) 512-6020. Individuals making key contributions to this
statement include Brian J. Lepore, Deborah Colantonio, Richard K.
Geiger, Kevin L. O'Neill, William J. Rigazio, Susan K. Woodward, and
Michael C. Zola.
[End of section]
Related GAO Products:
Combating Terrorism: Observations on National Strategies Related to
Terrorism. GAO-03-519T. Washington, D.C.: March 3, 2003.
Major Management Challenges and Program Risks: Department of Homeland
Security.GAO-03-102. Washington, D.C.: January 2003.
Homeland Security: Management Challenges Facing Federal Leadership.
GAO-03-260. Washington, D.C.: December 20, 2002.
Homeland Security: Effective Intergovernmental Coordination Is Key to
Success.GAO-02-1013T. Washington, D.C.: August 23, 2002.
Reserve Forces: DOD Actions Needed to Better Manage Relations between
Reservists and Their Employers. GAO-02-608. Washington, D.C.: June 13,
2002.
Homeland Security: Key Elements to Unify Efforts Are Underway but
Uncertainty Remains. GAO-02-610. Washington, D.C.: June 7, 2002.
Homeland Security: A Risk Management Approach Can Guide Preparedness
Efforts. GAO-02-208T. Washington, D.C.: October 31, 2001.
Combating Terrorism: Selected Challenges and Related Recommendations.
GAO-01-822. Washington, D.C.: September 20, 2001.
Combating Terrorism: Observations on Options to Improve the Federal
Response. GAO-01-660T. Washington, D.C.: April 24, 2001.
Combating Terrorism: Comments on Counterterrorism Leadership and
National Strategy. GAO-01-556T. Washington, D.C.: March 27, 2001.
Military Personnel: Full Extent of Support to Civil Authorities Unknown
but Unlikely to Adversely Impact Retention. GAO-01-9. Washington, D.C.:
January 26, 2001.
Combating Terrorism: Federal Response Teams Provide Varied
Capabilities: Opportunities Remain to Improve Coordination.
GAO-01-14. Washington, D.C.: November 30, 2000.
Combating Terrorism: Linking Threats to Strategies and Resources. GAO/
T-NSIAD-00-218. Washington, D.C.: July 26, 2000.
Combating Terrorism: Observations on the Threat of Chemical and
Biological Terrorism. GAO/T-NSIAD-00-50. Washington, D.C.: October 20,
1999.
Combating Terrorism: Need for Comprehensive Threat and Risk Assessments
of Chemical and Biological Attacks. GAO/NSIAD-99-163. Washington, D.C.:
September 7, 1999.
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FOOTNOTES
[1] Personnel tempo is the amount of time that a member of the armed
forces is engaged in their official duties at a location that makes it
infeasible to spend off duty time at the member's home, homeport (for
Navy service members), or in the members' civilian residence (for
reserve components' personnel).
[2] 18 U.S.C. §1385 (2002). The Act expressly prohibits the use of the
Army or the Air Force to execute the laws. It applies to the Navy and
Marine Corps through DOD Directive 5525.5, DOD Cooperation with
Civilian Law Enforcement Officials and Navy Instruction (SECNAVISNT)
5820.7B, Mar. 28, 1988, Cooperation with Civilian Law Enforcement
Officials.
[3] 10 U.S.C. §§371-378 (excluding §375) (2002), and 10 U.S.C. §382
(2002).
[4] Statement of General Ralph E. Eberhart, U.S. Air Force, Commander,
U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command,
before the House Committee on Armed Services, March 13, 2003.
[5] We used the thresholds to measure days away from home, which
includes deployments and activities such as individual training.
[6] Stop Loss authority is provided by 10 U.S.C. §12305 (2002). It
authorizes the President to suspend any provision of law relating to
the promotion, retirement, or separation of any member of the armed
forces when members of a reserve component are called to active duty
and the President determines the forces are essential to the national
security of the United States.
[7] DOD Directive 3025.15, Feb. 18, 1997, which establishes DOD policy
and assigns responsibility for providing military assistance to civil
authorities.
[8] DOD Directive 5525.5 provides specific guidance on requests for law
enforcement assistance.
[9] 18 U.S.C. §1385 (2002).
[10] See, for example, United States v. Red Feather, 392 F. Supp. 916
(D.S.D. 1975).
[11] DOD Directive 5525.5, DOD Cooperation with Civilian Law
Enforcement Officials provides other examples of prohibited direct
involvement.
[12] DOD Directive 3025.12, Feb. 4, 1994, Military Assistance for Civil
Disturbances, which identifies policy and responsibilities governing
the planning and response by DOD for its assistance to civil
authorities, including law enforcement.
[13] Statement of General Ralph E. Eberhart, U.S. Air Force, Commander,
U.S. Northern Command and North Aerospace Defense Command, before the
House Committee on Armed Services, March 13, 2003.
[14] National Strategy for Homeland Security, Office of Homeland
Security, July 2002.
[15] The Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2003, P.L. 107-314, (Dec. 2, 2002), Sec. 921(7) Report on Establishment
of the United States Northern Command and Sec. 1404(11) Report on the
Role of the Department of Defense in Supporting Homeland Security.
[16] Unified Command Plans provide guidance to the combatant commanders
and establish their missions, responsibilities, force structure, and
geographic areas of responsibility, among other things.
[17] Campaign plans represent the combatant commander's vision of the
arrangement of operations to attain strategic objectives. Deliberate
plans are designed to use forces and apportion resources for potential
contingencies.
[18] P.L. 106-65 (Oct. 5, 1999), §586(a) (codified at 10 U.S.C. §991).
[19] P.L. 106-398 (Oct. 30, 2000), §574(c) (codified at 37 U.S.C.
§436).
[20] On October 8, 2001, DOD suspended the counting of deployed days
for payment purposes as permitted by law. Moreover, the statutory
requirement for general and flag officers to personally manage the
deployments of servicemembers exceeding the 182-and 220-day thresholds
was also suspended at the same time.
[21] The data does not include the impact on personnel tempo stemming
from participation in Operation Iraqi Freedom, which is not yet fully
available. Operation Enduring Freedom is the ongoing military mission
in Afghanistan. While the Navy and Marine Corps did not experience high
levels of personnel tempo during the October 2000 to December 2002 time
frame, their tempo may have increased due in part to deployments for
Operation Iraqi Freedom.
[22] These servicemembers are deployed from their home to another
installation in the United States.
