Significant Savings Resulting From GAO Accomplishments

The investigations and work that GAO has undertaken have resulted in significant savings to the Government. The savings have far exceeded the costs to GAO. An example of such savings is the accomplishment resulting from the review of the Air Force Phase IV computer replacement program. GAO advised the Air Force and the House Government Operations Committee that a different plan using one computer instead of two could produce dramatic savings without any loss in operational capability. In response to the recommendation, the Air Force advised the Chairman that the program had been redirected to satisfy the GAO concerns and that a cost avoidance of $800 million would result over several years. Additionally, the redirection would encompass the following areas: (1) reduction in the number of systems per base; (2) manpower savings; (3) facility program reductions; (4) purchase of equipment; (5) system modernization; and (6) functional analysis.