After the Division of Protection (DOD) failed its fifth consecutive audit in November, Home Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) and Subcommittee on Authorities Operations and the Federal Workforce Chairman Pete Periods (R-Texas) are wanting into the DOD’s failure to stop waste, fraud, and abuse.
The Republican congressmen wrote to Protection Secretary Lloyd Austin asking for a staff-level briefing to study extra concerning the DOD’s failed audit, normal monetary administration processes, and what the division is doing to hold out excellent strategies for reform.
The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating the Division of Protection’s (DOD) failure to stop waste, fraud, and abuse. In November 2022, DOD failed its fifth straight audit as a result of it was unable to account for 61% of its $3.5 trillion price of property. The 2 Republican legislators wrote in response to a latest report by the U.S. Authorities Accountability Workplace (GAO) that the Protection Division (DOD) “continues to fail to appropriately account for a whole bunch of billions of {dollars} in government-provided property within the arms of contractors. Though it receives virtually a trillion {dollars} a yr, the DOD’s incapability to appropriately monitor property places our army readiness in danger and reveals a flagrant disdain for taxpayer cash.
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Pentagon Fails Fifth Consecutive Audit
The Pentagon’s comptroller and high monetary officer, Mike McCord, introduced the findings of the division’s fifth annual audit to reporters again in November 2022.
“We didn’t get an ‘A’,” he mentioned. “The method is essential for us to finish, and it’s serving to us to enhance. We aren’t therapeutic as rapidly as we’d need because of it.
BREAKING: Pentagon Admits It Cannot Account For $2.2 TRILLION – AGAIN.
Of The 27 Companies Audited Inside The @DeptofDefense, ONLY Seven Obtained A Passing Grade! https://t.co/GipVRRecRO— John Basham 🇺🇲 (@JohnBasham) November 30, 2022
The Monetary Audit of the Protection Division covers greater than $7 trillion in property, corresponding to actual property and army gear, and liabilities, corresponding to authorized claims and base realignment or closure prices. It’s a compilation of 27 investigations throughout the enterprise, together with particular person companies and army departments.
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For protection leaders and taxpayers, the audit’s objective is to make clear how the division spends its funds and to maintain monitor of its property, which unfold over all 50 states, Washington, D.C., seven territories, and 40 nations.
Though it’s not the one choice for DOD to watch expenditure and uncover waste, fraud, and abuse, acquiring a transparent monetary audit opinion for every part may enhance taxpayer and repair member confidence.
In accordance with the report, 16 of the 27 standalone audits decided to have a number of areas for enchancment, whereas seven of the 27 had unmodified views, which means auditors discovered their monetary statements to satisfy with typically accepted accounting requirements.
READ MORE: Pentagon Admits It Can’t Account for $2 Trillion – AGAIN
DoD a Fixed Fixture on GAO Excessive-Threat Listing
GAO’s Excessive-Threat Listing has routinely featured DOD’s contractor administration and monetary administration.
In accordance with a GAO report from January 2023, DOD didn’t adequately account for a major quantity of government-owned property given to contractors, together with weapons, instruments, and different defense-related objects.
In 2014, the DOD estimated that contractors had $220 billion price of government-provided property of their custody, however the GAO thinks the quantity is “critically overstated.”
The acquisition of DOD weapon methods, the modernization of enterprise methods, and general monetary monitoring have all obtained many suggestions from GAO.
“Critical questions concerning the Division of Protection’s administration of taxpayer funds have been raised, notably because the Division of Protection’s price range approaches the thirteen-figure mark as a result of DOD’s poor monetary administration and incapability to adequately monitor weapons, gear, and different protection articles. The shortcoming of DOD to create auditable monetary statements that will enable for correct monitoring of DOD’s monetary administration processes has been hampered by failure to resolve these considerations,” in keeping with each Republican congressmen.
US Home Committee on Oversight and Accountability is opening a probe into the Protection Division’s incapability to go their annual full-financial audit.https://t.co/TiOV1KMlD7
— A2B Monitoring (@A2BTracking) March 7, 2023
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Reprinted with permission. View this story and extra on WayneDupree.com.