GAO Study Says Pentagon Cost Overruns Threaten Weapon Quantities

The General Accounting Office, a non-partisan accounting watchdog agency in the federal government, issued a report on Friday that saw very little media attention. It cited cost overruns of 30-40%, says that these overruns are recurring problems, and that they result in fewer weapons reaching frontline troops. Unlike most such studies, however, this one identifies the core problem, and it offers a solution.

Defense Acquisitions: Assessment of Selected Major Weapons Programs, March 2006 is the fourth annual assessment of Pentagon weapons programs. The GAO looked at 52 different programs in all the branches of the military. The total amount invested in these programs is $850 billion. The GAO said, “Unfortunately, our assessments do not show appreciable improvement in the acquisition of major weapon systems. Rather, programs are experiencing recurring problems with cost overruns, missed deadlines, and performance shortfalls. These cost increases mean that DOD cannot produce as many weapons as intended nor deliver those weapons to the warfighter when promised.”

The chief issue is the use of immature technologies in weapons development. The GAO says that for weapons relying on mature technologies, the cost overruns are 4.8% (unfortunate, but within the realm of acceptability). Immature technologies’ overruns are eight times as large at 34.9%. Often, the GAO says, the weapons developers are pushing the envelope too much, going down blind alleyways and wasting time and money.

Secretary of Defense Field Marshal von Rumsfeld said that “you go to war with the military you have.” In the short term, that means a great degree of inflexibility; however, over time, the federal government has the ability to alter the military it has. Good acquisition and development policies can maximize the bang the military buck secures for the nation. That is not what America has at present.

This matter becomes even more significant because the US government under President George “LBJ” Bush has doubled the amount of money it spends on new weapons systems. The GAO stated that “planned investments in new weapon systems [have increased] from about $700 billion in 2001 to nearly $1.4 trillion in 2006.” As Congress spends more money, the less the taxpayer is actually getting for each extra defense dollar. No one disputes that money spent on national defense is well-spent, but that is not the same thing as money wisely spent.

© Copyright 2006 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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