House Oversight Committee Opens Investigation Into DOD 5th Consecutive Failed Audit

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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 Classes (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 be taught extra in regards to the DOD’s failed audit, common monetary administration processes, and what the division is doing to hold out excellent recommendations 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 value of belongings. 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 lot of billions of {dollars} in government-provided property within the arms of contractors. Despite the fact that it receives nearly a trillion {dollars} a 12 months, the DOD’s lack of ability to appropriately monitor belongings places our navy readiness in danger and exhibits a flagrant disdain for taxpayer cash.

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Pentagon Fails Fifth Consecutive Audit

The Pentagon’s comptroller and prime 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’re not therapeutic as shortly as we’d need due to it.

The Monetary Audit of the Protection Division covers greater than $7 trillion in belongings, comparable to actual property and navy gear, and liabilities, comparable to authorized claims and base realignment or closure prices. It’s a compilation of 27 investigations throughout the enterprise, together with particular person businesses and navy departments.

For protection leaders and taxpayers, the audit’s function is to make clear how the division spends its funds and to maintain monitor of its belongings, which unfold over all 50 states, Washington, D.C., seven territories, and 40 nations.

Though it’s not the one possibility for DOD to observe expenditure and uncover waste, fraud, and abuse, acquiring a transparent monetary audit opinion for every part may enhance taxpayer and repair member confidence.

Based on 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, that means auditors discovered their monetary statements to fulfill with typically accepted accounting requirements.

READ MORE: Pentagon Admits It Can’t Account for $2 Trillion – AGAIN

DoD a Fixed Fixture on GAO Excessive-Danger Listing

GAO’s Excessive-Danger Listing has routinely featured DOD’s contractor administration and monetary administration.

Based on a GAO report from January 2023, DOD didn’t adequately account for a big 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 value 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 total monetary monitoring have all acquired many suggestions from GAO.

“Critical questions in regards to 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 because of the DOD’s poor monetary administration and lack of ability to adequately monitor weapons, gear, and different protection articles. The lack of DOD to create auditable monetary statements that may enable for correct monitoring of DOD’s monetary administration processes has been hampered by failure to resolve these considerations,” in accordance with each Republican congressmen.

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