Efficiencies Effort Being Harmed By lack of ’11 Funding

Efficiencies Effort Being Harmed By lack of ’11 Funding

By John Reed Tuesday, March 29th, 2011 5:01 pm
Posted in International, Policy

Pentagon budget officials today took a new tack in urging lawmakers to get the DoD a budget quickly, saying the lack of cash for FY-11 is flying in the face of the efficiency efforts they spearheaded.

DoD Comptroller Robert Hale kicked things off by saying that a lack of ’11 cash is leading to inefficiencies.

“We’re talking a lot about efficiencies, unfortunately, in fiscal 11 I think we’re moving in the opposite direction, in fact, I know we are; “It is causing inefficiencies.” Hale told the Senate Armed Services subcommittee on readiness and management support.  Some of these inefficiencies include; numerous short term contracts, hundreds of delayed military construction projects and acquisition programs, all of which cost extra money, according to Hale.


“I’m concerned that our already understaffed and under experienced contracting workforce is going to have trouble catching up in a way that’s efficient,” added Hale. “Anything you can do to get us a budget for fiscal 11 would be greatly appreciated.”

Hale later explained that the lack of current funding may force contracting officers to rush future acquisition contests in order to meet program timelines; a scenario that could open the door for mistakes in the contracting process, something that proved chaotic in previous rounds of the Air Force’s KC-X contest. Other items such as refits of Navy ships will also have to be delayed, according to Hale.

Navy Undersecretary Robert Work joined Hale in calling the lack of 2011 funds a recipe for waste.

“One of the most important things on this efficiencies drill is to try to get the CR resolved,” said Work. ” An efficiencies effort has to have a baseline and with the baseline constantly changing this really causes us a problem.”

The current continuing resolution funding the government is set to expire on April 8. Congressional leader have been using CRs to fund the government as they fight over the details of an official budget for FY-11.

The Pentagon officials were joined by Alaska Sen. Mark Begich (D) calling the CR “the worst thing you could ever do” to fund the government. He then pointed out hundreds of millions of dollars worth of military construction projects in Alaska being held up by the lack of 2011 cash.

 

Join the Conversation

Dfens March 29th, 2011 at 5:21 pm

Damn you, Congress! The DoD was going to be efficient this year, and you ruined it for them. What do you have to say for your sorry selves? Ok, so in reality nothing of substance has changed in the way the DoD procures weapons, but this time they really hoped that doing the same thing over and over would have a better result, and look, you’ve dashed their (some would say insane) hopes. I hope you’re happy, you… you hope stealers!

Philip O'Leary March 29th, 2011 at 5:25 pm

Sometimes fixing the budget is more important then allowing the DoD’s efficiencies programs to go forward.

John L March 29th, 2011 at 6:43 pm

They don’t need any more money they need to work with what they have and make better use of what they have. Their is no well that they can just go to and get more money.

I am a big defense supporter. However, the services just show us how to spend more money, rather than really saving it. The Pentagon procurement bureaucracy is the worst, and just bloated beyond belief. Seems to me way to many bureaucratic “empires” exist and are coddled “to not make waves.

Ruby March 29th, 2011 at 7:52 pm

John, that may well be, but asking them to continue on autopilot for half of each year, instead of actually writing a budget to end old programs and institute needed changes, is not the way to efficiency. They need to pass a budget on time each year.

Philip O'Leary March 29th, 2011 at 8:43 pm

They do need to pass a budget, but current spending cannot remain as it is and if the pentagon needs to suffer a bit to save the country so be it.

If anything they (the DoD) should leery of having a senator of either party there at this breifing/plea in this case Sen. Begich as it seems the DoD is collaborating with the Democrats.

Byron Skinner March 29th, 2011 at 10:16 pm

Good Evening Folks,

A rather interesting statement here by Mr. Reed. He makes all of these charges about how the sky is falling but fails to mention any specific program(s) at risk. His statement on what is taking place in contracting borders on the absurd.

That their is the topic of delayed military construction which is totally false. I did construction for the military and most of it at the bottom of the list of what to allocate funds for. It takes years and a a lot of politics to get a dining facility or a barracks complex built.

Example the Marines at Ft. Meade Maryland are living in the same barracks that we occupied in 1965, which were to be torn down when we deployed to Vietnam in 1966, they were built in 1948. Replacing these barracks have been in every DoD budget since at least 1964. In all fairness though they have recently, five years ago, painted them and a consolidated mess facility was built sometime in the 1980’s.

All the DoD wants is funding for more useless expensive toys bough from preferred contractors who employee former military officers, who served in the contracting agencies of the DoD, at six figure and more salaries after they leave the service.

ALLONS,
Byron Skinner

William C. March 29th, 2011 at 10:36 pm

Which of these “toys” are useless? Anything we aren’t using in our current wars? That is awfully short-sighted don’t you think?

Taxpayer March 29th, 2011 at 11:55 pm

Hey guys, keep it up with the examples of what is not needed, either because it is not needed period, or because there really is no linkage from military contsruction project-to-project (I ran Navy milcon budget for years, and there is no cost impact of a delay) or year-to-year acquisition programs (they just accumulated backlogs of guaranteed work). There is falsity about efficiencies and annual fiscal years. There is not an item on the efficiencies list that needs money to implement. Plus work the contracting work force harder? Where did that stupid criticism come from? Wrong guy in charge…

J.R., It’s okay to publish the pablum that DoD puts out. But it’s quite another thing to fact check it and render an independent opinion as a part of your article, which is what I expect you to do. It’s called journalism. Otherwise, just publish the Pentagon press releases without any commentary.

old391 March 31st, 2011 at 9:43 am

Also hate to say this but if they do not pass something all the Contractors who do work for the government will start to furlong people because of no income coming in. So now what will happen when you cannot get supplies or work done since all these people are not working because of congress? Wonder if we can get Unemployment for this since it was the DemocRATs that caused this problem

Alan March 31st, 2011 at 11:58 am

Agree old391! Contractors perform for cash. Interupt their cashflow and the shareholders become irate. As patriotic as they may be, contractors must pay bills, and if the flow becomes a trickle or requires endless “Mother may I’s” to continue, they’ll find more profitable ways to invest their time. At the same time, the big brains who develop the stuff are the first to leave, looking for more stable work. Everyone suffers and efficiency remains a buzzword. I’m witnessing this happening right now.

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