Defense Budget: Projected Inflation Savings.
Abstract
On February 3, 1998, the Secretary of Defense testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the fiscal year 1999 Department of Defense (DOD) budget. In his statement, the Secretary said that DOD will be able to buy more defense programs in fiscal years 1999-2003 than previously planned because "President Clinton allowed the Department to keep about $20 billion in savings projected from lower estimates of future inflation." You asked that we (1) identify the projected savings by fiscal year and the programs that DOD plans to buy with those savings, (2) discuss the implications of applying those projected savings to additional DOD programs, and (3) compare DOD's estimated savings to estimates provided to you by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and identify possible reasons for the difference in those estimates. The Future Years Defense Program (FYDP) is an authoritative record of current and projected force structure, costs, and personnel levels that has been approved by the Secretary of Defense. The fiscal year 1999 FYDP supported the President's fiscal year 1999 budget and included budget estimates for fiscal years 1999-2003. Each year, the Office of Management and Budget provides DOD with guidance to use in preparing DOD's budget request and FYDP. The guidance includes the executive branch's assumptions for inflation, the price of fuel, and military and civilian pay raises. DOD uses these assumptions to reestimate the cost of its programs.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 11, 1998
- Accession Number
- ADA349451
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office