For example, in 2003 we recommended that the department  develop comprehensive guidance to help the services manage contractors’  supporting deployed forces. Several long-standing  challenges have hindered DOD’s management and oversight of contractors  at deployed locations, even though in many cases DOD and its  components have developed guidance related to these challenges. These  challenges include failure to follow long-standing planning guidance,  ensure an adequate number of trained contract oversight and management  personnel, systematically collect and distribute lessons learned, and  comprehensively train contract oversight personnel and military  commanders. We have found several instances where poor oversight and  management of contractors has led to negative monetary and operational  impacts. DOD Leadership Needs to Ensure Implementation of and Compliance with Existing Guidance Regarding Oversight and Management of Contractors

Based on our previous work, we believe for DOD to improve its oversight  and management of contractors supporting deployed forces in future  operations and ensure warfighters are receiving the support they rely on in  an effective and efficient manner, DOD leadership needs to ensure  implementation of and compliance with existing guidance to improve the  department’s oversight and management of contractors supporting  deployed forces. However, as we  reported in 2006, although the issuance of DOD’s new guidance was a  noteworthy improvement, we found little evidence that DOD components  were implementing this guidance or much of the additional guidance  addressing the management and oversight of contractors supporting  deployed forces. In addition, limited or  no pre-deployment training for military commanders on the use of  contractor support to deployed forces can result in confusion regarding  their roles and responsibilities in managing and overseeing contractors. Future Challenges DOD Will Need to Address to Improve Its Oversight and Management of Contractors at Deployed Locations

Looking at our past work, I would like to make a number of broad  observations about challenges we believe will need to be addressed by  DOD to improve the oversight and management of contractors supporting  deployed forces in future operations and ensure warfighters are receiving  the support they rely on in an effective and efficient manner. There are  four issues in particular that merit attention by DOD: (1) incorporating  contractors as part of the total force, (2) determining the proper balance  of contractors and military personnel in future contingencies and  operations, (3) clarifying how DOD will work with other government  agencies in future contingencies and operations, and (4) addressing the  use and role of contractors into its plans to expand and transform the  Army and the Marine Corps.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Department of Defense (DOD) relies extensively on contractors to support deployed forces for services that range from food and housing services to intelligence analysis. Since 1997, GAO has reported on DOD's shortcomings in managing and overseeing its use of contractor support. Part of the difficulty attributed to these shortcomings is that no one person or entity that made the decision to send 129,000 contractors to Iraq. Rather, numerous DOD activities were involved, thus adding to the complexity of the problems which GAO identified in its past work on this topic. This testimony focuses on (1) the problems that DOD has faced in managing and overseeing its contractor support to deployed forces and (2) future challenges that DOD will need to address to improve its oversight and management of contractors at deployed locations. In addition, as you requested, we have developed several actions Congress may wish to consider requiring DOD to take. This testimony is based on previously issued GAO reports and testimonies on DOD's management and oversight of contractor support to deployed forces that focused primarily on U.S. efforts in Southwest Asia. This work was conducted in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

What GAO Found

DOD leadership needs to ensure implementation of and compliance with existing guidance to improve the department's oversight and management of contractors supporting deployed forces. While DOD issued a comprehensive guidance on contractor support to deployed forces in 2005, we found little evidence that DOD components were implementing this and other guidance. As a result, several long-standing problems have hindered DOD's management and oversight of contractors at deployed locations, even in cases where DOD and its components have developed guidance related to these problems. These problems include failure to follow planning guidance, an inadequate number of contract oversight and management personnel, failure to systematically collect and distribute lessons learned, and lack of comprehensive training for contract oversight personnel and military commanders. Our previous work in this area has identified several instances where poor oversight and management of contractors led to negative monetary and operational impacts. Based on our past work, several challenges will need to be addressed by DOD to improve the oversight and management of contractors supporting deployed forces in future operations and ensure warfighters are receiving the support they rely on in an effective and efficient manner. Those challenges include: (1) incorporating contractors as part of the total force, (2) determining the proper balance of contractors and military personnel in future contingencies and operations, (3) clarifying how DOD will work with other government agencies in future contingencies and operations, and (4) addressing the use and role of contractors into its plans to expand and transform the Army and the Marine Corps.