Most funds for central training are derived from DOD’s military personnel and operation and maintenance appropriation categories. Funding and Personnel Levels Declined Through 1997 but Were Projected to Remain Stable Thereafter

Funds for central training declined $4.5 billion, or 17.3 percent, between 1992 and 1997. From 1997 through 2003, funds were projected to average about $21.5 billion. Three Training Categories Received Majority of Funds

Three training categories—professional and skill training, command managed training, and installation support—received and were projected to receive over 60 percent of DOD’s annual central training funds over the 1992-2003 period. This concentration continued despite a projected 19.6-percent decline in funds for these categories over the period. Army Had Largest Share of Training Funds and Air Force Projected to Overtake Navy for Second Largest Share

The Army had the largest portion of central training funds over the 1992-2003 period—about one-third of the total. Defense-wide programs accounted for about 6 percent of annual central training funds after 1993. In 1998, almost 90 percent of the Air Force’s central training funds were programmed for four categories: command managed training, professional and skill training, aviation and flight training, and installation support, as shown in figure 12. Marine Corps Funding Projected to Be Only Slightly Higher in 2003 Than in 1992

The Marine Corps’ level of annual central training funding was projected to increase 1.1 percent over the 12 years we reviewed. Initiatives to Reduce Training Costs or Enhance Training Efficiency and/or Effectiveness

The Secretary of Defense’s April 1997 Annual Report to the President and the Congress stated that “The key to ensuring a trained, ready force in the future is to develop ways to train the force in more efficient and less costly ways.” The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the services have used and plan to use techniques, such as (1) course consolidations and more extensive use of technology, in programs and initiatives to bring about intra- and inter-service course consolidations; (2) computer-based training and distance learning to improve the efficiency of instruction; (3) the acquisition of new equipment and technology to support joint training, interservice training, and reduce the total cost of training; and (4) private sector cooperation to accelerate the applications of new learning technologies. Overall central training funding was not projected to continue to decline because growth in pilot training requirements for the Air Force, the Navy, and the Army offset decreases in other training categories. We did not validate costs and savings associated with the initiatives. The funding decline was projected to be 32.2 percent. During this period, workload was projected to increase by 40.2 percent.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) central training activities, focusing on: (1) trends in central training funding and causes for those trends; (2) DOD's initiatives to reduce central training funding requirements or improve the effectiveness and efficiency of central training programs; and (3) DOD's management of those initiatives. GAO did not validate the services' explanations for those trends, nor did GAO compare trends across the services.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) funding for central training activities declined between fiscal years 1992 and 1997 by almost $4.5 billion; (2) during this period, the services reduced accessions to meet lowered personnel levels, closed and consolidated training installations, and outsourced base maintenance; (3) decreases in Navy and Army central training programs accounted for about 90 percent of the decline; (4) no additional funding decline was programmed through 2003 in the 1998 Future Years Defense Program; (5) from 1997 through 2003, funds were projected to remain stable at about $21.5 billion; (6) projected stability in overall funding after 1997 was a result of several projections; (7) installation support for all of the services was projected to be lower in 2003 than in 1997 because they planned to continue to outsource and replace military personnel with civilians to perform base maintenance; (8) funding for central training was highly concentrated in three training categories--professional and skill training, command managed training, and installation support; (9) these three categories received and were projected to receive almost two-thirds of DOD's central training funds over the 1992 through 2003 period; (10) although funding was projected to continue to decline for professional and skill training and installation support, funding for command managed training was projected to increase because of growth in Air Force and Navy programs; (11) the Army had the largest share of training funds, about one-third of the total; (12) the Air Force was projected to overtake the Navy in 1998 for the second largest share of training funds; (13) the Marine Corps' share of training funds has been and was projected to be less than 10 percent; (14) DOD and the services have programs and initiatives to improve the quality of training and bring about greater efficiency in training programs; (15) these efforts are designed to consolidate intra- and inter-service courses; improve the effectiveness of instruction through computer-based training and distance learning; and foster cooperation with the private sector to accelerate the applications of new learning technologies; and (16) DOD and the services have not projected the total investment required for these initiatives or the total savings that might accrue from them.