Key Aspects of Support for Families with Special Needs Vary Widely Across the Services, Leading to Potential Gaps in Assistance for Families with Special Needs

According to DOD officials, each Military Service provides family support  services in accordance with DOD guidance as well as Service-specific  guidance. According to DOD guidance, these plans should  also document the support provided to the family, including case notes. Senior OSN officials said they rely on each Service to determine the  extent to which its EFMP complies with DOD’s policy for families with  special needs because they consider OSN to be a policy-making  organization that is not primarily responsible for assessing compliance. In addition, officials from the Army and Navy said they have not  received any guidance from OSN officials about their Service-specific  guidance, including requirements for resources and services plans. Federal internal control standards require that agencies  establish control activities, such as developing clear policies, in order to  accomplish agency objectives such as those of the Services’ EFMPs. Each Service Has Mechanisms to Monitor EFMP Assignment Coordination and Family Support Activities, but DOD Lacks Common Performance Measures and a Process to Fully Evaluate These Activities Each Service Has Mechanisms to Monitor Assignment Coordination and Family Support

Each Service monitors EFMP assignment coordination and family support  using a variety of mechanisms, such as regularly produced internal data  reports. DOD Has Not Developed Common Performance Measures or Fully Developed a Process for Evaluating the Results of the Services’ Monitoring Activities

To improve its oversight of the EFMP and implement its policy for families  with special needs, DOD, through OSN, has several efforts under way to  standardize the Services’ procedures for assignment coordination and  family support. However, DOD has not developed common performance  measures to monitor its progress toward these efforts and has not  developed a process for assessing the Services’ related monitoring  activities. Federal internal control standards emphasize the importance of  assessing performance over time and evaluating the results of monitoring  activities. They also said they have encountered  challenges to developing common performance measures. DOD Does Not Systematically Review the Services’ Monitoring Activities

DOD requires each Service to monitor its own family readiness programs,  including procedures for assignment coordination and family support  through the EFMP, but lacks a systematic process to evaluate the results  of these monitoring activities. Recommendations for Executive Action

We are making the following three recommendations to DOD:  We recommend the Secretary of Defense direct the Office of Special  Needs (OSN) to assess the extent to which each Service is (1) providing  sufficient resources for an appropriate number of family support  providers, and (2) developing services plans for each family with special  needs, and to include these results as part of OSN’s analysis of any gaps  in services for military families with special needs in each annual report  issued by the Department to the congressional defense committees. GAO staff who made key contributions to this report  are listed in appendix V.

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2017  includes a provision for GAO to assess the effectiveness of the  Department of Defense’s (DOD) Exceptional Family Member Programs  (EFMP). This report focuses on the assignment coordination and family  support components of the EFMP for dependents with special needs and  examines: (1) the extent to which each Service has provided family  support as required by DOD, and (2) the extent to which the Services  monitor and DOD evaluates assignment coordination and family support. To determine the extent of the Services’ EFMP family support, we  obtained and analyzed fiscal year 2016 EFMP data (the most recent  available) for each Service.
Why GAO Did This Study

Military families with special medical and educational needs face unique challenges because of their frequent moves. To help assist these families, DOD provides services plans, which document the support a family member requires. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 included a provision for GAO to review the Services' EFMPs, including DOD's oversight of these programs.
This report examines the extent to which (1) each Service provides family support and (2) the Services monitor and DOD evaluates assignment coordination and family support.
GAO analyzed DOD and Service-specific EFMP guidance and documents; analyzed fiscal year 2016 EFMP data (the most recent available); visited seven military installations, selected for their large numbers of military-connected students; and interviewed officials responsible for implementing each Service's EFMP, as well as officials in OSN that administer DOD's EFM policy.

What GAO Found

The support provided to families with special needs through the Department of Defense's (DOD) Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) varies widely for each branch of Military Service. Federal law requires DOD's Office of Special Needs (OSN) to develop a uniform policy that includes requirements for (1) developing and updating a services plan for each family with special needs and (2) resources, such as staffing, to ensure an appropriate number of family support providers. OSN has developed such a policy, but DOD relies on each Service to determine its compliance with the policy. However, Army and Navy officials said they have not received feedback from OSN about the extent to which their Service-specific guidance complies. Federal internal control standards call for developing clear policies to achieve agency goals. In addition, DOD's most recent annual reports to Congress do not indicate the extent to which each Service provides services plans or allocates sufficient resources for family support providers. According to GAO's analysis, the Military Services have developed relatively few services plans, and there is wide variation in the number of family support providers employed, which raises questions about potential gaps in services for families with special needs (see table).
Each Service uses various mechanisms to monitor how servicemembers are assigned to installations (assignment coordination) and obtain family support, but DOD has not established common performance measures to assess these activities. DOD has taken steps to better support families with special needs, according to the DOD officials GAO interviewed. For example, DOD established a working group to identify gaps in services. However, OSN officials said that DOD lacks common performance measures for assignment coordination and family support because the Services have not reached consensus on what those measures should be. In addition, OSN does not have a process to systematically evaluate the results of the Services' monitoring activities. Federal internal control standards call for assessing performance over time and evaluating the results of monitoring activities. Without establishing common performance measures and assessing monitoring activities, DOD will be unable to fully determine the effect of its efforts to better support families with special needs and the adequacy of the Services' EFMPs as required by federal law.

What GAO Recommends

GAO makes a total of three recommendations to DOD. DOD should assess and report to Congress on the extent to which each Service provides sufficient family support personnel and services plans, develop common performance metrics for assignment coordination and family support, and evaluate the results of the Services' monitoring activities. DOD agreed with these recommendations and plans to develop performance metrics for assignment coordination and develop plans to evaluate the Services' monitoring activities.