Financial Management - Challenges Confronting Dod's Reform Initiatives: T-Aimd-95-143 (Paperback)

GAO discussed the Department of Defense's (DOD) efforts to reform its financial management operations. GAO noted that: (1) DOD complex operations and multiple accounting systems have exacerbated its financial management problems; (2) DOD financial management reform plans include consolidating its finance and accounting operations and systems, establishing prevalidation for disbursements, reengineering DOD business practices, strengthening internal controls, and improving management incentives; (3) although DOD established the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) in 1991 to improve its departmentwide finance and accounting operations, DOD still must overcome problems related to DFAS responsibility, internal controls, personnel requirements, documentation, reorganization, and downsizing; (4) DOD has begun consolidating its finance and accounting systems, but it has not addressed all the factors that should be considered during the consolidation; (5) DOD has implemented a policy that certain payments be validated prior to disbursement and it plans to require such validations for all payments; (6) DOD is studying how to reengineer its business practices to decrease costs and increase efficiency; (7) DOD recognizes the importance of the Chief Financial Officers Act and management support to improving its financial operations and controls; and (8) closer congressional and management oversight of the Defense Business Operations Fund (DBOF) would improve DBOF operations.