U S Government Accountability Office

Defense acquisition workforce U S Government Accountability Office

" The United States and DOD depend on space assets to support national security, civil, and commercial activities. Having sufficient quantities of qualified personnel to acquire space assets-on which DOD expects to spend $8 billion in fiscal year 2013-is critical to DOD's ability to carry out its mission. Approximately 1,800 federal civilians at the Air Force SMC manage the acquisition of space systems. During fiscal year 2012, the Air Force implemented a pilot program that moved $187.1 million for SMC's acquisition civilian personnel from its O& M to its RDT& E appropriation. GAO was mandated to review the Air Force pilot program. This report addresses (1) the extent to which the Air Force evaluated the impact of the pilot, and (2) the processes in place to manage realignment of the funds. GAO obtained and reviewed documentation of the pilot implementation; compared the implementation with established practices GAO has identified for implementing and evaluating pilot programs; and interviewed officials at the Air Force and DOD. GAO also reviewed applicable regulations and guidance about realigning funds and interviewed knowledgeable officials. "