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OMB Asks Defense to Shift Programs Out of War Bill
The White House is placing new limits on war spending, making it more difficult for the Pentagon to outmaneuver its new budget caps, according to recent guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Instead, the White House wants the Pentagon to start funding more activities through its base budget, shutting off a potential loophole to the Budget Control Act passed in August/…/ The Senate, in its versions of the defense appropriations and authorization bills, has already made use of this loophole, shifting billions out of the base budget and into the contingency bill, while still complying with the spending caps for 2012.
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Obama Administration Urges Flat 2013-2017 Defense Spending Plan
The White House and Pentagon are near agreement on a draft five-year defense budget that flattens expenditures though 2017, with the lowest war spending since 2004, according to an Office of Management and Budget document/…/
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Uncertainty is Looming Over US Military Strategy
Military leaders have adapted US strategy as the Pentagon faces major budget cuts, but experts fear the new plans could be shattered due to the threat of automatic financial reductions/…/
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CNO: INSURV Reports Should Stay Classified
After a furor over ship and submarine inspection failures in 2008, Navy brass later that year imposed a blackout on readiness reports, an action that officials maintained was for security concerns and wholly unrelated to the string of failures. The blackout continues to this day/…/
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Automatic Cuts Could Drive Smaller Defense-Industry Firms Out of Business
The prospect of $600 billion in automatic defense cuts could drive an increasing number of smaller defense firms out of the industry — or out of business altogether. A rise in defense firms merging, moving into commercial industries and going out of business are all likely scenarios, industry groups and budget analysts say.
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Cutting Retiree Benefits A Sore Subject For Military
Military retiree benefits cost the Pentagon $50 billion a year. That's more than next year's entire budget for the Department of Homeland Security. There are 1.9 million military retirees drawing pay and benefits, compared to 1.5 million in the active duty force. In 2010, then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates said those costs are "eating the Defense Department alive."