{ "id": "R44010", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R44010", "active": true, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 584376, "date": "2018-07-02", "retrieved": "2019-04-18T14:08:52.683190", "title": "Defense Acquisitions: How and Where DOD Spends Its Contracting Dollars", "summary": "The Department of Defense (DOD) has long relied on contractors to provide the U.S. military with a wide range of goods and services, including weapons, vehicles, food, uniforms, and operational support. Without contractor support, the United States would be currently unable to arm and field an effective fighting force. Costs and trends associated with contractor support provides Congress more information upon which to make budget decisions and weigh the relative costs and benefits of different military operations\u2014including contingency operations and maintaining bases around the world.\nTotal DOD Contract Obligations\nObligations occur when agencies enter into contracts, employ personnel, or otherwise commit to spending money. The federal government tracks money obligated on federal contracts through a database called the Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation (referred to as FPDS). There is no public database that tracks DOD contract outlays (money expended from the Treasury) as comprehensively as FPDS tracks obligations.\nIn FY2017, DOD obligated more money on federal contracts ($320 billion in current dollars) than all other government agencies combined. DOD\u2019s contract obligations were equal to 8% of all mandatory and discretionary federal spending. Services accounted for 41% of total DOD contract obligations, goods for 51%, and research and development (R&D) for 8%. This distribution is in contrast to the rest of the federal government, which obligated a larger portion of contracting dollars on services (71%), than on goods (21%) or research and development (8%).\nAccording to FPDS data, from FY2000 to FY2017, DOD contract obligations increased from $189 billion to $320 billion (FY2017 dollars). The increase in spending, however, has not been steady. DOD contract obligations over the last 17 years were marked by an annualized increase of 11.5% between FY2000 and FY2008, followed by an annualized decrease of 6.5% from FY2008 to FY2015, and then increased again from FY2015 to FY2017 by 6.5% annually. Some say the steep rise, fall, and rise of DOD contract spending makes it difficult for DOD to pursue a strategic approach to budgeting. \nFor almost 20 years, DOD has dedicated an ever-smaller share of its contracting dollars to R&D, with such contracts dropping from 15% of total contract obligations in 2000, to 8% in 2017.\nUnderstanding the Limitation of FPDS Data\nDecisionmakers should be cautious when using obligation data from FPDS to develop policy or otherwise draw conclusions. In some cases, the data itself may not be reliable. In some instances, a query for particular data may return differing results, depending on the parameters and timing.\nAll data have imperfections and limitations. FPDS data can be used to identify broad trends and produce rough estimates, or to gather information about specific contracts. Some observers say that despite its shortcomings, FPDS data are substantially more comprehensive than what is available in most other countries in the world. Understanding the limitations of data\u2014knowing when, how, and to what extent to rely on data\u2014helps policymakers incorporate FPDS data more effectively into their decisionmaking process.\nThe General Services Administration (GSA) is undertaking a multi-year effort to improve the reliability, precision, retrieval, and utility of the information contained in FPDS and other federal government information systems. This effort, if successful, could significantly improve DOD\u2019s ability to engage in evidence- and data-based decisionmaking.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44010", "sha1": "c152061468fa134822951f7e9b63bae0b2645291", "filename": "files/20180702_R44010_c152061468fa134822951f7e9b63bae0b2645291.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/10.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_5fc63dbe3e6d8f4ada6580f3eec7518944f2e711.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/9.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_62a69fbdf98d1782708c68c0350d3d630b698315.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/1.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_74651921797c40779c032165e95506c35606d09e.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/3.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_e0ce14bdcd3774f25bd178ce6174c8fda0528598.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/5.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_e83bc23a123b081eb905206eee07326627934705.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/0.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_31e9761b4c00dce8ed936c993cfd16c49b38ed03.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/11.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_5a255e7d9a8522fa30b939d98f465dd6802bb782.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/7.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_8701101c8203b45c47ff11ed50af82e0c95bfdbf.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/2.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_9a08d60ec31ecdadf3d9a3d39cfc91fcc0053b18.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/6.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_0840cf0521230a2d49c04d201dd7f664f87b7563.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/4.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_4c7e0e34328e0e3f5c6d60e824f8971b9206045f.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/8.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_9b6bc55d1342cdc489ebc799d0a37ead00fe6c3d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R44010_files&id=/12.png": "files/20180702_R44010_images_e9ab71c2e592fc4022924e7253cdbc2aa78fcd57.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44010", "sha1": "3dbc3cecbdbf9321a06cd672ead10348033320c8", "filename": "files/20180702_R44010_3dbc3cecbdbf9321a06cd672ead10348033320c8.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4925, "name": "Readiness, Training, Logistics, & Installations" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 457752, "date": "2016-12-20", "retrieved": "2016-12-22T16:28:15.887072", "title": "Defense Acquisitions: How and Where DOD Spends and Reports Its Contracting Dollars", "summary": "The Department of Defense (DOD) has long relied on contractors to provide the U.S. military with a wide range of goods and services, including weapons, vehicles, food, uniforms, and operational support. Without contractor support, the United States would be currently unable to arm and field an effective fighting force. Costs and trends associated with contractor support provides Congress more information upon which to make budget decisions and weigh the relative costs and benefits of different military operations\u2014including contingency operations and maintaining bases around the world.\nTotal DOD Contract Obligations\nObligations occur when agencies enter into contracts, employ personnel, or otherwise commit to spending money. The federal government tracks money obligated on federal contracts through a database called the Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation (referred to as FPDS). There is no public database that tracks DOD contract outlays (money expended from the Treasury) as comprehensively as FPDS tracks obligations.\nIn FY2015, DOD obligated more money on federal contracts ($274 billion in current dollars, or $283 billion in inflation-adjusted FY2017 dollars) than all other federal government agencies combined. DOD\u2019s contract obligations were equal to 7% of all mandatory and discretionary federal spending. Services accounted for 44% of total DOD contract obligations, goods for 47%, and research and development (R&D) for 9%. This distribution is in contrast to the rest of the federal government, which obligated a larger portion of contracting dollars on services (53%), than on goods (38%) and research and development (9%) combined.\nAccording to FPDS data, from FY2000 to FY2015, DOD contract obligations increased from $187 billion to $283 billion (FY2017 dollars). The increase in spending, however, has not been steady. DOD contract obligations were marked by an annualized increase of 14.8% in current dollars between FY2000 and FY2008, followed by an annualized decrease of 5.0% from FY2008 to FY2015. The rise and fall of DOD contract spending may make budgeting more difficult than in the rest of the federal government, which has had more gradual increases and less drastic cuts.\nFor almost 20 years, DOD has dedicated an ever-smaller share of its contracting dollars to R&D, with such contracts dropping from 18% of total contract obligations in FY1998 to 9% in FY2015.\nUnderstanding the Limitation of FPDS Data\nDecisionmakers should be cautious when using obligation data from FPDS to develop policy or otherwise draw conclusions. In some cases, the data itself may not be reliable. In some instances, a query for particular data may return differing results, depending on the parameters and timing.\nAll data have imperfections and limitations. FPDS data can be used to identify broad trends and produce rough estimates, or to gather information about specific contracts. Some observers say that despite its shortcomings, FPDS data are substantially more comprehensive than what is available in most other countries in the world. Understanding the limitations of data\u2014knowing when, how, and to what extent to rely on data\u2014helps policymakers incorporate FPDS data more effectively into their decisionmaking process.\nThe General Services Administration (GSA) is undertaking a multi-year effort to improve the reliability, precision, retrieval, and utility of the information contained in FPDS and other federal government information systems. This effort, if successful, could significantly improve DOD\u2019s ability to engage in evidence- and data-based decisionmaking.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44010", "sha1": "a34d94db88a0cc2631b7d323e61330854386cff2", "filename": "files/20161220_R44010_a34d94db88a0cc2631b7d323e61330854386cff2.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44010", "sha1": "70b64c988ecb9ab53cdb5abebf29ad815984f3bc", "filename": "files/20161220_R44010_70b64c988ecb9ab53cdb5abebf29ad815984f3bc.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4925, "name": "Readiness, Training, Logistics, & Installations" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 440855, "date": "2015-04-30", "retrieved": "2016-04-06T19:08:34.541238", "title": "Defense Acquisitions: How and Where DOD Spends Its Contracting Dollars", "summary": "The Department of Defense (DOD) has long relied on contractors to provide the U.S. military with a wide range of goods and services, including weapons, food, uniforms, and operational support. Without contractor support, the United States would be currently unable to arm and field an effective fighting force. Understanding costs and trends associated with contractor support could provide Congress more information upon which to make budget decisions and weigh the relative costs and benefits of different military operations\u2014including contingency operations and maintaining bases around the world.\nObligations occur when agencies enter into contracts, employ personnel, or otherwise commit to spending money. The federal government tracks money obligated on federal contracts through a database called the Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation (FPDS). There is no public database that tracks DOD contract outlays (money spent) as comprehensively as obligations. \nTotal DOD Contract Obligations\nIn FY2014, DOD obligated more money on federal contracts ($285 billion) than all other government agencies combined. DOD\u2019s obligations were equal to 8% of federal spending. Services accounted for 45% of total DOD contract obligations, goods for 45%, and research and development (R&D) for 10%. This distribution is in contrast to the rest of the federal government, which obligated a significantly larger portion of contracting dollars on services (68%), than on goods (22%) or research and development (9%).\nAccording to FPDS data, from FY2000 to FY2014, DOD contract obligations increased from $190 billion to $290 billion (FY2015 dollars). However, the increase in spending has not been steady. DOD contract obligations over the last 15 years are marked by a steep increase of $260 billion from FY2000 to FY2008 (averaging 11% annual increases), followed by a substantial drop of $160 billion (averaging 7% annual decreases) from FY2008 to FY2014. This boom-and-bust trend of DOD contract obligations, which makes budget cutting more difficult due to relatively large budget swings, is in marked contrast to the rest of the federal government, which has had more gradual increases and less drastic contract spending cuts.\nFor almost 20 years, DOD has dedicated an ever-smaller share of its contracting dollars to R&D, with such contracts dropping from 18% of total contract obligations in FY1998 to 10% in FY2014.\nUnderstanding the Limitation of FPDS Data\nDecision-makers should be cautious when using obligation data from FPDS to develop policy or otherwise draw conclusions. In some cases, the data itself may not be reliable. For example, according to DOD officials, the data in FPDS over-represents FY2008 obligations by $13 billion and under-represents FY2009 obligations by the same amount. Depending on the query, understanding and pulling reports from FPDS can be confusing and difficult to interpret. In some instances, a query for particular data may return differing results, depending on the type of query used. \nDespite the limitations of FPDS, imperfect data is sometimes better than no data. A number of foreign observers have noted that despite its shortcomings, FPDS data is substantially better than what is available in virtually any other country in the world. FPDS data can be used to identify some broad trends and rough estimations, or to gather information about specific contracts. Understanding the limitations of data\u2014knowing when, how, and to what extent to rely on data\u2014could help policymakers incorporate FPDS data more effectively into their decision-making process. \nGSA is undertaking a multi-year effort to improve the reliability and usefulness of the information contained in FPDS and other federal government information systems. This effort, if successful, could significantly improve DOD\u2019s ability to engage in evidence- and data-based decision-making. \nThis report examines (1) how much money DOD obligates on contracts, (2) what DOD is buying, and (3) where that money is being spent. This report also examines the extent to which these data are sufficiently reliable to use as a factor when developing policy or analyzing government operations.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44010", "sha1": "d459823425a3c7abfc7e743f6cbe3729951588b7", "filename": "files/20150430_R44010_d459823425a3c7abfc7e743f6cbe3729951588b7.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44010", "sha1": "d6c5e24e348277b8e59186c984b2df7b61e650db", "filename": "files/20150430_R44010_d6c5e24e348277b8e59186c984b2df7b61e650db.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 3231, "name": "Defense Acquisition" } ] } ], "topics": [ "National Defense", "Science and Technology Policy" ] }