Greater Emphasis on Occupant Responsibilities Can Reduce Military Family Housing Costs
PLRD-83-77
Published: Jun 06, 1983. Publicly Released: Jun 06, 1983.
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Highlights
GAO evaluated the Department of Defense's (DOD) effectiveness in identifying and assessing occupant damages to military family housing and its efficiency in operating self-help maintenance programs.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to provide highly visible emphasis on an assertive damage assessment and collection program. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense, to enhance the potential benefits of the self-help programs and to increase their effectiveness if they have been determined to be cost beneficial, should require the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to determine the feasibility of making minor maintenance tasks mandatory for tenants and charging tenants if such maintenance is done at government expense. |
Closed – Not Implemented
DOD did not concur with this recommendation because it would be unfair for people lacking needed skills or when a sponsor was deployed.
|
| Department of the Air Force | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to provide proper support and command emphasis on enforcing housing occupants' responsibilities. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Navy | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to provide proper support and command emphasis on enforcing housing occupants' responsibilities. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Army | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to provide proper support and command emphasis on enforcing housing occupants' responsibilities. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to develop and issue clear, specific instructions for identifying and collecting tenant damages. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Air Force | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to develop and implement procedures to ensure that: (1) maintenance personnel identify work necessitated by suspected tenant damages; and (2) housing inspectors are notified in order to start collection actions. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Navy | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to develop and implement procedures to ensure that: (1) maintenance personnel identify work necessitated by suspected tenant damages; and (2) housing inspectors are notified in order to start collection actions. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Army | The Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force should require their installations to develop and implement procedures to ensure that: (1) maintenance personnel identify work necessitated by suspected tenant damages; and (2) housing inspectors are notified in order to start collection actions. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense, to enhance the potential benefits of the self-help programs and to increase their effectiveness if they have been determined to be cost beneficial, should require the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to provide uniform, specific guidelines for the self-help programs that list: (1) those tasks which are to be tenant responsibilities; and (2) those items to be stocked in the self-help stores for tenant use in performing these tasks. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense, to deter occupant damage and reduce housing maintenance costs, should provide more explicit criteria as to what constitutes abuse and neglect and strongly emphasize the importance of ensuring that tenants pay for damages. In particular, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to: (1) provide highly visible emphasis on an assertive damage assessment and collection program; and (2) develop and issue clear, specific instructions for identifying and collecting for tenant damage. The service Secretaries should require their installations to: (1) provide proper support and command emphasis on enforcing housing occupants' responsibilities; and (2) develop and implement procedures to ensure that maintenance personnel identify work necessitated by suspended tenant damages, and that housing inspectors are notified in order to start collection actions. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should require the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to make a reassessment of their self-help programs. The reassessment should include a determination of the actual, where available, or the best estimated cost of the program and the savings being realized. These data should originate at the installation level. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense, to enhance the potential benefits of the self-help programs, and to increase their effectiveness if they have been determined to be cost beneficial, should require the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to: (1) strengthen internal controls to ensure that housing money used for self-help is properly accounted for; (2) store inventories are properly controlled; and (3) store items are used in military family housing to make minor repairs. |
Closed – Implemented
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
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Topics
Collection proceduresMilitary housingPersonal liability (legal)Program evaluationProperty damagesRepair costsTenantsMilitary forcesNegligenceHousing maintenance