Defense Contract Management Agency: Amid Ongoing Efforts to Rebuild Capacity, Several Factors Present Challenges in Meeting Its Missions

The Defense Contract Management Agency DCMA provides contract administration services for DoD buying activities. Its contract management offices CMO work with defense contractors to help ensure that goods and services are delivered on time, at projected cost, and that they meet performance requirements. DCMA also supports combatant commanders during contingency operations. As DCMA recovers from years of significant downsizing, GAO was asked to do the following 1 assess how the agency is positioning itself to meet its missions, 2 determine the extent to which contingency missions affect its oversight domestically, and 3 identify other factors that may affect its domestic missions going forward. GAO reviewed regulations, policies, and guidance analyzed the status of contractor business systems for 17 defense contractors and interviewed a wide range of DCMA officials. GAO recommends that DoD work with DCMA and the Defense Contract Audit Agency DCAA to identify and execute options to assist in audits of contractor business systems. GAO also recommends that DCMA clarify for CMOs the agencys plans to continue funding existing workforce positions and that it identify ways to accurately reflect the status of contractor business systems, such as changing the status to unassessed when audits are delayed. DoD concurred with the first two recommendations. DoD partially concurred with the remaining recommendation, but discussed several planned actions which, if implemented, should improve the transparency of system assessments.