United States Accounting Office
Published: 2000-06-30
Total Pages: 38
Get eBook
The Civil Air Patrol is a congressionally chartered, private, nonprofit corporation that uses about 61,000 dues-paying volunteers to perform its missions. The missions are to provide (1) emergency services including counternarcotics, disaster relief, and search and rescue missions using small aircraft; (2) aerospace education; and (3) cadet training. Congress has designated the Civil Air Patrol the civilian auxiliary of the Air Force and provided about $26.6 million in fiscal year 2000 for the Patrol in the Air Force appropriation. The Air Force is responsible for providing advice and assistance to the Patrol's management and overseeing its operations. A series of Air Force and Department of Defense audits and inspections since 1998 have raised concerns about Civil Air Patrol's financial management and inventory control practices as well as Air Force oversight of the Patrol. Consequently, you asked us to review Air Force proposals to reorganize the Patrol's management. In addition, section 934 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 20001 required us and the Department of Defense Inspector General to independently review potential improvements to Patrol management. During our review, we assessed (1) the nature of the relationship between the Air Force and Civil Air Patrol, (2) the Air Force's oversight of the Patrol, (3) the Patrol's management and oversight of its own activities, and (4) plans to resolve identified problems.