MILITARY HOUSING: Information on the Privatization of Unaccompanied Personnel Housing

" Partly in response to concerns that inadequate housing might be contributing to servicemembers' decisions to leave the military, Congress enacted the MHPI in 1996. The initiative gave the Department of Defense (DOD) legal authorities to replace or renovate inadequate housing for unaccompanied military personnel (those without dependents) and military families using private-sector financing, ownership, operation, and maintenance. Certain military personnel receive the BAH, which can be used to pay rent to live in privatized housing. Since 1996, DOD has built and modernized on-installation unaccompanied personnel housing using military construction funds. According to a February 2013 DOD report to Congress, from fiscal years 1996 through 2012, DOD spent over $20 billion of military construction funds to build and modernize on-installation housing for unaccompanied military personnel. GAO was asked to review DOD's efforts to privatize unaccompanied housing. GAO discusses the (1) analyses the military services conducted to make decisions about privatizing housing for unaccompanied personnel and (2) status of housing projects the military services have privatized for unaccompanied personnel. GAO obtained and reviewed fiscal years 1996-2013 housing plans and analyses the"

The Department of Defense (DoD) paid active duty military personnel over $18 billion in housing allowances in FY 2010. DoD sets housing allowance rates annually based on market costs of rent, utilities, and renter¿s insurance. Also, DoD has identified 26 installations significantly impacted by expected growth in personnel due to various rebasing actions. This report reviewed DoD¿s rate-setting process, among other issues. The report determined: (1) whether there are enhancements to strengthen DoD¿s rate-setting process; and (2) whether service members have encountered challenges in obtaining off-base housing. Includes recommendations. Charts and tables. This is a print on demand edition of an important, hard-to-find publication.

The Department of Defense (DOD) spends about $8 billion annually to provide housing for military members and their families either by paying cash allowances for members to live in private sector housing or by assigning members to military-owned or -leased quarters. Over the past several years, DOD has expressed concern over the poor quality of the military housing inventory and the need for renovations and improvements to bring the housing up to contemporary standards. To improve housing faster and more economically than could be achieved if only traditional military construction appropriations were used, the Congress approved DOD's request for a new initiative, known as the Military Housing Privatization initiative, that allows and encourages private sector financing, ownership, operation, and maintenance of military housing. Under the initiative, DOD can provide direct loans, loan guarantees, and other incentives to encourage private developers to construct and operate housing either on or off military installations. Because it represents a new approach to improving military housing, GAO reviewed the implementation of the new initiative to (1) measure progress to date, (2) assess issues associated with privatizing military housing, and (3) determine whether the new initiative is being integrated with other elements of DOD's housing program.

"Prepared for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army, Installations, Energy & Environment."