The Pentagon has failed to pass its annual financial audit for the sixth consecutive year, prompting conservative lawmakers to call for consequences for the Department of Defense.
The Pentagon, which has $3.8 trillion in assets alongside $4 trillion in liabilities, only had seven of 30 sub-audits rated clean by auditors, Defense News reported. Eighteen sub-audits failed, three are still taking place, and one was “qualified,” according to Comptroller Mike McCord.
The news comes after the U.S. sent billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine and official reports that the DoD had not been able to track all of the weapons and military equipment it had sent to the country.
“It’s not enough,” McCord said of the Pentagon fixing some issues flagged by the previous year’s audit. “The secretary [of defense] feels that we need to be doing better at this and moving faster.”
McCord said the Pentagon needed to work closer with the Treasury Department to make sure they were on the same page and that they needed to use automation to optimize the process.
The comptroller added that there was just under $5 billion worth of U.S. supplies that could be sent to Ukraine. A Pentagon accounting error earlier this year gave the DoD another $6.2 billion in aid to give to Ukraine.
Since the war between Russia and Ukraine began, Congress has approved $113 billion for Ukraine, with much of that coming in the form of military aid.
Lawmakers are also planning on sending billions in military aid to Israel amid its war with Hamas but the House and Senate have yet to both approve any aid packages including funding for Israel.
“The running room we have to actually help Israel is much more constrained [than it is for Ukraine] because we don’t have any action by Congress yet,” McCord said.
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With news of the failed audit, Republicans slammed the Pentagon, calling for more accountability.
“The Pentagon has failed its sixth straight audit. $3.8 trillion vanished into thin air. Any other organization would face consequences,” Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) said.
“DOD’s inability to adequately track assets risks our military readiness and represents a flagrant disregard for taxpayer funds, even as it receives nearly a trillion dollars annually,” the House Oversight Committee said.
“The recent failure of the Pentagon’s 6TH audit couldn’t make it clearer that we need accountability & transparency. It’s time to independently [audit the Pentagon]. No institution is above scrutiny, especially the DoD w/ the largest budget of ANY fed agency,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said.
The Center for Renewing America, a conservative policy organization, pointed to the leftist tilt of the military bureaucracy saying, “Our bureaucratic government agencies are as incompetent as they are WOKE & WEAPONIZED!”