Pentagon Fails 7th Audit in a Row as US Military Budget Approaches $1 Trillion

Last week, the Pentagon disclosed that it had once again failed to pass its annual audit, marking the seventh such failure in a row. This issue arises as the department struggles to account for the trillions of dollars in assets it manages.

Despite repeatedly failing to secure a clean audit, the U.S. Department of Defense portrayed the 2024 audit results optimistically. The Pentagon’s chief financial officer stated with confidence that “momentum is on our side.”

The Pentagon stands as the largest agency in the federal government, consuming about half of the nation’s annual discretionary spending. Its budget is nearing the $1 trillion mark, raising eyebrows over its chronic inability to track the considerable funds allocated by both Congress and multiple presidential administrations.

The Defense Department’s inspector general released a financial report last Friday, estimating the Pentagon’s assets at $4.1 trillion. It remains the only significant federal agency that has yet to pass a clean audit as mandated by law.

“Among the 28 reporting entities subjected to independent financial statement audits, nine received an unmodified audit opinion, one received a qualified opinion, 15 were issued disclaimers, and three are still pending,” reported the Pentagon last Friday.

Since its initial failed audit in 2018, Congress has approved trillions of dollars in further military expenditures. The Costs of War Project indicates that over half of the annual Pentagon budget is now funneled to military contractors known for charging the government excessively.

“This latest audit failure is a clear indicator for the new administration on where to begin cutting government expenses,” Lindsay Koshgarian, director of the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies, commented to Common Dreams. She suggested that, rather than reducing veterans’ benefits or the Department of Education, cuts should start with the Pentagon, which has consistently failed to pass an audit.

Progressive advocates and some members of Congress have repeatedly pointed to the Pentagon’s audit failures as proof of widespread mismanagement and financial waste. A 2015 Pentagon report, which unearthed $125 billion in administrative waste, was suppressed over concerns that it would lead to significant budget cuts, as reported by The Washington Post at the time.

Last year, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have compelled the Pentagon to return a portion of its budget to the Treasury’s general fund as a penalty for its audit failures.

“Despite continuous efforts, year after year, establishment figures from both political parties have blocked these amendments from ever reaching a vote,” stated Warren Gunnels, Sanders’ staff director, in a tweet this past weekend.

This story has been updated with comments from Lindsay Koshgarian of the National Priorities Project.