Air Force officials correct resource stewardship Published Dec. 3, 2010 WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Air Force officials have taken corrective action following a DOD comptroller review that confirmed service officials violated the Anti-Deficiency Act in fiscal 2005 by over obligating approximately $87 million from the Air Force Military Personnel Appropriation for permanent change of station moves. The investigation focused on the procedures, policies and individuals who were involved in management of the PCS account and found four individuals responsible for a violation. In addition, the secretary of the Air Force and the chief of staff determined that the actions or inactions of five additional individuals contributed to the problem. "We are committed to proper stewardship of all resources entrusted to us," said Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley, who requested the outside review to ensure an objective assessment. The Anti-Deficiency Act states that government officials may not make payments or commit the United States to make payments for goods or services unless there are enough funds appropriated to fully cover the cost. The investigation determined that the Air Force improperly charged expenses related to PCS moves to different fiscal years. PCS moves involve transactions that commonly take years to complete and in this instance were based on initial estimates that subsequently proved to be inadequate. "Everyone is accountable for their actions," Secretary Donley said. "The DOD comptroller's investigation determined that the individuals involved did not violate the ADA willfully or knowingly, however, the individuals failed to meet our standards. They have, therefore, been the subject of administrative actions." In determining the appropriate action for each individual, the secretary and chief of staff considered the nature of the action or inaction, performance of the individual in other respects at the time and since the events, efforts to address the problems, and the context of the violation. "All of the actions occurred in the context of supporting two wars overseas, drawing down the Air Force by forty thousand people, and supporting the homeland defense efforts," Secretary Donley said. Air Force officials took immediate and substantive actions to correct the problems as they were identified and to prevent a recurrence of the events. They changed accounting methods, modified regulations, clarified responsibilities, increased staffing and retrained personnel, and established a combined personnel and financial management review body. They also strengthened relationships between the personnel, financial and legal staffs and formalized cross-functional staffing and communication in Air Force instructions. The over obligation was corrected with a reprogramming of funds in 2006 and 2010 from other Air Force funding sources after approval by Congress.