Mid-Year Audit Decision Approaching for USAF

Air Force leaders are expected to determine later this year whether the service is ready to begin auditing its annual finances, USAF spokeswoman Capt. Erika Yepsen told the Daily Report. In late December, the Marine Corps became the first military service to undergo a successful audit of its current year budget statement by the Department of Defense’s Inspector General. The Dec. 23 announcement drew praise from Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, who said the milestone was the first step toward DOD’s goal of having all four services pass an audit by Fiscal 2017. “Along with the progress some DOD agencies have made in generating auditable financial statements, this development marks an important milestone on the path to achieving greater accountability in our financial operations and more effective management of the defense enterprise writ large,” said Hagel in late December. Senior Air Force leaders have touted efforts the service is implementing to get to this goal as well, but much work remains. USAF is currently on a “well designed, albeit aggressive path” to meeting 2014 and eventually 2017 audit readiness goals, Yepsen said.