Department of the Army Historical Summary: FY 1992

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Special Functions

The Army performs functions not generally associated with its primary mission of warfighting, ranging from the important infrastructure programs of the Corps of Engineers, such as water resources development, to efforts to improve civilian marksmanship. These functions also include the handling of litigation by the Judge Advocate General's Office and the monitoring by Army inspectors of the service's efficiency, discipline, morale, and readiness. During FY 1992, the Army continued its commemoration of the service and sacrifices of World War II veterans during the fiftieth anniversary of that conflict and provided heraldic services for federal agencies. It also strove to reduce energy consumption and create more opportunities for small and disadvantaged businesses.

Civil Works

Under the direction of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), the Corps of Engineers (COE) planned, constructed, and operated congressionally mandated projects in the fields of navigation, flood control, hydroelectric power, municipal and industrial water supply, recreation, management of natural resources, and environmental protection. The COE also regulated construction, dredging, and fill in waterways and wetlands; carried out emergency tasks; supplied engineering and construction management to other federal agencies under its Support for Others program; and helped other nations under its International Activities program. As the world's largest public works engineering, design, and construction management agency, the Corps of Engineers employed military and civilian engineers, scientists, and other specialists in division and district offices as well as in four major research centers and laboratories. The BRAC program did not apply to the Army's civil works program. The National Defense Authorization Act amended the Base Realignment and Closure Act of 1990 to exclude from the definition of "military installation" any facility used primarily for civil works, river and harbor projects, or flood control.

The Corps of Engineers' total appropriation of $10.8 billion covered military construction for the Army and the Air Force, design and con-

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struction management for other defense agencies, environmental and restoration programs, civil works, and Support for Others projects. The last two accounted for approximately $4.2 billion, an increase of about 9 percent from that of FY 1991. Appropriations for the Army's civil works activities, however, were part of the annual Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act rather than military appropriations. The civil works program also received close to $142 million from nonfederal project sponsors as their share of project construction costs. Reimbursable agreements with other federal agencies financed the Support for Others program. Table 14 shows a breakdown of these appropriations.

TABLE 14—APPROPRIATIONS AND FUNDING FOR FISCAL YEAR 1992
(IN 000s)

The civil works program appropriations included funds to start construction of the projects in Table 15.

TABLE 15—NEW CONSTRUCTION STARTS
(IN 000s)

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The Water Resources Development Act of 1986 mandated cost sharing for most civil projects of the Corps of Engineers. Based on percentages stated in the act, local cooperation agreements specified the nonfederal shares of projects. During FY 1992, the Army entered into 31 new cooperation agreements, which increased the total to 201. The Army worked with Congress during the fiscal year on the passage of the Water Resources Development Act of 1992, the fourth biennial water resources authorization act since 1986.

Flood Control

Most of the flood control projects built by the Corps of Engineers were joint ventures of the federal government and nonfederal sponsors. The cosponsors owned, operated, and maintained the completed structures, including reservoirs, levees and dams, pump stations, improved channels, and floodwalls. In emergencies, the COE provided technical assistance, materials, and construction. During FY 1992, COE projects and emergency operations prevented an estimated $8.1 billion in flood damages, or 88 percent of the nation's total flood damages prevented that year. Total damages for the fiscal year were lower than for FY 1991, mainly because drought conditions resulted in fewer floods in the huge Mississippi River basin. The COE estimated the average flood damage savings for the preceeding ten years at $13.7 billion per year. Thus, the nation's $20 billion investment in flood control has saved over $7 in flood damages for every dollar spent.

Natural Disaster Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Activities

During FY 1992, the Corps of Engineers was involved in most aspects of planning and preparation for natural disasters under the Federal

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Response Plan. Throughout the winter of 1991-92, storms caused flooding in Arizona, southern California, southeastern and south central Texas, Iowa, Ohio, and western New York. In response, the COE supplied emergency contracting, reservoir control, sandbags, and technical assistance. The spring of 1992 brought a major flood in Chicago when water from the Chicago River breached a freight tunnel system in the downtown area. The resulting inundation filled subbasements of multistory office buildings, disrupted power, closed the subway system, and even forced evacuation of the area around the Loop for a number of days. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) directed the Corps of Engineers to stop the flow of water and drain the tunnel system. At the peak of their operations, 150 COE personnel were working to plug the leak and empty the tunnels. As part of its response to the flood, the corps negotiated contracts totaling over $7 million.

In late August 1992, Hurricane Andrew hit Florida and Louisiana and Typhoon Omar struck Guam. Andrew, the costliest disaster in United States history, caused an estimated $20 billion of devastation, killed more than 50 people, and left over 200,000 homeless. With FEMA's authorization, the Corps of Engineers removed debris and garbage, repaired schools, supplied potable water and ice, erected temporary shower and laundry facilities, furnished generators for public utilities, provided technical assistance, and prepared damage survey reports. Total costs to the COE came to $382 million. The Air Force gave the COE $15 million for its work on Homestead Air Force Base. In Guam, the corps, at FEMA's direction, also restored electrical power, replaced roofing with temporary plastic sheeting, provided potable water, and prepared damage survey reports.

After Hurricane Iniki struck the island of Kauai, Hawaii, in September, FEMA authorized $40.5 million for the Corps of Engineers to provide temporary roofing, debris clearance, potable water and ice, and technical assistance. As was the case with Andrew, Iniki brought together several hundred COE personnel to work with federal, state, and local agencies in providing relief. Rarely had so many agencies at so many levels of government worked together to achieve a common goal.

Regulatory Functions

The Corps of Engineers' regulatory function has a long history. Congress established their permit or regulatory program in the nineteenth century to protect navigation, and it expanded the program in the 1970s to include the deposit of dredged and fill material into waterways and wetlands. Through an extensive review process, the Corps of Engineers has helped to implement environmental protection statutes, to preserve wetlands, and to protect other natural areas. Although the COE budget for the

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regulatory program was relatively small, Army engineers were fully committed to preserving wetlands and other natural areas.

During the fiscal year, the Corps of Engineers revised its agreements with the Departments of Commerce and the Interior and with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pursuant to Section 404(q) of the Clean Water Act. Under the old agreements, local agencies often referred final decisions on permits to the Washington headquarters, thereby creating unnecessary delays and additional work for the COE. In May 1992, the Corps of Engineers issued formal guidance that clarified its role as the decision maker in the permit process. Under the new arrangement, the COE would continue to consider comments from agencies but would have sole responsibility for final decisions. The concurrence of the other agencies to this procedure gave the COE the ability to make decisions on a more timely basis.

As part of its regulatory function, the Corps of Engineers became involved in wetlands delineation. At issue were differences between an interagency manual published in 1989 and the COE 1987 wetlands manual. In August 1991, the COE started to use its own 1987 manual on an interim basis to identify and delineate wetlands, and it worked with the EPA and the Bush administration to formally adopt that manual. During the fiscal year, the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act required the Corps of Engineers to use the 1987 manual in its regulatory program.

In August 1992, the Corps of Engineers and the EPA jointly proposed to close a loophole in the Clean Water Act that allowed unregulated discharges of excavated material associated with wetlands drainage. The changes in the Federal Register clarified the definition of "discharge of dredged material" while also redefining the regulation of pilings under Section 404 and codifying the COE's 1990 regulatory guidance exempting prior converted cropland from regulation. The COE received over 6,000 mostly favorable comments on this proposal.

Navigation

The Corps of Engineers' navigation mission affects commerce moving through coastal ports and along inland waterways of the United States. Using the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, the COE maintains the navigability of 114 major deep-draft harbors and more than 400 shallow-draft harbors. Over the years, the COE has constructed more than 12,000 miles of commercial navigation channels for intracoastal and inland waterborne commerce and has built 235 locks and dams. It also improves and maintains this extensive navigation system, drawing on the Inland Waterways Trust Fund for improvements to the inland waterway system and removing over 250 million cubic yards of dredged material from the navigation

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system each year. During FY 1992, the locks of the inland and intracoastal systems were available for shipping 99 percent of the time. After almost five years of work, the Corps of Engineers finished two new locks at the Gallipolis Locks and Dam project on the Ohio River in West Virginia. The $384 million project will eventually include construction of operational facilities and provisions for minimal impact on the environment and recreation, as well as rehabilitation of the main and auxiliary chambers.

Support for Others

The Support for Others program consisted of a variety of projects performed by the Corps of Engineers for other federal agencies. Much of the program involved reimbursable work, such as supervising the construction of wastewater treatment plants, removing toxic and hazardous waste for the Superfund, designing and building space launch facilities, and managing embassy construction and security support for the U.S. State Department and U.S. Information Agency. In particular, the environmentally related portion of the program has shown steady growth over the past several years, with the balance of the program remaining at about the same level. Under an agreement with the EPA, the corps managed remedial design and remedial actions, such as construction or the removal of toxic wastes at Superfund sites designated by the EPA.

During FY 1992, the corps' Support for Others program totaled $464 million and 1,190 work years. Environmental protection or restoration accounted for 60 percent of this effort. Of the environmental support, 60 percent went to the EPA Superfund toxic waste cleanup program, 30 percent to the EPA Construction Grants program, and 10 percent to the Department of Energy (DOE). The remainder of the Support for Others program served federal agencies (97 percent) and state and local governments (3 percent). Aside from the environmental projects, the agencies most affected by the Support for Others program were FEMA, EPA, DOE, NASA, and the Department of Transportation.

International Activities

The Corps of Engineers set the value of its International Activities program in excess of $566 million for FY 1992. This figure included $215 million for recovery operations in Kuwait following Operation DESERT STORM, $280 million for security assistance and counternarcotics projects, $36 million for the support of civil works projects under international treaties, $32 million for support of other U.S. agencies under the Economy Act, and $1.6 million for the African Civil Action Program. An additional $1.76 million for smaller scale activities included work for other governments under the Foreign Assistance Act, support for the unified commanders, aid to the Compact of Free Association, technical assistance for

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American firms competing for business overseas, and participation in international technical agencies such as the Permanent International Association of Navigation Congresses.

As its budget shows, the corps' international activities involved it in a variety of overseas ventures. The rebuilding of Kuwait's infrastructure continued during the fiscal year. Iraq's occupation had left Kuwait without public services and physically devastated. Planners had divided the reconstruction into an emergency response phase to restore basic essential services to the Kuwaitis and a reconstruction phase to provide more permanent repairs to public buildings, facilities, and services. On 30 April 1991, the emergency response phase officially ended and the reconstruction phase began when Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney designated the Secretary of the Army as the executive agent for Kuwait reconstruction. Secretary Stone assigned the responsibility for supervising the more than $400 million program to Susan Livingstone, the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Logistics, and Environment (ASA [IL&E]), who would work in coordination with the Army's General Counsel. DOD also established the Defense Reconstruction Assistance Office (DRAO) to assist the Army with planning and organizing Kuwait's reconstruction.

In her supervision of Kuwaiti reconstruction, Assistant Secretary Livingstone sought to foster the use of American small and small disadvantaged businesses (SSDB). Contracts included clauses encouraging contract proposals with SSDB subcontractors. The Army also set aside a number of modest projects strictly for SSDBs. As Kuwait's official bureaucracy returned to operation, Livingstone directed that DOD not get involved with long-term civil contracts, but she stipulated that her office would continue its oversight until the conclusion of reconstruction contracts in the summer of 1992.

By the start of FY 1992, the Corps of Engineers, which had been assisting the Kuwaiti government with restoring facilities since January 1991, was thoroughly involved in the reconstruction phase. The corps' involvement in Kuwait was spearheaded by the Kuwait Emergency Recovery Office (KERO), which conducted damage surveys and managed reconstruction contracts. KERO completed its last damage survey on 20 November 1991. The 1,200 assessments completed since Kuwait's liberation represented the first step in obtaining contractors to repair the damage.

Although many repairs had been finished within months of the liberation, work on many facilities continued into FY 1992. KERO-administered contracts were used to rebuild at least 1,000 public buildings by December 1991. The most important remaining project was the $67 million reconstruction of the building that housed the Kuwaiti National Assembly. This project was completed on 29 July 1992, well ahead of the next Kuwaiti elections. The Army also assisted in the restoration of Kuwait's military

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facilities at the Ras Al-Qalaya Naval Base, the Al-Salem and Al-Jaber Air Bases, and the Ministry of Defense headquarters.

The Corps of Engineers anticipated that other security assistance and counternarcotics work, mainly involving programs in Latin America and Europe, would continue at a fairly stable pace in the foreseeable future. Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, the corps provided technical assistance to the Honduran Department of Public Works and Transportation for flood control studies in the Sula Valley. It also supplied project management and other technical assistance to the Save the Children Foundation in El Salvador for the construction of a water distribution system, the first time that it had provided engineering assistance to an international nonprofit organization.

Under the Economy Act, the Corps of Engineers continued its projects for the U.S. Information Agency, Voice of America, and the Department of the Interior and started new ones for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in Latin America and the Philippine Islands. In Latin America, it trained Bolivian government engineers and signed an umbrella agreement to provide additional engineering assistance to USAID. In the Philippines, it studied the feasibility of reconstruction after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991, a project that it estimated would cost $6 million. During the fiscal year, the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) signed an umbrella Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of State's Office of Foreign Buildings Operation and also negotiated subagreements to provide technical assistance in renovating office buildings as U.S. embassies in the newly independent nations of the former Soviet Union. The COE estimated the cost of this project at $70 million.

Environmental Protection and Preservation

Although the Army had made great progress in training, equipping, and sustaining its units in an environmentally proper manner, the Army's leadership realized that it still faced an extensive and complex challenge. Among other things, the Army had to conform to the Federal Facilities Compliance Act. This act required federal installations to comply with federal and state environmental standards.

During the fiscal year, the Army prepared U.S. Army Environmental Strategy Into the 21st Century. This document took into account the significance of the environment in the 1991 National Security Strategy and emphasized that all Army missions must consider the environmental impact of their activities. The Army based its environmental strategy upon the four "pillars" of compliance, restoration, prevention, and conservation. Compliance meant that all activities at Army installations had to meet Army regulations and federal, state, local, and host nation environ-

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mental standards. Restoration signified the elimination of contamination at active Army installations and any sites used by any defense agency in the past. By prevention, the Army meant its efforts to eliminate sources of pollution. Conservation covered preservation and enhancement of the Army's natural and cultural assets for the benefit of all Americans and for the maintenance of the Army's ability to support operations.

The Army expected an increase in its liabilities in the areas of compliance, restoration, and conservation. In the field of compliance, the Army faced a constant challenge due to restructuring, base realignments and closures, and constantly changing and increasingly stringent legal requirements. In particular, the service anticipated cost increases as a result of a Federal Facilities Compliance Act provision that allowed regulatory agencies to fine federal agencies for noncompliance with the nation's hazardous waste law. The Army also faced additional expenditures as it began to clean up the bases and sites that it would transfer to local communities. Army planners set the preliminary cost of the Army's environmental restoration actions at $14.3 billion, but considered this amount to be low. Based upon managers' experience with rising costs and added requirements, the Army considered adding an extra $7.1 billion. The Corps of Engineers determined that 98 sites on 36 installations were contaminated and suspected that another 157 sites were contaminated to some extent. Initial cost estimates were $294 million, but Army officials figured that expenditures could reach $471 million.

In an atmosphere of increased concern about the environment, the Army devoted more attention to wetlands and other threatened areas during FY 1992. At projects throughout the United States, the Corps of Engineers acquired additional land, expanded fish hatcheries, and made efforts to restore and protect fish and wildlife areas. Special programs protected and preserved wetlands, endangered species, fisheries, wildlife, and habitat, as well as streams and rivers. The COE also worked to prevent or reduce salt water intrusion, to create marshes using dredged material, and to divert fresh water to maintain aquatic habitat, plants, and animals. Through such efforts, the COE sought to put into practice its research on the preservation of wildlife, stabilization of shoreline, modification of fish habitat, and impact of projects on waterfowl habitat.

The Army could point to the success of its Resource Recovery and Recycling Program. This program reached a new high during FY 1992, with revenues of $18,716,000. Its proceeds covered program operating costs, MWR activities, and energy, environmental, or safety programs.

Environmental Law

On 18 August 1992, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the United States in Daigle v. Shell and the United States. The plain-

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tiffs, a group of Colorado residents, had sought compensation for medical monitoring costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and damages under the Federal Tort Claims Act for alleged exposure to hazardous chemicals during the cleanup of the Basin F site at Rocky Mountain Arsenal. The appeals court upheld the lower court's decision that the "discretionary function" of the Federal Tort Claims Act precluded recovery of damages from the United States. The court also reversed the lower court's ruling that allowed medical monitoring costs, holding that such costs were not recoverable under the law. At the close of the fiscal year, litigation continued with Shell Oil Company as the sole defendant.

Originating in 1984, Werlein v. United States was a tort action brought by ninety-two residents of New Brighton, Minnesota, against the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant, a government-owned factory operated by the Federal Cartridge Corporation to make small-arms ammunition during World War II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars. The plaintiffs sought $85 million for personal injury and emotional distress due to alleged exposure to hazardous chemicals in their drinking water. One week before the start of the trial, the Federal Cartridge Corporation settled out of court for $3.7 million, which the Army reimbursed. After about seven months of trial, the United States settled for $1.35 million in 1992.

Army Energy Program

Since the establishment of the Army Energy Program in 1973, the Army has made significant progress in energy conservation. In FY 1991, energy consumption by facilities was 17.2 percent below the FY 1985 level. During FY 1992, the Army conducted twenty-five energy seminars worldwide and identified over $10 million in savings. In addition, the Army approved ten 1992 Energy Conservation Improvement Projects that achieved a total net discounted savings of $46.7 million. As a result of its efforts, the Department of the Army received three individual and two organizational awards from the 1992 Federal Energy Efficiency Award Program.

Army Litigation

Procurement Fraud

One of the Army's main legal concerns in FY 1992 was procurement fraud. The Secretary of the Army had established the Procurement Fraud Division in December 1986 to coordinate civil, criminal, and administrative actions in the field. During FY 1992, the Army suspended and debarred 478 companies accused of procurement fraud, collected over $6 million in criminal fines, and received nearly $59 million in civil recoveries.

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Civilian Personnel Litigation

During the fiscal year, several class action discrimination suits involving the Army proceeded through the district courts. One of the most important was Greenwood v. Stone. The plaintiffs in this suit represented a broad range of black employees who complained of racial discrimination in several Army employment practices. The court decided, erroneously in the Army's view, to apply retroactively the Civil Rights Act of 1991, thereby subjecting the Army to a jury trial and to potential liability exceeding $12 million. The plaintiffs planned to seek class certification in March 1993.

Two cases involving tort and sexual harassment claims against active duty officers—Wood v. United States and McHugh v. University of Vermont, et al.—moved from the trial to appellate level during the fiscal year. In Wood, Theresa Wood, a secretary for Maj. Charles Owens, filed a complaint in federal court against him, claiming assault and battery and civil rights violations. In McHugh, Janet McHugh, a secretary for Maj. Christopher Wheeler of the University of Vermont's Department of Military Studies, charged that Major Wheeler engaged in several acts of sexual and religious harassment during the six months that she worked for him. She further claimed that she was fired in retaliation for her complaints to Major Wheeler's supervisor. In each case, the U.S. attorney certified that, as stated in the Westfall Act, the officers were on official duty when the alleged acts occurred, making the United States the defendant in the suit. Although the plaintiffs challenged this determination, the courts ruled that they would not dismiss the tort claims against the officers. Appeals courts affirmed these decisions, although the 1st Circuit Court granted the Army's petition for rehearing en banc in Wood. McHugh returned to the district court, where the officer remained an individual defendant.

In NFFE, et al. v. Greenberg, et al., a national labor union filed suit to keep DOD from asking Army civilian employees about their personal finances, arrest records, and past drug use on a security clearance form. In April 1992, the district court issued an injunction against the use of four questions on the form, thereby effectively barring use of that form and forcing the suspension of the periodic reevaluation of civilian secret clearances. The District of Columbia Circuit Court granted DOD's motion for a stay of the injunction pending appeal. Oral argument before the appellate court was scheduled to begin in October 1992.

General Litigation

Many Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act cases involving the Army touched on highly sensitive issues. In one of the more significant, Providence Journal v. Department of the Army, a district court

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ordered the Army to release an inspector general investigation concerning allegations of alcoholism, sexual harassment, and travel fraud by the Adjutant General and former Adjutant General of the Rhode Island National Guard. The Army appealed the ruling, arguing that the deliberative process exemption protected the report's findings and recommendations from release, that privacy concerns justified its refusal to disclose unsubstantiated allegations, and that the law enforcement exemption protected information from confidential sources. The Judge Advocate General's Office expected a decision in the case before the end of 1992.

Contract cases demanded considerable time and effort by Army litigators. By the end of 1992, the Army had pending almost 160 contract cases involving hundreds of millions of dollars in claims against the Army and counterclaims against contractors. A decision was pending at the end of the fiscal year in United Technologies Corps. (Sikorski) v. United States, in which Sikorski contested two final adverse decisions of the Army's contracting officer that required it to return $50 million for defective rotary spindles in the Black Hawk helicopter. In ILC Dover, Inc. v. United States, the plaintiff sought to forbid the sole-source award of a contract for the production of the M43A1 gas mask. The plaintiff later agreed to dismiss the complaint when the Army announced that future M43A1 mask and mask-tooling would be open to competition. In Kollsman v. United States, the plaintiff sought $14 million for its work on a prospective contract to produce computer and laser range-finder systems for Egypt. The Army issued a sole-source solicitation to the plaintiff, but Egypt canceled its request before the parties signed the contract. Kollsman claimed that it should receive payment from the Army for the work it did in preparing to perform the contract, but the court ruled for the Army after a five-day trial.

One of the general litigation cases involving the Army touched on a notorious terrorist incident. In re: Air Disaster at Lockerbie, Scotland on December 21, 1988, the Army defeated claims that the government knew of plans to bomb Pan Am Flight 103 and failed to warn appropriate parties. At the close of the fiscal year, the Army was attempting to recover its defense costs in the case.

Military Personnel Litigation

In 1992, the Department of Defense and Department of the Army policy of excluding homosexuals faced judicial challenges. In Pruitt v. Cheney, Capt. Dusty Pruitt, who had been discharged by the Army in 1986 after disclosing her homosexuality in a newspaper article, sued DOD and the Army, claiming that her discharge violated her right to free speech and discriminated against her because of sexual orientation. After lower courts dismissed her free speech argument but allowed her to challenge the mer-

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its of the homosexual exclusion policy, the Army appealed to the Supreme Court, which ruled that the Army must produce evidence that the homosexual exclusion policy was rationally related to legitimate governmental interests. Captain Pruitt's case bore some similarities to the highly publicized Cammermeyer v. Cheney, in which Col. Margarethe Cammermeyer, the former Chief Nurse of the Washington State National Guard and an admitted lesbian, challenged the homosexual exclusion policy that led to her loss of federal recognition and discharge.

In Weinfield v. United States, the court rejected the plaintiff's challenge to the "Social Security Offset" of the Survivor Benefit Program. The Department of Defense had reduced survivor benefits payments by the amount to which the beneficiary would be entitled under Social Security Widow's Benefits, even when, as in this case, the beneficiary drew Social Security based upon her own earnings. The plaintiff argued that the offset violated her deceased husband's implied annuity contract with the government and denied her equal protection and due process. The district court found that an election to participate in the survivor benefit program created a valid contract and ruled that the terms of the contract, as set forth in the statute, indicated that the offset applied. The plaintiff appealed the decision to a higher court.

Tort Litigation

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) cases demanded considerable work from Army lawyers and medical personnel. Most AIDS litigation centered on blood transfusions performed during the period 1983-85, when tests for AIDS in the blood supply were unavailable. The length of time between the transfusions, poor record keeping, and concerns for donor privacy raised obstacles to obtaining the records necessary to defend the suits. AIDS litigation also involved a variety of attacks on the Feres Doctrine, which held that the government was not liable for injuries or damages to military personnel in connection with their military service. In M.M.H. v. United States, for example, an active duty soldier was initially diagnosed with the HIV virus. She had a second test while on active duty but did not receive the negative results from that test until after her discharge. The 7th Circuit Court held that, in this case, the Feres Doctrine did not absolve the Army of responsibility for its negligence in failing to notify the soldier before she left the Army.

The Army also encountered claims of negligence in training and supervision. In University of Minnesota v. Brown et al., a student at the University of Minnesota sued the university in state court for alleged sexual harassment and rape by an ROTC instructor, and the university filed a third party complaint against the instructor's ROTC supervisors. After removal to federal court and substitution of the United States for the indi-

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vidual military defendants, the district court accepted the government's argument that the student had predicated the claim of negligent supervision on the intentional tort of assault and battery, for which the United States had not waived its sovereign immunity under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

Inspector General Activities

The Inspector General (TIG) and the U.S. Army Inspector General Agency (USAIGA) keep watch over the level of economy, efficiency, discipline, morale, esprit de corps, and readiness throughout the Army. The USAIGA's Inspections Division focuses on selected topics relevant to current Army issues and responds to the requirements of the senior Army leadership. During the fiscal year, the staff conducted several in-depth inspections, lasting from six to nine months, and numerous quick inspections.

The Army's handling of whistleblowers drew congressional attention during the fiscal year. In his testimony before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, the Inspector General, Lt. Gen. Ronald H. Griffith, discussed the Army's procedures for protecting whistleblowers. Although the committee was satisfied with the Army's procedures, it recommended that allegations of reprisals be investigated by personnel from an organization other than that of the complainant. The Army accordingly instituted procedures to carry out this recommendation.

Much of the Inspector General's work dealt with the reserve components. During FY 1992, the Inspector General assessed the mobilization and training of National Guard roundout brigades during the Gulf War for the House Armed Services Committee. He also visited active and reserve component units to assess their recovery from Operation DESERT STORM, encouraging reservists to use temporary tours of active duty and fragmented annual training to overcome the constraints of time and limited manpower. The Inspections Division looked into the inactive duty training and annual training of reservists, visiting 9 brigade and 30 battalion headquarters and 99 companies or detachments during inactive training and 8 brigades, 3 battalions, and 73 companies during annual training. The inspectors concluded that most reserve officers and noncommissioned officers (NCO) neither understood nor applied the training doctrine contained in Field Manuals 25-100 and 25-101. As part of their evaluation and training, and in coordination with TRADOC's Future Army Schools-Twenty-one (FAST) initiative, the inspectors assessed the reserve component school system for efficiency and monitored the assignment of active soldiers to reserve units to help with training. By the end of FY 1993, 2,000 active officers and NCOs were supposed to be assisting the reserves.

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During the fiscal year, inspectors assessed the efficiency of the Army's installation management system in its support of base operations. They examined the impact of declining resources and institutional impediments to efficient management and found that, despite the efforts of local commanders, the Army did not efficiently manage its installations. These problems resulted in part from the absence of an integrated Army management system for installations as organizational entities.

A joint Army-Air Force inspection assessed the effectiveness of the Army and Air Force Exchange System (AAFES) in supporting soldiers, airmen, and their families. Patrons reported that they were generally satisfied with the quality of AAFES products and services, and the inspectors concluded that the AAFES operated efficiently and profitably. However, an informal price survey indicated that AAFES customers saved about 8 percent compared to civilian commercial outlets. This figure fell below the AAFES goal of 20 percent savings and indicated that AAFES needed to reevaluate its pricing methods.

As part of its charter, the Inspector General's Office also investigated allegations against general officers and Senior Executive Service civilian employees. During the fiscal year, investigators conducted thirty-three formal investigations and over a hundred preliminary inquiries and found substantiation for approximately 30 percent of the allegations. The most frequent allegations concerned standards of conduct violations, misuse of government equipment and personnel for personal gain, sexual harassment and improper relationships, and tampering with selection boards. Because senior level misconduct was often a result of ignorance, the Inspector General's Office sought to educate the field regarding the limits of permissible behavior. Formal presentations to commanders at all levels and at the Inspector General School and continuous dialogue with MACOM inspectors general were the primary means of educating Army personnel.

The Inspector General and USAIGA were involved in numerous other activities during the fiscal year. The Inspector General's Office conducted twenty-two follow-up inspections throughout the Army and validated monetary benefits of $387.2 million. Foreign Military Sales, Pre-positioned Medical War Reserves, and Family Housing represented some of the more significant of these. The Inspector General also made recommendations for improving the performance of the Army's materiel management and mobilization planning and for enhancing the soldier's quality of life. Army inspectors made technical inspections as well. From April to August, the staff conducted concurrent evaluations of Army reactors, both active and inactive, and chemical safety. With the removal of nuclear weapons from the Army's arsenal, the number of Nuclear Surety Inspections (NSI) declined to one inspection of a reactor. In January 1992, Army inspectors completed the Chemical Management Evaluation of Chemical Agent and Dilute Solution

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Contracting. Short-term assessments conducted by inspectors during the fiscal year covered such issues as the loss of night vision goggles, the utilization of aviation mechanics, preretirement and SERB processing, operations at the USAREUR Soldiers Recreation Center in Berchtesgaden, the Commercial Activities Program, and the Dependent Dental Plan. During the fiscal year, the Inspector General's Office also began to convert its Inspector General Worldwide Network from a centrally managed Convergent Technologies system to the Open Systems Environment.

Statistics told much of the story. During the fiscal year, the Inspector General received 2,151 Inspector General Action Requests, including 1,532 allegations and 619 requests for assistance. Of this total, 42 percent came from the active Army, 31 percent from unknown sources, 14 percent from civilians, and 13 percent from the reserve components. Of the allegations, 21 percent were substantiated, 68 percent were unsubstantiated, and 11 percent remained undetermined. One-quarter of the allegations involved complaints about personal conduct, sexual harassment, racial discrimination, and nonsupport of family members. Twenty-four percent (511) of the complaints pertained to the command and management of organizations that cared for soldiers and family members, stored and shipped personal property, and exercised command influence. Military personnel issues—recruiting, reassignments, evaluations, promotions, separations, and awards and decorations—accounted for 15 percent of the reports. Civilian personnel management—management-employee relations, recruitment and placement, and promotions and awards—constituted 8 percent of the actions, while 6 percent of the requests concerned pay and allowances and financial services.

Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization

A presidential executive order and congressional direction required the Department of Defense to increase the participation of historically black colleges and universities and minority institutions in all funded programs. During FY 1992, the Army established two Research Centers of Excellence at minority schools, with a funding level of $2.25 million. The Army also awarded $12.8 million, the largest award ever made to a minority institution, for Defense Department-related research and a separate award of $862,000 to conduct post-wide education and training services.

Civilian Marksmanship Program

The Civilian Marksmanship Program traces its roots to 1903, when Congress passed an act requiring the Secretary of the Army to promote marksmanship training among U.S. citizens not active in military service.

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The program seeks to maintain a fundamental level of marksmanship training throughout the United States, to instruct individuals who are subject to induction into the armed forces, and to prepare trainers. In particular, the program emphasizes training the nation's youth in safe, responsible, and disciplined firearm use. It supplies rifles, ammunition, and targets at no cost to 1,800 clubs and associations with about 138,000 members. With substantial assistance from the National Rifle Association, the program conducts the National Matches, competitive shooting's "World Series," which draw over 3,000 contestants. The National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice, with the Undersecretary of the Army as president, directs the program and advises the Secretary of the Army on the promotion of rifle marksmanship consistent with the congressional mandate. An Army colonel serves as director of the program. Participants are recruited by the Army for military shooting teams, and the Olympic and U.S. shooting teams rely on the program as a major source of civilian marksmen.

Public Law 101-510 required the Civilian Marksmanship Program to become fully self-sufficient by 1 October 1992, but the National Board believed this deadline to be unfeasible. It argued that the drawdown of the Army increased the significance of the program and that, in the event of a full mobilization of the armed services, the marksmanship program would supply qualified instructors to augment the training base for reserve component soldiers of all services. To preserve the program, the board sought an appropriation of $2.7 million for FY 1993.

World War II Commemoration

The Department of Defense formed a 50th Anniversary of World War II Commemoration Committee to conduct, coordinate, and support commemorative programs between 7 December 1991 and 11 November 1995. The committee sought to promote a clearer understanding and appreciation of the history of World War II; to celebrate the contributions of the war's veterans, their families, and people on the home front; and to foster an awareness of World War II as the central event of the twentieth century. It also desired to highlight advances in technology, science, and medicine related to military research during the war and to recognize the contributions of American allies. Finally, the committee planned to highlight the role of the armed forces of the United States, then and now, in maintaining world peace through strength.

National Museum of the United States Army

During FY 1992, the Management Directorate of the Army Chief of Staff's Office continued to work with the U.S. Army Center of Military

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History to provide a site for the National Museum of the United States Army. This museum would be the capstone of the Army museum system, telling the story of the Army as an institution in war and peace and serving as the Army's face to the American people. The idea of a national Army museum had been endorsed by the Secretary of the Army in May 1983, and subsequent senior leaders have continued to support the concept. Throughout FY 1992, the Army expended considerable effort to obtain the site of the former Twin Bridges Marriott Motel near the Pentagon for its museum. The Army negotiated a possible land exchange with the site owners, coordinated its activities with Arlington County and various review agencies, had the property appraised, and started a feasibility study for the site. The Army also started the acquisition process for a parcel of land at Fort Belvoir, where it planned to build a museum support center.

Institute of Heraldry

During FY 1992, the Institute of Heraldry continued to furnish heraldic services to the armed forces and other U.S. government organizations. These included decorations, seals, medals, insignia, badges, flags, and other items awarded or authorized for official wear or display by government agencies and personnel. During the fiscal year, the workload of the Institute of Heraldry increased due to a higher number of requests from the Armed Forces and other federal agencies. The institute designed and developed heraldic items for wear or display by the armed services, including over 100 distinctive unit and shoulder sleeve insignia for Army units, as well as service awards for the Defense Commissary Agency and the Defense Information Systems Agency and a miniature version of the Liberation of Kuwait Medal. It prepared seals for the Armed Forces Inaugural Committee, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Inspector General of the Office of the General Services Administration, as well as wall plaques for various executive branch agencies.

Many functions of the U.S. Army were little known by the general public or not readily perceived as Army-oriented. In addition to its longstanding mission of civil works, the Corps of Engineers also spearheaded recovery and rebuilding activities after natural disasters, supported reconstruction in war-ravaged Kuwait, and restored fish and wildlife habitats around the nation. The Army also was involved in litigation to recover millions of dollars in procurement fraud, as well as highly publicized class action suits and other key actions. In addition, the Inspector General and his office investigated several major issues, such as unit recovery from Operation DESERT STORM, installation management, the Army's environ-

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mental program, training, the AAFES, and the Army's sponsorship program. During FY 1992 the Army continued its commemoration of the sacrifices of its World War II veterans. These activities showed once again that the Army's missions and responsibilities went far beyond fighting wars and preparation for combat.

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