Department of the Army Historical Summary: FY 1993

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Personnel

The post-Cold War reductions in Army strength continued into fiscal year 1993. Personnel reductions during the previous fiscal year seriously affected the Army as it refashioned for new missions amidst fast-paced changes in the global geopolitical environment. The 1992 strength cuts created turbulence throughout the Army as personnel managers struggled to fill critical officer and enlisted specialties and maintain unit readiness. Active Army strength, approximately 610,000 at the start of FY 1993, declined to 572,423 by the end of the year, the Army's lowest active end strength since FY 1948. The end strength total consisted of 87,845 officers, 480,379 enlisted personnel, and 4,199 cadets.

As the active Army's aggregate strength dropped by nearly 38,000 soldiers in FY 1993, there were 107,627 enlisted separations and 14,967 officer departures during the fiscal year. The turnover of trained soldiers presented personnel managers and unit leaders with difficulties in keeping the Army at high readiness levels. As the Army cut personnel through normal attrition, separation incentives, and reductions in force (RIF), the service had to manage these decreases so as to retain soldiers with critical skills and experience.

In FY 1993 the active and reserve components of the Army included 1,258,242 military personnel and 294,217 civilians. Table 4 shows the Army's total strength at the end of the fiscal year.

TABLE 4-FY 1993 TOTAL ARMY STRENGTH

Military

1,258,242

 

Active Army

572,423

 

Army Reserve

275,900

 

National Guard

409,919

Civilian

294,217

 

U.S. citizens

249,771

 

Foreign nationals

44,446


Total

1,552,549


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Enlisted Personnel

The Army set an objective of enlisting 76,900 soldiers for FY 1993.

The U.S. Army Recruiting Command met the Army's goal for the fiscal year by accessing 77,563 active component soldiers (100.9 percent of the recruiting objective). There were 70,380 non-prior-service recruit accessions and 7,183 prior military service accessions. Among the non-prior-service recruits, 94.5 percent were high school diploma graduates, a decline from 100 percent in FY 1992, and 4.7 percent had earned GEDs (general equivalency diplomas). The Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) test ranked 70.1 percent of the 1993 recruits as high-quality accessions, with scores in Test Score Categories (TSC) I through IIIA; 2.2 percent scored in TSC IV, the lowest category. Of the Army's accessions for the fiscal year, 36,767 (52.2 percent) non-prior-service recruits enlisted for four-year terms, 29,798 (42.3 percent) enlisted for three-year terms, and 3,815 (5.4 percent) enlisted for two-year terms. Table 5 shows trends in test score categories for non-prior-service accessions for FY 1992 and FY 1993.

TABLE 5-TRENDS IN TEST SCORE CATEGORIES (TSC) FOR
NON-PRIOR-SERVICE (NPS) ACCESSIONS FOR
FY 1992 AND FY 1993


Category

FY 1992

FY 1993


TSC I

3,535 (4.7%)

3,091 (4.4%)

TSC II

29,893 (39.4%)

25,052 (35.6%)

TSC IIIA

25,576 (33.7%)

21,234 (30.2%)


Total High Quality (I-IIIA)

59,004 (77.7%)

49,377 (70.1%)


TSC IIIB

16,608 (21.9%)

19,485 (27.7%)

TSC IV

283 (0.4%)

1,518 (2.2%)


Total NPs Accessions

75,895

70,380


One Army official described recruiting during the fiscal year as particularly challenging because potential recruits seemed less inclined to pursue a job in the service. A USAREC 1993 Youth Attitude Tracking Study (YATS) revealed the continuation of a steady decline of enlistment by prospective recruits. The prime market for Army recruiters continued to be 17- to 21-year-old males, but the propensity for this group to join the Army fell more than 37 percent from FY 1990 to FY 1993. The post-Cold War political climate raised many questions about the relevance of the Army in the 1990s, while widely publicized reductions in the Army's strength caused many potential recruits to have doubts about a career in the service.

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The Army spent $518.9 million on active component recruiting in FY 1993 compared to $543.1 million in FY 1992. The Army's $30.9 million advertising budget for FY 1993 represented a $6 million cut from the previous fiscal year.

During the fiscal year USAREC reduced the number of recruiting stations from 1,487 to 1,446 and the total number of recruiters from 4,626 to 4,338. The recruiting battalions based in Albuquerque and Milwaukee ended their recruiting missions on 30 September 1993, with plans to close completely in early FY 1994. In addition, USAREC completed its relocation to Fort Knox, Kentucky, in FY 1993, a move begun in FY 1992 in response to the BRAC closure of Fort Sheridan, Illinois.

In FY 1993 the Army met its annual retention projections, reenlisting 75,000 soldiers. MACOMs operated their own retention programs and set individual objectives for initial and mid-career reenlistments. The total Army retention rate among soldiers eligible for initial reenlistment was 46.1 percent, and 76.5 percent for mid-career reenlistments. Table 6 shows retention objectives for selected MACOMs in FY 1993.

TABLE 6-RETENTION OBJECTIVES FOR SELECTED MACOMS IN FY 1993


MACOM*

Objective

Initial Term Actual

%

Rate

Objective

Mid-Career Actual

%

Rate


INSCOM

522

562

108

50

391

391

100

72

USAREUR

3,341

3,639

109

51

2,690

2,800

104

77

FORSCOM

16,706

16,774

101

48

11,204

11,290

101

78

HSC

679

679

100

47

826

826

100

70

USMA

9

9

100

46

14

19

136

76

MTMC

12

12

100

46

13

13

100

74

MDW

140

147

105

45

156

161

103

73

AMC

203

228

112

52

251

251

100

75

USARPAC

1,077

1,180

109

49

436

478

109

77

EUSA

1,267

1,387

109

49

1,125

1,181

105

77

USASOCOM

493

517

105

51

693

753

109

79

USAREC

5

6

120

52

375

405

108

78

TRADOC

1,231

1,371

111

51

1,719

1,840

107

81

USAISC

610

610

100

45

619

620

100

74


*See glossary for acronym names.

In any given year the Army experiences much turnover through normal attrition-retirements, expired enlistments, and discharges for discipline and inadequate weight control. In FY 1993, 107,627 enlisted soldiers separated from active duty through normal attrition, compared to 168,536 in FY 1992.

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As the Army's total authorized strength continued to decline during the fiscal year, the size of force structure cuts did not keep up with manpower cuts. Force structure determines the number of units and authorized positions available for soldiers to fill. When force structure reductions trailed the decline in manpower strength, a negative operating strength deviation (OSD) resulted between force structure allowance and actual operating strength. Strength deviation is an important statistical measurement for personnel managers because it gauges the difference between actual strength (number of soldiers on hand) and authorized strength (number of soldiers the Army is allotted). The OSD for the year averaged approximately -13,500 and varied from a maximum of -24,900 in August 1993 to -5,000 at the end of September.

The large negative operating strength deviation reflected shortages in select military occupational specialties (MOS), especially infantry, signal, aviation maintenance, and field artillery. Throughout the fiscal year the Army contended with shortages in MOs 11M (Fighting Vehicle Mechanized Infantryman), as the strength level for this position fell to 92 percent of total authorizations and 85 percent in authorized Skill Level 1 (SL1) soldiers (those in the lowest enlisted ranks). Serious signal MOs short falls included MOs 31D (Mobile Subscriber Equipment Transmission System Operator), at 89 percent of total authorizations and 83 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; and MOs 31L (Wire System Installer-Maintainer), at 85 percent of total authorizations and 72 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers. Critical aviation MOs shortages included MOs 67R (AH-64 Attack Helicopter Repairer), at 88 percent of total authorizations and 79 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; MOs 67U (CH-47 Helicopter Repairer), at 87 percent of total authorizations and 69 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; MOs 68B (Aircraft Powerplant Repairer), at 86 percent of total authorizations and 75 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; MOs 68F (Aircraft Electrician), at 81 percent of total authorizations and 70 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; MOs 68G (Aircraft Structure Repairer), at 83 percent of total authorizations and 73 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers; and MOs 68H (Aircraft Pneudraulics Repairer), at 81 percent of total authorizations and 70 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers. The most pressing MOs field artillery shortage was in MOs 27M (Multiple Launch Rocket System Repairer), which was at 71 percent of authorized strength and 75 percent in authorized SL1 soldiers. PERSCOM and USAREC expect to remedy or minimize these acute shortages during the next fiscal year.

To comply with the congressional intent to downsize the Army through voluntary separations, the service offered several programs during the fiscal year to encourage departures. The Voluntary Early Transition (VET) program was offered to soldiers with at least three years of service

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in selected skill areas. Under this limited program, 440 soldiers separated during the year. The Army offered Voluntary Separation Incentives (VSI) and Special Separation Benefits (SSB) to enlisted personnel with more than six years but less than twenty years of service. Soldiers in the following categories were eligible: a promotable specialist or lower grade with more than six years of service as of 5 December 1991 who was ineligible to reenlist due to Retention Control Points (RCP) provisions; promotable sergeants and sergeants with twelve or more years of service who were ineligible to reenlist due to RCP provisions; sergeants and higher grades with at least nine years of service in a balanced or overstrength MOs; and any soldier with at least six years of service denied retention by HQDA. During the fiscal year 3,469 soldiers separated under the VSI and SSB programs.

The FY 1993 National Defense Authorization Act permitted early retirement for soldiers with as few as fifteen years of service. In April 1993 the Office of the Secretary of Defense approved the Army's concept plan to implement early retirements. The Army designed an early retirement pilot program and used it to develop propensity rates. The program demonstrated its usefulness as a tool to help balance the force during a drawdown, as approximately 1,300 noncommissioned officers (NCO) in selected overstrength MOSs and grades were offered the chance to apply for early retirement, and 241 of these soldiers eventually elected to retire. The Army canceled a programmed reduction in force for the fiscal year when sufficient voluntary separations met the required reductions.

Officer Personnel

The Army used voluntary and involuntary programs to reduce officer end strength in FY 1993, for the second consecutive year. Total officer losses for the fiscal year were 14,967. Officer and warrant officer corps end strength was reduced by 8,055 to 87,845 in FY 1993. Table 7 shows FY 1993 end strength and grade distribution.

TABLE 7-FY 1993 END STRENGTH AND GRADE DISTRIBUTION


 

Grade

Strength


Commissioned Officers

GEN

11

 

LTG

43

 

MG

124

 

BG

175

 

COL

3,892

   

Continued

27



 

Grade

Strength


 

LTC

9,188

 

MAJ

15,538

 

CPT

26,592

 

1LT

10,475

 

2LT

8,667


Total Commissioned Officers:

 

74,705


Warrant Officers

CW5

96

 

CW4

1,702

 

CW3

3,746

 

CW2

5,531

 

WO1

2,065


Total Warrant Officers:

 

13,140


Total Officers:

 

87,845


The active Army accessioned 6,870 officers during the fiscal year, of which 5,474 were commissioned officers and 1,396 warrant officers. Officers received their commissions through the United States Military Academy (USMA), the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC), the Officer Candidate School (OCS), or direct appointment. The USMA commissioned 1,019 officers in FY 1993, or 19 percent of the year's total commissions. The majority (999) of the USMA's new officers were commissioned into the sixteen basic branches, and twenty were commissioned into the Medical Service Corps. A total of 1,331 officers were commissioned by direct appointment in FY 1993, with most of these (1,222) commissioned directly into medical branches and the Chaplain and Judge Advocate General's Corps. OCS commissioned 363 Regular Army officers in the basic branches. Warrant officers were appointed through the Warrant Officer Procurement Program. Following completion of the Warrant Officer Leader Development Course, the Army appointed 1,396 warrant officers to a variety of technical and aviation career fields.

The Reserve Officers' Training Corps remained the U.S. Army's largest producer of commissioned officers. ROTC yielded 50 percent of officers commissioned into the Regular Army during the fiscal year. Senior ROTC was available at 349 colleges and universities across the United States, including Puerto Rico, Guam, and the District of Columbia. ROTC enrollment during the fiscal year was 30,965, of which 9,931 were enrolled in the Advanced Program (junior and senior academic years), and more than 8,000 students were on ROTC scholarships. During FY 1993 ROTC graduated and commissioned a total of 4,661 officers, which included 2,761 active component, 1,690 reserve component, and 210 who

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were granted deferments to pursue advanced education. Of those commissioned into the Regular Army, 2,375 were commissioned into the basic branches and 386 into special branches.

Despite the infusion of new officers, the Army experienced a shortage of approximately 1,900 branch-qualified captains in FY 1993. Projections indicated this figure could increase to 3,500 by FY 1995 if remedial steps were not taken. The drawdown and the departure of branch-qualified captains under the Voluntary Separations Incentive Program (VSIP) created the shortage. The increased demand for branch-qualified captains in the Acquisition Corps, congressionally mandated support to reserve components, and the requirements for captains to staff positions in ROTC and the USMA contributed to the shortfall. PERSCOM recommended alleviating the shortage through the use of active guard and reserve captains to fill branch-qualified jobs. PERSCOM also recommended civilianizing branch-qualified positions, reducing the number of ROTC schools, and civilianizing the USMA faculty.

Although the Army disapproved PERSCOM's suggestions, the CSA approved several measures in late September 1993 to reduce the shortage of captains. These included decreasing the time in service for promotion to captain from four and a half to four years, with implementation completed with the exhaustion of the FY 1994 captains promotion list. The CSA maintained the length for company command tours at eighteen months, with only select company commands-such as division and brigade headquarters and headquarters companies and long-range surveillance -considered "second" commands. The total time of command for the first and second companies, however, would be only two years. The CSA also approved the direct assignment of some captains to two-year positions in Recruiting Command and Cadet Command immediately upon their graduation from the Officer Advanced Course (non-branch-qualified). These officers would be guaranteed MTOE (modified table of organization and equipment) assignments in branch-qualifying positions, specified on their PCS (permanent change of station) orders, after completing the two-year assignment.

The Army employed voluntary and involuntary programs to reduce officer corps end strength, but the service's policy made involuntary separations the last resort. Officers considered for involuntary separation under the RIF program could choose to participate in one of the VSI and SSB programs. The RIF process and the VSI and SSB programs were used collectively to meet the end strength requirements for a given grade. Although an FY 1993 RIF Board selected captains in year groups 1983 and 1984 for involuntary separations, the Secretary of the Army disapproved a captains RIF after the VSI and SSB programs yielded sufficient volunteers for early separation.

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Civilian Work Force

The decline in the Army's military force structure in FY 1993 affected its civilian strength. With fewer units in the field, the Army required less civilian support, and during the fiscal year total civilian strength fell by 41,585. By the end of the fiscal year the Army employed 294,217 civilians, or 18.2 percent of the Total Army, the lowest percentage since 1974. Of this total, 249,771 personnel were U.S. Citizens and 44,446 were local foreign nationals. Table 8 shows DA civilians in selected commands during FY 1993.

TABLE 8-DA CIVILIANS IN SELECTED COMMANDS* DURING FY 1993

AMC

76,700

USAREUR

33,724

FORSCOM

26,524

USACOE

40,689

TRADOC

12,247

HSC

24,940

USAISC

9,525

EUSA

9,770

Others

76,335


Total

294,217


*See glossary for acronym names.

Since 1989 (when civilian strength was 402,927, or 19.9 percent of the Total Army's 2,020,407 personnel), most civilian employee reductions have resulted from normal attrition, such as voluntary retirement or transfer, but a growing number of cuts resulted from reductions in force. Congressionally approved incentives, such as civilian separation pay, facilitated reductions and voluntary separations. The number of RIF separations reached 849 in FY 1993, up from 631 during the previous fiscal year. Of those taking separation pay, 93 percent were forty or older, 62 percent were males, and 79 percent were nonminorities.

At the end of the fiscal year the Army employed 17,008 direct-hire U.S. Citizens overseas as DA civilian personnel. Most of them were employed in three countries: more than 11,000 civilians worked in Germany, more than 1,450 in South Korea, and almost 1,300 in Panama.

More than 331 civilians served in Senior Executive Service (SES) Army leadership positions during the fiscal year. The top four organizations in SES strength were the U.S. Army Materiel Command (AMC) with 126, the Office of the Secretary of the Army with 61, the Corps of Engineers with 49, and the Army Staff with 42 positions.

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Women represented 40.6 percent and minorities 25.4 percent of the Army's civilian employees, slightly below the government-wide percentages of 44 percent for women and 28.1 percent for minorities. The average age of the Army's civilian work force was forty-five; 29 percent of the work force was age fifty or older; 7.7 percent were eligible for optional retirement; and 12.7 percent were eligible for early retirement under the incentives programs. Also, 30.9 percent of the work force held a bachelor's degree or higher, and 8.4 percent were retired military personnel.

Civilian performance ratings continued to climb in FY 1993, with more employees rated as fully successful. Improprieties by civilian employees resulted in the mandatory removal of 1,027, and another 444 resigned while removal actions were pending. There were 2,456 cases of lesser disciplinary actions such as written reprimands and suspensions. Formal discrimination complaints based on sexual harassment rose by a third during the fiscal year, but the number of disciplinary actions against offending employees was unavailable because there was no reporting requirement. Army leaders plan to institute a reporting requirement in FY 1994 to track disciplinary actions for sexual harassment.

The Army invested $130,196,398 (including tuition, travel, and per diem) in civilian training expenses during the fiscal year. In addition, 119,168 employees attended 241,125 training events in FY 1993.

Special Topics

Females comprised 12.5 percent (71,319 soldiers) of the active Army, 7.7 percent (31,386) of the Army National Guard, and 21 percent (52,416) of the total Army Reserve strength in FY 1993. Active component females comprised 14.2 percent of commissioned officers, 3.8 percent of warrant officers, and 12.4 percent of enlisted personnel.

The Army's downsizing is not expected to impede female accessions into the service or progression within ranks and assignments. During the fiscal year 11,599 non-prior-service females (102.4 percent of the recruiting objective) entered the active component. HQDA anticipates the number and percentage of women in the Army will continue to increase in FY 1994.

Army policy excludes women from assignment to battalion- and smaller-size units whose mission is to engage in direct combat (such as infantry, armor, cannon artillery, short-range air defense artillery, and combat engineers) and those units or positions that require continuous physical location with direct combat units. The details of the Army's assignment policy are contained in Army Regulation (AR) 600-13, Army Policy for the Assignment of Female Soldiers. The Army's Direct Combat Position Coding (DCPC) System classifies all positions according to the

31


probability of direct combat and is an essential tool for implementing the Army's assignment policy. Female soldiers assigned to positions coded as "open" deploy with their units to perform their assigned mission and are subject to the same utilization policies as male soldiers. Ninety-one percent of all Army career fields and 62 percent of Army positions were open to women in FY 1993. Women are authorized in 86 percent of the enlisted military occupational specialties, 94 percent of the warrant officer specialties, and 96 percent of the officer specialties.

On 28 April 1993 Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) Les Aspin directed the services to open more specialties and assignment opportunities to women. Aspin specifically wanted women to compete for combat aviation assignments, and he also directed the Army and Marine Corps to study the possibility of creating opportunities for women to serve in previously closed assignments, including field and air defense artillery, among other positions. The SECDEF established an Implementation Committee to ensure that the policies were applied consistently among the military services. The committee was also charged with reviewing and making recommendations on parental and family policies, pregnancy and deployment policies, and the appropriateness of DOD's female endangerment policies, also known as the DOD Risk Rule.

In response to the SECDEF's policy, the Army opened new positions for women in attack and scout helicopter aviation units, making more than 9,000 new positions available for females during the fiscal year. The first Army woman began training for her new aviation assignment on 4 May 1993. Some air cavalry units and Special Operations Forces aircraft, however, remained closed to women because these organizations are assigned to ground combat units and serve with combat elements during deployments.

There are currently no statutory restrictions on the utilization of women in combat, and the Army's policy on the assignment of women incorporated DOD guidance that limits high casualty risks but does not prevent women from being exposed to combat or becoming casualties. After combat aviation assignments were opened to women, risk was no longer a factor, and the Implementation Committee is developing a new assignment rule to replace the DOD Risk Rule. The Army plans to evaluate the opening of other positions to women after a new risk rule is developed.

After a total end strength decline of 38,000 during the fiscal year, minority representation remained relatively unchanged from the previous year. Minorities still represented almost 28 percent of the active component. In FY 1993 the active force consisted of 62.3 percent Caucasians; 27.6 percent African-Americans; 4.9 percent Hispanics; and 5.2 percent Asian-Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and others. The percentage of African-Americans, the largest minority group, declined from the previ-

32


ous year. Non-prior-service African-American accessions during FY 1993 totaled 14,410, or 20.5 percent of new active component recruits. Table 9 shows the percentage of active component minority representation in FY 1993.

TABLE 9-PERCENTAGE OF ACTIVE COMPONENT MINORITY
REPRESENTATION IN FY 1993


 

Officers

Warrant Officers

Enlisted

Percentage
of Total


Caucasian

82.3

81.6

58.7

62.3

African-American

11.1

10.5

30.7

27.6

Hispanic

2.5

3.0

5.3

4.9

Asian-Pacific/Native
American/Other

4.1

4.8

5.3

5.2


The Army actively recruited women and minorities for some specialty fields. The Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAGC), for example, seeks to acquire as many qualified minority and female attorneys as possible and recruits practicing attorneys and law students graduating from schools accredited by the American Bar Association. The JAGC is authorized to grant direct appointments to qualified candidates approved by the JAGC accession board. In FY 1993 the JAGC received 990 applications, a 33 percent increase over the previous fiscal year, and selected 174 applicants. Of the selectees, 36 percent were women, the highest ratio for women selected to date. Also, of the total selectees, 14 percent were minorities. The previous five-year averages for women and minorities were 25 percent and 13 percent, respectively.

The Army's efforts to institutionalize equal opportunity (EO) programs continued during the fiscal year. In October 1992 the Army distributed revised training support packages for EO and the prevention of sexual harassment to all professional military schools. The Soldier Support Center's Equal Opportunity Proponency Office continued work on new training materials: Training Circular 26-6, Commander's Equal Opportunity Handbook; Department of the Army Pamphlet 350-20, Unit Equal Opportunity Training Guide; and a series of video tapes on sexual harassment. AR 600-20, Army Command Policy, 30 March 1988, which sets forth the Army's Equal Opportunity Program, was formally staffed for its fourth change in FY 1993. Interim change four mandated EO training, including the prevention of sexual harassment, through all phases of professional military education and twice annually in units. The change also

33


restructured the EO complaint system and introduced an Army-wide EO complaint form, as well as a unit EO complaint reporting form. The effective implementation date for the change was 17 September 1993.

Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera dispatched eleven human resource consultants to conduct independent investigations of the EO environment at various installations throughout CONUS during July and August 1993. These trips were part of the Secretary's ongoing investigations into allegations made by the Chairman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission in August 1991. Former Secretaries had previously sent consultants to Europe in late 1991 and to CONUS posts in 1992. The visits focused on the commands' complaint processing procedures, leader involvement in the implementation of EO program initiatives, training, and an assessment of the general health of the EO climate at the installation. The Army used these reports to help revise elements of its EO policy released in FY 1993.

Staffing the Army's EO program remained a high priority for the senior Army leadership in FY 1993. Equal opportunity representatives at battalion and company level and equal opportunity advisers (EOA) at brigade level and above continued to assist unit leaders in managing EO programs during the fiscal year. Throughout the Army, both officers and NCOs served as advisers to and supported unit leaders in meeting EO objectives and provided resources to develop appropriate programs. In June the CSA approved a recommendation to reinstate officer EOA positions on corps and division Tables of Organization and Equipment.

During the fiscal year there were 223 requests for assistance concerning complaints of racial and ethnic discrimination filed through the Inspector General. There were also 720 complaints filed through EOA channels.

On 29 January 1993, President William J. Clinton directed the Secretary of Defense to review DOD policy on homosexuals and to prepare a draft Executive Order outlining a new policy by 15 July 1993. Under existing policy (DOD Directive 1332.14), DOD banned homosexuals from military service in accordance with the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which defined homosexual activity as illegal. DOD issued interim guidance on 3 February 1993 that required all cases against homosexuals then under review to remain in the processing system. The guidance also stated that armed forces recruiters would no longer ask applicants about their sexual orientation.

A well-publicized violation of DOD's interim homosexual policy, involving Army Sgt. Jose M. Zuniga, received widespread media coverage in FY 1993. On 29 April Army officials at the Presidio of San Francisco began proceedings to discharge Sergeant Zuniga after he disclosed his homosexuality on 24 April, just before the start of a large gay rights rally in Washington, D.C. Sergeant Zuniga's case attracted a great deal of atten-

34


tion because of his accomplishments in the military. He was a veteran of the Persian Gulf War, had been decorated four times during his service of more than three years, and was the 1992 Sixth Army Soldier of the Year. A few weeks later the Army recommended Zuniga for an honorable discharge, but with demotion to the rank of specialist, fourth class, on the grounds that during his 24 April pronouncement he wore a fifth medal for which he had been recommended but not approved, thus misrepresenting himself and the Army. Zuniga denied the Army's allegations concerning the medal and said that the award had been approved, but the Army continued with its discharge proceedings.

The Secretary of Defense issued a new homosexual policy for the armed forces on 19 July. The policy recognized that homosexuals had served in the armed services with distinction and stated that homosexual orientation should not be a bar to entering or remaining in military service unless an individual revealed or displayed homosexual conduct. The Secretary of Defense directed DOD to adopt the following rules and guidelines on homosexuality:

-Service members will be separated for homosexual conduct.
-Applicants for military services will not be asked or required to
reveal their sexual orientation, and questions regarding sexual orientation
will be removed from induction applications and from ROTC and USMA
applications and will not be used during entrance interviews. Applicants
will also be informed of the separation policy and agree to abide by the
DOD policy.
-All new recruits will receive military justice briefings upon entering
the service and periodically thereafter. Briefings will include a detailed
explanation of the laws and regulations governing sexual conduct by members of the armed services.

DOD defined homosexual conduct that warranted separation. A homosexual act included bodily contact, actively or passively permitted, between members of the same gender for the purpose of satisfying sexual desire. Inappropriate conduct also included statements that demonstrated a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts or homosexual marriage or attempted marriage. The new guidelines also stated that commanders and investigating agencies would not initiate inquiries solely to determine a member's sexual orientation. Authority to investigate homosexual conduct would be limited to commanders, who could initiate an investigation only when evidence clearly indicated that a cause for disciplinary action or discharge existed. Under the new guidelines a statement by a service member indicating that he or she was homosexual or bisexual would create a rebuttable presumption that the service member was engaging or intended to engage in homosexual activity. Accused individ-

35


uals had the opportunity to present evidence that they did not intend to commit homosexual acts. The appropriate separation authority would assess the evidence before reaching a decision. Although President Clinton set 1 October 1993 as the implementation date for the new guidelines, in September 1993 the 9th U.S. District Court ruled the DOD homosexual policy unconstitutional. On the last day of the fiscal year, the Under Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness) authorized the services an extension of the interim policy to 1 October while DOD appealed the court's decision.

The Army's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Program (ADAPCP) continued to help reduce demand in FY 1993, as both positive drug tests and drug-related separations from the service declined dramatically. During the fiscal year the Army continued to focus on testing as an effective deterrent to drug use. This effort was based on guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services and DOD that required the Army to expand the number of persons examined in its pool of positions designated for testing. Positions added to the pool included motor vehicle drivers who regularly transported passengers, railroad personnel, aviation personnel, personnel with access to weapons, personnel in positions that required access to top secret or sensitive compartmented information, and personnel required to participate in special access programs.

During the fiscal year 1,105,339 military personnel were subjected to random testing, a rate of 1.34 tests per soldier, with 1.01 percent testing positive. The Army also applied random testing to approximately 30,000 civilian personnel. The Army treated more than 15,000 soldiers for alcohol and drug abuse in FY 1993 by providing education and counseling services and inpatient treatment, as appropriate.

The FY 1993 National Defense Authorization Act required DOD to conduct outreach programs to reduce the demand for illegal drugs. The act's intent is to expand the military's role in reducing the national demand among young people. In response, the CSA directed the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs to develop an information base concerning the Total Army's contribution to the welfare, health, and productivity of the nation. The DOD Coordinator for Drug Enforcement Policy and Support asked the Army to submit proposals to cut usage and to direct its efforts at America's youth in general and inner-city youth in particular. DOD selected three Army programs for inclusion in the military's pilot outreach initiative. Fort Sam Houston, Texas, established the "La Salida-The Way Out" program as a basic-training-style experience that targets elementary and middle school youngsters at risk for drug usage. At Fort Meade, Maryland, the "Adopt a School Program" has units volunteering to improve local school facilities and to build relationships with students and schools near the post. The "Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Program

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Drug Demand Reduction Initiative" at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, is a multidisciplinary prevention and education program that stresses cooperation between community agencies to prevent drug abuse. Evaluation of the three pilot programs is expected to be completed in October 1994 and to be followed by a DOD report to Congress on their effectiveness.

In FY 1993 changes in the Army's enlisted separation policy and procedures established failure to control weight as a distinct separation provision, replacing the previous policy of separation at the convenience of the government. Since 1986 the Army Weight Control Program (AWCP) has promoted readiness, health, and the physical appearance of soldiers in every component. By regulation, the Army weighs each soldier twice each year, and those exceeding the height/weight screening tables have their body fat measured. Commanders must enroll soldiers who exceed the body fat standard into the AWCP, where health care professionals provide nutrition counseling. Participating soldiers are weighed monthly and are expected to lose between three and eight pounds per month. Soldiers failing to make satisfactory progress and exceeding body fat standards after six months must undergo medical evaluations. Unless doctors identify an underlying or associated disease condition, the soldier's commander must initiate a mandatory reenlistment bar or begin separation proceedings. During the fiscal year the Army separated 2,371 enlisted soldiers for failure to maintain body fat standards.

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Last updated 30 October 2003