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Numbers in the text and tables of this paper may not add up to totals because of rounding. |
The Department of Defense reduced the number of officers on active duty by 23 percent between 1989 and 1996 as part of the post-Cold War drawdown of military personnel. To achieve that reduction, the services' personnel managers cut the number of new officers entering active duty and increased the separation rate for those already on active duty. The managers faced a difficult challenge: to bring in enough new officers to maintain a combat-ready force in the future and yet keep faith with personnel already in uniform.
This analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) examines the different approaches the military services used in reducing the officer corps, including the role played by special incentives for voluntary separation. It documents the changes in officer accessions, separations, and promotions that took place during the drawdown and examines the effects of downsizing on the occupational mix and grade distribution of the officer corps. This paper was prepared at the request of the Subcommittee on Personnel of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. In keeping with CBO's mandate to provide objective and nonpartisan analysis, the paper contains no recommendations.
Marvin M. Smith of CBO's National Security Division prepared the paper
under the general supervision of Christopher Jehn and Deborah Clay-Mendez.
The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of John Cadigan, Evan
Christman, and Delia Welsh of CBO. The author also wishes to thank Sean
O'Keefe, a consultant to CBO, and representatives from the military services
for their thoughtful comments. Sherry Snyder and Liz Williams edited the
manuscript, and Chris Spoor proofread it. Kathryn Quattrone prepared the
figures, Judith Cromwell typed the manuscript, and Laurie Brown prepared
the electronic versions for CBO's World Wide Web site (www.cbo.gov).
Dan L. Crippen
Director
November 1999
II - THE MILITARY OFFICER PERSONNEL SYSTEM AND THE SERVICES' PLANS FOR DOWNSIZING
III - HOW THE SERVICES ACCOMPLISHED THE DRAWDOWN
IV - THE EFFECT OF THE DRAWDOWN ON THE OFFICER CORPS
APPENDIXES
A - Actual and Predicted
Number of Officers by Years of Service
B - The Distribution of
Officers by Pay Grade
C - Opportunity for and
Timing of Promotions to Field-Grade Positions
D - Occupational Composition
of the Officer Corps
| TABLES | |
| 1. | Rank and Pay Grade of Commissioned Military Officers |
| 2. | DOPMA Guidelines for the Officer Promotion System |
| 3. | Drawdown of the Officer Corps, by Service, Fiscal Years 1989-2003 |
| 4. | Officer Separations in Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991-1996, by Reason for Separation and Years of Service |
| 5. | Actual and Predicted Number of Officers Remaining on Active Duty from Fiscal Year 1989 Through 1996, by Years of Service in 1996 |
| 6. | Distribution of Officers by Years of Service, Fiscal Years 1987 and 1997 |
| 7. | Change in the Number and Distribution of Commissioned Officers, by Pay Grade, Between Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 |
| 8. | Number of Field-Grade Officers in Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 Compared with DOPMA Ceilings |
| 9. | Ratio of Enlisted to Officer Personnel, by Service, Fiscal Years 1989-1996 |
| 10. | Percentage Change in the Share of Officers in Selected Combat and Support Occupations Between Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 |
| A-1. | Actual and Predicted Number of Officers Remaining on Active Duty from Fiscal Year 1989 Through 1996, by Years of Service in 1996, Using Higher Average Retention Rates |
| A-2. | Actual and Predicted Number of Officers Remaining on Active Duty from Fiscal Year 1989 Through 1996, by Years of Service in 1996, Using Lower Average Retention Rates |
| B-1. | Distribution of Officers by Pay Grade, Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 |
| C-1. | Opportunity for and Timing of Promotions to Field-Grade Positions, Fiscal Years 1989-1996 |
| D-1. | Distribution of Officers by Occupation, Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 |
| FIGURES | |
| 1. | Officer Separations in Fiscal Year 1990, by Reason for Separation |
| 2. | Officer Separations in Fiscal Year 1990, by Years of Service Within Category of Separation |
| 3. | Planned and Actual Officer Inventory, Fiscal Years 1989-2003 |
| 4. | Percentage Reductions in Officer Accessions from the Fiscal Year 1989 Level Compared with the Original and Current Goals for Reductions in Inventory |
| 5. | Share of Officers in Combat and Support Positions, by Service, Fiscal Years 1989 and 1996 |
| C-1. | Officer Promotion Points Relative to DOPMA Guidelines |
| C-2. | Opportunities for Promotion to Field-Grade Positions |
| BOXES | |
| 1. | The Officer Promotion System |