How to Read and Decipher the Department of Defense (DoD) Budget Archives

How to Read and Decipher the Department of Defense (DoD) Budget

How to Read and Decipher the Department of Defense (DoD) Budget: A Primer for Defense Industry Professionals

Identify and locate the OMB and DoD budget documents you need, including the OMB Budget Appendix, OMB Analytical Perspectives, OMB historical tables, R-1s, P-1s, the DoD "Green Book," Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Defense-wide budget justification books, DoD financial management regulations, and DoD reprogramming actions.
Understand basic budget terms, including the "national defense budget function," the Department of Defense budget, budget authority, outlays, obligations, "program, project, and activity," appropriations accounts, line items, activity groups, subactivity groups, program elements, projects within program elements, and working capital funds.
Untangle how the overall national defense budget request is broken down into various appropriations bills and how CBO "scorekeeping" affects how budget totals in various bills are reported.
The relationship between the defense authorization bill and defense appropriations bills.
How to track congressional action on specific "earmark" requests.
Calculate inflation-adjusted trends in the budget.
Tools and techniques to make you more efficient.

Open Q&A with the faculty included: Stephen Daggett.