GAO Identifies Additional Actions for the Department of Defense to Enhance Preservation of Their Historic Properties
A provision included in the FY18 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, requested the Government Accountability Office (GAO) assess the Department of Defense's management of historic properties.The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) requires federal agencies to evaluate the historic significance of their properties and to consider historic preservation when maintaining their properties. This week the GAO completed that assessment and issued additional actions the DOD could take to enhance their efforts to identify, evaluate, and preserve their historic properties. The GAO found that the DOD lacks complete and consistent data on historic properties and has limited visibility over of privatized homes that could be historic.
The GAO made 7 recommendations including that the DOD take steps to verify that privatized military homes are identified and evaluated for historic significance; clarify the inventory requirement for historic properties; and develop guidance related to historic preservation training. The DOD concurred with their recommendations. Check out GAO's full report to learn more.
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