DOD’s counterdrug mission focuses on supporting local, state, federal, and foreign government agencies in addressing the illegal drug trade and narcotics-related terrorism. DOD conducts its mission in three primary areas: detecting and monitoring drug trafficking into the United States, sharing information on illegal drugs with U.S. and foreign government agencies, and building the counterdrug capacity of U.S. and foreign partners. The National Guard identifies three state-specific projects as comprising its counterdrug program—state plans, counterdrug schools, and counterthreat finance. The authority to provide funding for the first state project—state plans—began in 1989 when DOD was authorized by Congress under section 112 of Title 32 of the United States Code to fund the National Guard’s drug interdiction and counterdrug activities. Each participating state counterdrug program must develop an annual plan of activities, in coordination with the state’s Governor and Attorney General. In developing their plans, states use annual guidance issued by DOD outlining the department’s domestic counterdrug program priorities. Once the state plans have been developed, they are reviewed by National Guard counterdrug program officials, and are then sent to DOD for approval. National Guard policy states that state counterdrug programs can provide assistance to interagency partners in 5 mission areas: reconnaissance, technical support, general support, civil operations, and counterdrug training. In 2006, Congress provided authority to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau (NGB) to operate up to five counterdrug schools. These five schools, located in Florida, Iowa, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, and Washington, provide training in drug interdiction and counterdrug activities to personnel from federal agencies; state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies; community-based organizations; and other non-federal governmental and private organizations. In 2011 the program added a third state project—counterthreat finance—to assist interagency partners with investigations of drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations’ money laundering schemes. Appendix II provides funding information by project and appendix III provides details on the state plans’ activities and supported organizations. The National Guard counterdrug program is part of DOD’s larger counterdrug effort. Congress appropriates funds to DOD’s Drug Interdiction and Counterdrug Activities, Defense account, and DOD is authorized to transfer Drug Interdiction account funds to other armed services’ and defense agencies’ appropriation accounts. It is from this account that DOD funds the National Guard’s participation in domestic interdiction and counterdrug activities. In his fiscal year 2016 budget the President requested approximately $850.6 million for this account to support DOD-wide drug interdiction efforts. Budget data provided by DOD identify $87.9 million intended for the National Guard counterdrug program’s state-specific projects—a little more than 10 percent of the overall fiscal year 2016 Drug Interdiction account request. The National Guard counterdrug program budget data provided by DOD show that for fiscal years 2004 through 2014 the program’s total directed funding ranged between $219.3 million and $242.1 million–with a peak of $247 million in fiscal year 2013–but in fiscal year 2015 was reduced substantially. Congress appropriates funds into DOD’s Drug Interdiction account but through its committee reports provides direction to DOD on the specific amounts to allocate for the counterdrug program. Based on DOD data, in every year since fiscal year 2004, Congress has directed funding above DOD’s requested amount, keeping program amounts generally steady through 2014. In fiscal year 2013, when DOD began to reduce the amount of funding within the budget request for this program in order to prioritize funding for other DOD counterdrug programs, Congress directed program amounts generally comparable to those of prior years. Specifically, in fiscal year 2013, DOD requested $117 million for the National Guard counterdrug program, about a 40 percent decrease from the prior year’s request. From fiscal years 2013 to 2016, DOD reduced its budget request for counterdrug intelligence and technology support, as well as domestic efforts such as those supported by the National Guard more than international interdiction support activities. DOD officials stated that by decreasing requested funding for the counterdrug program they planned to address spending limits required by the Budget Control Act of 2011 and to fund counternarcotics programs in locations deemed a priority, such as Central and South America. According to DOD’s data, Congress directed $130 million more than requested in fiscal years 2013 and 2014. These additions offset DOD’s reduced request and kept overall counterdrug program funding generally steady. DOD’s data show that DOD’s budget request for the counterdrug program continued to decline from $112.1 million in fiscal year 2014 to $89.5 million in fiscal year 2015.In fiscal year 2015 Congress directed $86 million more than DOD requested for the program, ultimately leaving the program with a lower total funding of $175.5 million. Figure 1 details DOD’s budget data on the counterdrug program’s congressionally directed funding, including the DOD’s request and the increases above DOD’s request. According to DOD’s data, in recent years the program has not obligated all of the funding allocated to it from the Drug Interdiction account. In fiscal years 2004 through 2010 the program obligated at least 95 percent of its allocation. However, from fiscal years 2011 through 2014 the program’s obligations fluctuated between 83 percent and 96 percent of DOD’s allocations, partly due to the timing and amount of allocations received by the program. Funds transferred or allocated from the Drug Interdiction account to various other DOD drug interdiction accounts or programs, including the National Guard program, can be transferred back to the account upon a determination that all or part of the funds are not necessary and remain unobligated. Once funds are returned to the Drug Interdiction account, they are available for reallocation to other DOD counterdrug programs for obligation. Figure 2 details the counterdrug program’s obligations from fiscal years 2004 through 2014. NGB and state counterdrug programs officials stated that DOD’s internal transfer process for the Drug Interdiction account causes delays when funds become available for the program, thereby impacting the program’s ability to obligate funds for planned activities. For example, state program officials stated that in many cases the program cannot provide long-term analytical support, such as investigative and counterthreat finance analysts, throughout the year, and must wait for additional funding before assigning personnel. In some instances, the program can offer partial-year support, but some interagency partners may not accept support for only part of the year because it is difficult for them to provide the necessary training and access to appropriate databases necessary for investigative case work to be assigned before the fiscal year ends and the funding for the position is no longer available. DOD is examining whether it can improve upon the transfer process in order to reduce delays. According to DOD’s data, DOD has reallocated some of the National Guard counterdrug program’s unobligated funds that were returned to the Drug Interdiction account to other DOD counterdrug programs. Specifically, in fiscal years 2013 and 2014, DOD reallocated a total of $51.8 million of amounts returned to the Drug Interdiction account from the National Guard’s counterdrug program to counternarcotic capacity building efforts in the U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Southern Command areas of responsibility. The NGB has developed performance measures to report on its counterdrug program; however, we found that the information collected is not used to evaluate and inform funding for state-level programs or oversee the counterdrug schools’ training. Without performance information to inform funding decisions for state-level programs and oversee the counterdrug schools, DOD and Congress cannot ensure that the counterdrug program achieves its desired results and uses its resources most efficiently. In 2012 the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Counternarcotics and Global Threats issued the Counternarcotics and Global Threats Performance Metrics System Standard Operating Procedures to be used in the development and documentation of performance metrics for all DOD counternarcotics activities. In response to the guidance, National Guard counterdrug program officials stated that they developed a set of performance measures for use by their program. In fiscal year 2015 the counterdrug program included 26 performance measures that officials stated they used to evaluate the counterdrug program and report on its aggregate performance. These measures include indicators such as the number of cases supported, analytic products produced, students trained, mobile training courses delivered, and reconnaissance hours flown. Appendix V provides details on each of the 26 measures. Our review of the counterdrug program’s fiscal year 2015 performance measures against key attributes of successful performance measures identified by GAO found that the set of measures provided information across the program’s broad goals, measured three of the program’s five core activities, and had limited overlap with each other. We also found that the individual performance measures were linked to the overall objectives of the program and were focused on measurable goals. Some key attributes, such as a clarity, reliability, and objectivity, were reflected to varying degrees, but we found that the National Guard had actions underway to better define and document the program’s individual performance measures to improve the clarity and reliability of those individual measures. In February 2015 the National Guard officials completed the Fiscal Year 2015-2016 Counterdrug Analyst Performance Metrics Guide and stated that they were drafting guides for other program activities. We found that the NGB does not use the performance information it collects to help evaluate and inform funding for state-level programs and oversee the type of training offered by counterdrug schools.