Pentagon sparks OCO whiplash as it seesaws from $89B request to planned phase-out

By Tony Bertuca / February 14, 2018 at 8:16 PM
Before Congress finalized a two-year spending deal, the Defense Department planned to finance a multibillion-dollar budget buildup through its controversial Overseas Contingency Operations account. Now, it is reversing course and projects it will begin phasing out OCO in FY-20. Pentagon Comptroller David Norquist said DOD initially drew up plans for an FY-19 base budget request of $597 billion and OCO request of $89 billion. The OCO account, which is exempt from the caps mandated by the 2011 Budget Control Act,...

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