GAO urges DOD to tighten oversight of intergovernmental support agreements

GAO's report GAO-26-108092 documents that intergovernmental support agreements (IGSA) used by Department of Defense installations rose from 45 in 2018 to 316 in 2025. Officials from the Army, Navy and selected installations said they intend to expand IGSA use.

The GAO review found that the services' cost-savings estimates do not follow best-practice cost-estimation methods. Existing guidance lacks specific procedures for prospective IGSA that provide multiple services to one or more installations, and several agreements reviewed had no associated cost-benefit analysis. The Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force also lack procedures to verify installation cost and savings estimates.

GAO examined documentation for 21 IGSA at five installations. Public partners in nine of the 21 single-installation agreements used private contractors. Wage comparisons showed a paralegal paid $23.92 versus the $28.89 prevailing wage under the Service Contract Act (-17 percent), a driver paid $15.36 versus $18.98 (-19 percent), and a storm-water specialist paid $39.84 versus $26.64 (+50 percent). The Service Contract Act does not apply to IGSA.

The report issues five recommendations: the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy and the Secretary of the Air Force each must develop guidance for estimating IGSA costs and savings for task-order agreements; the Navy must develop procedures to verify its installations' estimates; and the Air Force must develop similar verification procedures. All five recommendations are listed as open.

The services have generally concurred with the recommendations and have identified actions they plan to take, but GAO will update the record when agencies confirm implementation.