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GAO-25-107582 1 (2024-11-14)

handle is hein.gao/gaorbe0001 and id is 1 raw text is: The Big Picture The State Department's Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (State) provides U.S. diplomatic facilities around the world. State is responsible for managing some 9,000 owned and 16,000 leased assets, supporting some 90,000 U.S. government personnel in about 290 locations worldwide. These assets represent a wide array of facilities including its embassy and consulate compounds (hereafter embassies). Since the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in East Africa, State has built 99 embassies under its Capital Security Construction Program (CSCP), while prioritizing security, at a program cost of about $40 billion through fiscal year 2024. Since 2015, State has provided about $2 billion in annual funding for the CSCP for new embassy construction. Several embassies have cost State about $1 billion each to build, including in Kabul, Afghanistan; Mexico City, Mexico; and Beirut, Lebanon. State also provides about $500 million annually for maintenance of its embassies, including repairs and major facility rehabilitations. Embassy resilience to hazards is increasingly important. Many cities hosting U.S. embassies are threatened by a variety of natural hazards (e.g. earthquakes) and climate change related hazards (e.g. coastal flooding). What GAO's Work Shows Information Sharing Highlights How Inflation Increased Cost and Slowed Pace of Construction Program We have regularly monitored State's embassy construction program, implemented in the aftermath of the 1998 embassy bombings. In 2018, we re orted that State would not reach its stated construction goals, in part because funding for new construction has not kept pace with inflation. For completed embassies, later additions such as housing for U.S. Marine security guards have increased program costs and slowed the pace of construction. U.S. Embassy Construction: Fiscal Years 1999-2024 Number -~99 Built since 1999 and completed by the end of fiscal year 2024. \ ' 27 Under construction as of the end of fiscal year 2024. 5 Planned to be started in fiscal years 2025-2029. Source: GAO analysis of State data. GAO-25-107582 Note: The figure above excludes new embassies, consulates and facilities not built with Capital Security Construction Program funds, such as the embassy in London, United Kingdom, and the American Institute in Taiwan, Taipei, Taiwan, among others. The figure also excludes newly acquired buildings and new office buildings on existing compounds. We recommended that State determine the estimated effects of increased costs on planned embassy construction capacity and time frames and share this information with congressional stakeholders. State has addressed this recommendation. In January 2020, State reported that replacing all its remaining embassies (estimated at 160 at the time) would cost over $58 billion in 2020 dollars and construction would take 25 to 30 years to complete. Since that time, inflation has continued to erode State's purchasing power. In its 2025 budget request, State estimates that since 2015, the capital construction program will have lost $1.1 billion in purchasing power. Because State is now providing information on projected pace of construction and the estimated effects of inflation, stakeholders can make more informed budget decisions regarding State's construction resources and capacity. More Planning Could Help State Better Understand Deferred Maintenance Needs and Staff Skills In 2021, we reported State had difficulties in maintaining the condition of its embassies. We found that more than one-quarter of State's assets were in poor condition GAO-25-107582 Embassy Management

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