Defense and National Security
- Report
Income of Black Working-Age Veterans
CBO describes economic outcomes of veterans who are Black, male, and working age and whose service began during or after 1990. CBO compares the outcomes of that group with outcomes of Black nonveterans and White veterans from 2017 to 2019.
- Report
Testimony on the Cost of the Coast Guard’s Polar Security Cutter
Eric J. Labs, an analyst in CBO’s National Security Division, testifies before the House Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security on May 7, 2024.
- Report
Acquisition Costs of the Navy’s Medium Landing Ship
CBO estimates that construction of 18 medium landing ships would cost between $6.2 billion and $7.8 billion in 2024 dollars. CBO’s estimates range from two to roughly three times the Navy’s current estimates.
- Report
The Shipbuilding Composite Index and Its Rates of Change Compared With Economywide Inflation Rates
Between 1980 and 2022, the shipbuilding composite index grew an average of 1.2 percentage points faster per year than the GDP deflator did. Looking ahead, a gap of roughly 1 percentage point would be consistent with historical experience.
- Report
How the Military’s Basic Allowance for Housing Compares With Civilian Housing Costs
CBO compares the housing standards used to determine the military’s basic allowance for housing (BAH) with the housing rented by comparable civilians. CBO also compares BAH rates with the rental costs paid by those civilians.
- Presentation
Perspectives on the Navy’s 2024 Shipbuilding Plan
Presentation by Eric J. Labs, an analyst in CBO’s National Security Division, at the Surface Navy Association’s 36th National Symposium.
- Presentation
The 2024 Outlook for Navy Shipbuilding: Familiar Plans and Higher Costs
Presentation by Eric J. Labs, an analyst in CBO’s National Security Division, at the Bank of America 2024 Defense Outlook and Commercial Aerospace Forum.
- Report
Income of Working-Age Veterans Receiving Disability Compensation
CBO compared the earnings, personal income, and household income of working-age male veterans who received disability payments from the Department of Veterans Affairs with those of veterans who did not receive such payments.
- Graphic
Atlas of Military Compensation
In the President’s 2024 budget request, total military compensation is $551 billion, including veterans' benefits. That amount represents an increase of 134 percent since 1999 after removing the effects of inflation.
- Report
The Navy’s Costs to Eliminate Its Deferred Maintenance Backlog and to Renovate and Modernize Its Buildings
CBO estimates that eliminating the maintenance backlogs of roughly 20,000 buildings that the Navy uses and maintains in the United States would cost $17 billion. Renovating and modernizing the buildings would cost an additional $32 billion.