Pentagon Fails Its Financial Audit for the Sixth Straight Year.

The US Defense Department has failed its financial audit for the sixth year in a row. Despite this, Pentagon officials claim progress in tracking assets and correcting deficiencies. The audit required 1,600 auditors and 700 site visits, costing $187 million. The Pentagon's inspector general's office will issue its own findings. Lawmakers have pushed for a "clean" audit by 2027, but the Pentagon blames unreliable budgeting by Congress. Of the 29 Defense Department components audited, seven received a clean opinion, one received a qualified opinion, and the rest received disclaimers. The audit identified $621 million in payments subject to improper payment testing, resulting in a 99.76% proper payment rate. The department measures audit progress in areas such as workforce modernization and reliable networks. The Navy uncovered $330 million during the audit. [Extracted from the article]