AUSTIN, Texas - As the Texas Army National Guard transitions from the high deployment operational tempo of the Global War on Terrorism, it continues to implement the Campaign on Property Accountability (COPA) with intensity usually reserved for mobilization operations.

ALARACT 210-2010 and EXORD 259-10 outline the Army’s Campaign on Property Accountability. The campaign intends to account for all Army property. Excess equipment or equipment not on record is reintegrated back into the Army supply system to make better use of materiel resources assigned to both units and individuals. Lost equipment is also accounted for, meaning both missing gear, and equipment lost due to damage or destruction during deployment or mobilization.

In the Army National Guard, this effort relies on synchronization between the Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics (DCSLOG), G4 supply and the United States Property and Fiscal Office (USPFO).
A prime example of this synchronization has been the ongoing effort to bring the Central Issue Facility- Installation Support Module (CIF-ISM) records of the TXARNG in line with current policy. This effort has included not only the DCSLOG office and USPFO but also the commanders and logistics personnel assigned to TXARNG MTOE and TDA units. The Texas CIF-ISM warehouse contains the clothing records of just over 19,000 current TXARNG Soldiers and is valued at a little over $54 million.

When Soldiers are discharged and still show clothing signed for from the CIF-ISM warehouse, a report, known as the CIF-ISM Discharge Report, is generated, showing a mismatch in the system. Currently, Texas exceeds the COPA goal of less than 5% of mismatched records. 

However, great strides have been and are continuing to be made on the CIF-ISM front of the Campaign on Property Accountability. Over the last six months Texas has seen an 18 percent decrease in the number of records and the overall dollar value of Organizational Clothing and Individual Equipment (OCIE) on the monthly CIF Discharge Report.

Texas conducted four regional CIF turns this past year in Midland, Corpus Christi, Houston and Fort Worth. During these week-long turn-ins unit supply sergeants were able to work directly with CIF warehouse personnel to turn in on-hand OCIE from discharged Soldiers and correct errors to numerous individual clothing records. These efforts lead directly to the recovery and reintegration of just under $700,000 of previously report unaccounted gear. 

In addition, unit commanders have spent the last year contacting previous TXARNG soldiers whose records do not show them as clearing the CIF warehouse properly; either by not turning in gear or failing to post turn-in documents if the soldier cleared supply prior to their discharge. These efforts have enabled unit supply sergeants to gather an additional $800,000 worth of gear scheduled for turn-in this fiscal year.

Commanders are also using the Financial Liability Investigation (FLI) process to resolve the accountability of many of these records. There are 700 open FLIs with a value of $1.3 million in OCIE being investigated at this time to determine what if any liability exists for this property being unaccounted for. 

Of course the real aim is to avoid having to resort to these reactive-type measures to ensure property accountability and as such the TXARNG has instituted several proactive steps. Among them is a change in turn-in policy, a more proactive monitoring methodology and a revised storage policy.

IAW with TXARNG policy 12-22 ETS management, soldiers are now informed during their 90-day exit interview with their company commander that if they are still undecided about re-enlisting or have decided to ETS, that they are required to clear supply and turn in all OCIE on their clothing by the end of the following drill weekend. The intent is to ensure all gear is recovered 60 days prior to the soldier’s exiting the service.

A new monthly metric tracked at all levels is the number of unconfirmed OCIE records. An unconfirmed report is generated every time a change is made to an individual’s clothing record. All changes to a soldier’s clothing record are required to be confirmed by the soldier. The soldier can either confirm his clothing record in person or online via the My Clothing tab on AKO. All confirmations are done using the Soldier’s Common Access Card (CAC).

Finally, all commanders are highly encouraged to allow Soldiers to store their OCIE in a secure portion of the armory. Many of the newer facilities come equipped with either individual storage lockers or rooms where soldiers can store locked duffle bags containing their OCIE.

These steps are no by no means an all-inclusive listing of the numerous efforts that commanders and supply personnel are using to maintain property accountability but are just a few highlights of the multiple actions on numerous fronts that occur on a daily basis in the Army’s efforts to implement the Campaign on Property Accountability.

The Texas Army National Guard remains committed to working with soldiers at all levels to increase transparency and property accountability to the citizen of Texas while proving the Governor and President with ready and trained forces.