Both the Naval Academy and the Air Force Academy are in disrepair that will potentially cost millions, putting the training and development of those armed services in jeopardy, according to reports.
"Infrastructure at the naval institution in Annapolis [Maryland] has degraded to the point of threatening the school's ability to train and educate midshipmen, according to a report by the Naval Audit Service," The Capital Gazette reported. "The 2018 audit, obtained by The Capital through a Freedom of Information Act request, details failing buildings, classrooms and athletic facilities — which in some cases actively leak, overheat and threaten user safety."
The Air Force Academy in Colorado is in the same boat as the Naval Academy, forcing the Air Force to draw up the most ambitious restoration project in its 55-year history, AP reported.
"USNA concurs with the findings of the audit," Cmdr. David McKinney, a Naval Academy spokesman, wrote in a statement, the Gazette reported. "We look forward to addressing the discrepancies in the report and with additional funding look forward to ensuring the Naval Academy remains a modern Flagship Institution for the Navy."
Budget cuts during former President Barack Obama's administration – namely the 2013 federal budget sequester – have led to a maintenance backlog at the Naval Academy, leading to the lack of regular repair or major renovations that are now long overdue, according to auditors, the Gazette reported.
"The report took stock of 13 unfunded maintenance or renovation projects spread among 15 facilities between March 6, 2017, and April 26, 2018," according to the Gazette. "Ten of these facilities are highly important to the academy mission, according to its internal rating system. But of those 10, four rated 'poor to fair' and five rated 'failing to poor' at supporting the academy's ultimate goal — to ready midshipmen for naval service."