CBO Estimates Pentagon Has Spent $85 Billion on Contractors
Source: By David Clarke, CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS - DEFENSE, Aug. 12, 2008 - 11:41 a.m.
The use of private contractors in Iraq by the U.S. military is far greater than in past conflicts and has cost the government $85 billion through 2007, according to a Congressional Budget Office report released Tuesday.
CBO estimates that, as of early 2008, there were at least 190,000 private contractors or subcontractors working on U.S.-funded projects in the Iraq theater, which includes Iraq, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. Most of the work performed by contractors, according to CBO, deals with logistical support, construction projects, food services and providing petroleum products. The report examined data from 2003 through 2007.