1.2. Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution (PPBE) Process
The purpose of the PPBE process is to allocate resources within the Department. It is important for program managers and their staffs to be aware of the nature and timing of each of the events in the PPBE process, since they may be called upon to provide critical information that could be important to program funding and success.
In the PPBE process, the Secretary of Defense establishes policies, strategy, and prioritized goals for the Department, which are subsequently used to guide resource allocation decisions that balance the guidance with fiscal constraints. The PPBE process consists of four distinct but overlapping phases:
Planning. The planning phase of PPBE is a collaborative effort by the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff, in coordination with DoD components. It begins with a resource-informed articulation of national defense policies and military strategy known as the Defense Planning Guidance (DPG). The DPG is used to lead the overall planning process.
Programming. The programming phase begins with the development of a Program Objective Memorandum (POM) by each DoD Component. This development seeks to construct a balanced set of programs that respond to the guidance and priorities of the DPG within fiscal constraints. When completed, the POM provides a fairly detailed and comprehensive description of the proposed programs, including a time-phased allocation of resources (forces, funding, and manpower) by program projected five years into the future. In addition, the DoD Component may have the opportunity to describe important programs not fully funded (or not funded at all) in the POM, and assess the risks associated with the shortfalls. The senior leadership in OSD and the Joint Staff, and Combatant Commands review each POM to help integrate the DoD Component POMs into an overall coherent defense program. In addition, the OSD staff ,the Joint Staff, and Combatant Commands can raise issues with any section of a POMand propose alternatives with adjustments to resources. Proposed programmatic changes are presented to the leadership for review, and decisions are documented in the Resource Management Decision (RMD) document. DoD Components use the RMD to update their POM data sets which are then incorporated into the Department’s Budget and Future Years Defense Program (FYDP) and submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as part of the President’s budget request.
Budgeting. The budgeting phase of PPBE occurs concurrently with the programming phase; each DoD Component submits its proposed Budget Estimate Submission (BES) simultaneously with its POM. The budget converts the programmatic view into the format of the congressional appropriation structure, along with associated budget justification documents. The budget is focused on one year, but with considerably more financial details than the POM. Upon submission, each budget estimate is reviewed by analysts from the office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) and OMB. Their review ensures that programs are funded in accordance with current financial policies, and are properly and reasonably priced. Proposed budget changes are presented to leadership for review and decisions are documented in the Resource Management Decision (RMD) document. DoD Components use the RMD to update their BES data sets which are then incorporated into the Department’s Budget and FYDP and submitted to OMB as part of the President’s budget request.
Execution. The execution review occurs simultaneously with the program and budget reviews. The execution review provides feedback to the senior leadership concerning the effectiveness of current and prior resource allocations. Metrics are used to support the execution review to measure actual output versus planned performance for defense programs. To the extent performance goals of an existing program are not being met, the execution review may lead to recommendations to adjust resources and/or restructure programs to achieve desired performance goals.
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