This report provides background information for Congress on the levels of Department of Defense (DOD) troop and contractor personnel deployed in support of prior and ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. For more information on DOD's use of contractor personnel to support military operations, see CRS Report R43074, Department of Defense's Use of Contractors to Support Military Operations: Background, Analysis, and Issues for Congress, by [author name scrubbed].
Throughout its history, DOD has relied on contractors to support a wide range of military operations. Operations over the past 30 years have highlighted the critical role that contractors play in supporting U.S. troops—both in terms of the number of contractors and the type of work being performed. Over the last decade in Iraq and Afghanistan, and before that, in the Balkans, contractors frequently averaged 50% or more of the total DOD presence in-country.
Definitions: Defense Contractors and Operational Contract Support DOD defines a defense contractor as "any individual, firm, corporation, partnership, or other legal non-federal entity that enters into a contract directly with the DOD to furnish services, supplies, or construction1." Operational contract support, or the process of planning for and obtaining goods and services from commercial sources, is the main term used in DOD doctrine to describe the use of defense contractors to support military operations2. This report uses contractor to describe individual service contractors and subcontractors, hired by prime contractors under DOD-funded contracts. These individuals may provide a wide range of services to the DOD, from transportation, construction, and base support, to intelligence analysis, translation/interpretation, and private security. |
As of June 2015, there were almost 29,000 DOD contractor personnel in Afghanistan, compared to 9,060 U.S. troops, with contract personnel representing approximately 76% of the total DOD presence (see Table 1) in country.3 Of the 29,000 DOD contractor personnel, approximately 1,800, or about 6%, were private security contractors (see Table 2).
DOD ceased publicly reporting numbers of DOD contractor personnel working in Iraq in December 2013, following the conclusion of the U.S. combat mission, and the subsequent drawdown of DOD contractor personnel levels in Iraq. In late 2014, in response in part to developing operations in the region, DOD reinitiated reporting broad estimates of DOD contractor personnel working in Iraq. DOD resumed reporting exact numbers of contractor personnel in Iraq, as well as primary mission categories for those personnel, as the number of DOD contractor personnel in Iraq increased over the first six months of 2015, in June 2015.
As of September 2015, there were 1,349 DOD contractor personnel in Iraq, compared with up to 3,550 U.S. troops primarily deployed as part of a U.S.-led coalition advise-and-assist mission in support of the government of Iraq. Contract personnel thus represented approximately 39% of the total DOD presence (see Table 3) in-country.4 Of the 1,349 DOD contractor personnel, nearly 90, or about 6%, were private security contractors (see Table 4).
From FY2007 to FY2014, DOD obligations for contracts performed in the greater Iraq and Afghanistan areas of operation were approximately $215.2 billion in FY2015 dollars (see Table 5).5
A number of analysts have raised questions about the reliability of the data gathered by DOD regarding the contractors it employs in theater in support of military operations. For a discussion on the reliability of historical data listed below, see CRS Report R40764, Department of Defense Contractors in Afghanistan and Iraq: Background and Analysis, by [author name scrubbed] and [author name scrubbed].
Troop Levels |
Total Contractors |
U.S. Nationals Contractors |
Foreign and Host Country National Contractors |
|||
Sept. 2007 |
24,500 |
29,473 |
|
|
||
Dec. 2007 |
24,600 |
36,520 |
|
|
||
Mar. 2008 |
28,800 |
52,336 |
4,220 |
48,116 |
||
June 2008 |
34,000 |
41,232 |
4,724 |
36,508 |
||
Sept. 2008 |
33,500 |
68,252 |
5,405 |
62,847 |
||
Dec. 2008 |
32,500 |
71,755 |
5,960 |
65,795 |
||
Mar. 2009 |
52,300 |
68,197 |
9,378 |
58,819 |
||
June 2009 |
55,107 |
73,968 |
10,036 |
62,932 |
||
Sept. 2009 |
63,950 |
104,101 |
9,322 |
94,779 |
||
Dec. 2009 |
69,000 |
107,292 |
10,016 |
97,276 |
||
Mar. 2010 |
79,100 |
112,092 |
16,081 |
96,011 |
||
June 2010 |
93,800 |
107,479 |
19,103 |
88,376 |
||
Sept. 2010 |
96,600 |
70,599 |
20,874 |
49,725 |
||
Dec. 2010 |
96,900 |
87,483 |
19,381 |
68,102 |
||
Mar. 2011 |
99,800 |
90,339 |
20,413 |
69,926 |
||
June 2011 |
98,900 |
93,118 |
23,294 |
69,824 |
||
Sept. 2011 |
98,200 |
101,789 |
23,190 |
78,599 |
||
Dec. 2011 |
94,100 |
113,491 |
25,287 |
88,204 |
||
Mar. 2012 |
88,200 |
117,227 |
34,765 |
82,462 |
||
June 2012 |
85,600 |
113,736 |
30,568 |
83,168 |
||
Sept. 2012 |
76,500 |
109,564 |
31,814 |
77,750 |
||
Dec. 2012 |
65,800 |
110,404 |
33,444 |
76,960 |
||
Mar. 2013 |
65,700 |
107,796 |
33,107 |
74,689 |
||
June 2013 |
61,300 |
101,855 |
32,442 |
69,413 |
||
Sept. 2013 |
55,800 |
85,528 |
27,188 |
58,340 |
||
Dec. 2013 |
43,300 |
78,136, |
23,763 |
54,373 |
||
Mar. 2014 |
33,200 |
61,452 |
20,865 |
40,587 |
||
June 2014 |
31,400 |
51,489 |
17,404 |
34,085 |
||
Sept. 2014 |
27,800 |
45,349 |
17,477 |
27,872 |
||
Dec. 2014 |
10,600 |
39,609 |
14,222 |
25,387 |
||
Mar. 2015 |
9,100 |
30,820 |
12,033 |
18,787 |
||
June 2015 |
9,060 |
28,931 |
10,019 |
18,912 |
||
Sept. 2015 |
Not Yet Available |
30,211 |
10,347 |
19,864 |
Sources: Contractor levels drawn from U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) Quarterly Contractor Census Reports; troop levels drawn from "Boots on the Ground" monthly reports to Congress.
Note: DOD did not begin releasing data on contractors in USCENTCOM until the second half of 2007.
Table 2. DOD Troop Levels and Private Security Contractor Personnel in Afghanistan
(September 2007-September 2015)
Troop Levels |
Total Private Security Contractorsa |
U.S. National Private Security Contractors |
Foreign and Host Country National Private Security Contractors |
||||
Sept. 2007 |
24,500 |
|
|
|
|||
Dec. 2007 |
24,600 |
|
|
|
|||
Mar. 2008 |
28,800 |
6,982 |
167 |
6,815 |
|||
June 2008 |
34,000 |
3,537 |
5 |
3,532 |
|||
Sept. 2008 |
33,500 |
3,847 |
9 |
3,838 |
|||
Dec. 2008 |
32,500 |
3,689 |
15 |
3,674 |
|||
Mar. 2009 |
52,300 |
4,373 |
17 |
4,356 |
|||
June 2009 |
55,107 |
5,198 |
19 |
5,179 |
|||
Sept. 2009 |
63,950 |
11,423 |
76 |
11,347 |
|||
Dec. 2009 |
69,000 |
14,439 |
114 |
14,325 |
|||
Mar. 2010 |
79,100 |
16,733 |
140 |
16,593 |
|||
June 2010 |
93,800 |
17,932 |
152 |
17,780 |
|||
Sept. 2010 |
96,600 |
18,869 |
197 |
18,672 |
|||
Dec. 2010 |
96,900 |
18,919 |
250 |
18,669 |
|||
Mar. 2011 |
99,800 |
18,971 |
250 |
18,721 |
|||
June 2011 |
98,900 |
15,305 |
693 |
14,612 |
|||
Sept. 2011 |
98,200 |
21,544 |
603 |
20,941 |
|||
Dec. 2011 |
94,100 |
20,375 |
570 |
19,805 |
|||
Mar. 2012 |
88,200 |
26,612 |
519 |
26,093 |
|||
June 2012 |
85,600 |
28,686 |
480 |
28,206 |
|||
Sept. 2012 |
76,500 |
18,914 |
2,014 |
16,850 |
|||
Dec. 2012 |
65,800 |
19,414 |
2,094 |
17,320 |
|||
Mar. 2013 |
65,700 |
17,993 |
1,378 |
16,615 |
|||
June 2013 |
61,300 |
16,218 |
873 |
15,345 |
|||
Sept. 2013 |
55,800 |
14,056 |
844 |
13,212 |
|||
Dec. 2013 |
43,300 |
11,332 |
1,007 |
10,325 |
|||
Mar. 2014 |
33,200 |
5,591 |
641 |
4,950 |
|||
June 2014 |
31,400 |
3,177 |
424 |
2,753 |
|||
Sept. 2014 |
27,800 |
2,472 |
252 |
2,220 |
|||
Dec. 2014 |
10,600 |
1,511 |
317 |
1,194 |
|||
Mar. 2015 |
9,100 |
1,525 |
398 |
1,127 |
|||
June 2015 |
9,060 |
1,779 |
421 |
1,358 |
|||
Sept. 2015 |
Not Yet Available |
1,655 |
312 |
1,343 |
Sources: Contractor levels drawn from USCENTCOM Quarterly Contractor Census Reports; troop levels drawn from "Boots on the Ground" monthly reports to Congress.
Notes: DOD did not begin releasing data on private security contractor personnel levels within Afghanistan until March 2008.
a. Includes most subcontractors and service contractors, armed and unarmed, hired by prime contractors under DOD contracts.
Table 3. DOD Troop Levels and Contractor Personnel in Iraq
(September 2007-December 2013; December 2014-September 2015)
Troop Levels |
Total Contractors |
U.S. National Contractors |
Foreign and Host Country National Contractors |
||||||
Sept. 2007 |
|
154,825 |
|
127,956 |
|||||
Dec. 2007 |
|
163,591 |
|
132,266 |
|||||
Mar. 2008 |
|
149,378 |
|
120,027 |
|||||
June 2008 |
|
162,428 |
|
132,817 |
|||||
Sept. 2008 |
|
163,446 |
|
135,401 |
|||||
Dec. 2008 |
|
148,050 |
|
108,788 |
|||||
Mar. 2009 |
|
132,610 |
|
96,549 |
|||||
June 2009 |
|
119,706 |
|
88,165 |
|||||
Sept. 2009 |
|
113,731 |
|
83,787 |
|||||
Dec. 2009 |
|
100,035 |
|
72,192 |
|||||
Mar. 2010 |
|
95,461 |
|
70,742 |
|||||
June 2010 |
|
79,621 |
|
56,860 |
|||||
Sept. 2010 |
|
74,106 |
|
53,125 |
|||||
Dec. 2010 |
|
71,142 |
|
51,199 |
|||||
Mar. 2011 |
|
64,253 |
|
45,860 |
|||||
June 2011 |
|
62,689 |
|
43,789 |
|||||
Sept. 2011 |
|
52,637 |
|
36,583 |
|||||
Dec. 2011a |
|
23,886 |
|
12,649 |
|||||
Mar. 2012a |
|
10,967 |
|
7,707 |
|||||
June 2012a |
|
7,336 |
|
4,843 |
|||||
Sept. 2012a |
|
9,000 |
|
6,686 |
|||||
Dec. 2012a |
|
8,449 |
|
6,093 |
|||||
Mar. 2013a |
|
7,905 |
|
5,780 |
|||||
June 2013a |
|
7,735 |
|
5,837 |
|||||
Sept. 2013a |
|
6,624 |
|
4,998 |
|||||
Dec. 2013a |
|
3,234 |
|
2,414 |
|||||
No Data on Contractors Released by USCENTCOM from March 2014-September 2014 |
|||||||||
Dec. 2014 |
|
|
|
|
|||||
Mar. 2015 |
|
|
|
|
|||||
June 2015 |
|
|
|
|
|||||
Sept. 2015 |
|
|
|
|
Sources: Troop levels from September 2007-December 2013 are drawn from the DOD's "Boots on the Ground" monthly reports to Congress. Total troop levels for December 2014-September 2015 are drawn from the White House's semiannual "War Powers Resolution Report" to Congress. All listed contractor levels are drawn from USCENTCOM Quarterly Contractor Census Reports.
Notes: DOD did not begin releasing data on contractors in USCENTCOM until the second half of 2007, and initially ceased reporting data on DOD contractor personnel in Iraq in December 2013. Following the conclusion of the U.S. combat mission in Iraq, the "Boots on the Ground" monthly reports ceased providing separate troop levels for Iraq. However, a residual U.S. force remained in county to provide embassy security and security cooperation assistance. Beginning in June 2014, in response to the military operations of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (also known as ISIS/ISIL), additional U.S. military personnel were deployed to Iraq through Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) to advise and train Iraqi forces, serve as observers, and secure U.S. personnel and facilities. For further discussion of the U.S and its coalition partners' efforts to combat the Islamic State, see CRS Report R43612, The Islamic State and U.S. Policy, by [author name scrubbed] and [author name scrubbed] In December 2014, USCENTCOM resumed releasing data on DOD contractor personnel in Iraq—as the "Boots on the Ground" reports do not currently provide OIR troop levels, CRS used the Force Management Levels for Iraq reported by the White House, beginning with the December 2014 "Six Month Consolidated War Powers Resolution Report" to provide an indication of the current number of U.S. forces in Iraq.
a. USCENTCOM reported that DOD contractors in Iraq from December 2011 through December 2013 were supporting both U.S. Mission Iraq and the Office of Security Cooperation Iraq.
b. Force Management Level for Iraq, as reported by The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, "Letter from the President—Six Month Consolidated War Powers Resolution Report," December 11, 2014, at https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/12/11/letter-president-six-month-consolidated-war-powers-resolution-report.
c. Per the USCENTCOM January 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, these personnel were "primarily performing translator/interpreter, communications, logistics, and maintenance functions."
d. Per the USCENTCOM April 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, these personnel were "primarily performing translator/interpreter, transportation, logistics, and maintenance functions."
e. Force Management Level for Iraq, as reported by The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, "Letter from the President—Six Month Consolidated War Powers Resolution Report," June 11, 2014, at https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/06/11/letter-president-six-month-consolidated-war-powers-resolution-report.
f. Per the USCENTCOM July 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, these personnel were primarily performing logistics, maintenance, translator/interpreter, transportation, management, and administrative-related functions.
g. Per the USCENTCOM October 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, these personnel were primarily performing logistics, maintenance, translator/interpreter, base support, management, and administrative-related functions.
Table 4. DOD Troop Levels and Private Security Contractors in Iraq
(September 2007-September 2013; June-September 2015)
Troop Levels |
Total Private Security Contractorsa |
U.S. National Private Security Contractors |
Foreign and Host Country National Private Security Contractors |
|
Sept. 2007 |
169,000 |
No Data Available |
No Data Available |
No Data Available |
Dec. 2007 |
165,700 |
9,952 |
830 |
9,122 |
Mar. 2008 |
160,500 |
7,259 |
515 |
6,744 |
June 2008 |
153,300 |
7,704 |
1,540 |
6,164 |
Sept. 2008 |
146,800 |
10,446 |
886b |
9,560 |
Dec. 2008 |
148,500 |
9,218 |
727b |
8,436 |
Mar. 2009 |
141,300 |
12,942 |
681 |
12,261 |
June 2009 |
134,571 |
15,279 |
802 |
14,477 |
Sept. 2009 |
130,000 |
12,684 |
670 |
12,014 |
Dec. 2009 |
114,300 |
11,095 |
776 |
10,319 |
Mar. 2010 |
95,900 |
11,610 |
1,081 |
10,529 |
June 2010 |
88,320 |
11,413 |
1,030 |
10,383 |
Sept. 2010 |
48,410 |
11,628 |
1,017 |
10,611 |
Dec. 2010 |
47,305 |
8,327 |
791 |
7,536 |
Mar. 2011 |
45,660 |
9,207 |
917 |
8,290 |
June 2011 |
46,010 |
10,414 |
935 |
9,479 |
Sept. 2011 |
44,755 |
9,554 |
844 |
8,710 |
Dec. 2011 |
11,445 |
8,995 |
751 |
8,244 |
Mar. 2012 |
— |
3,577 |
288 |
3,289 |
June 2012 |
— |
2,407 |
116 |
2,291 |
Sept. 2012 |
— |
2,116 |
102 |
2,014 |
Dec. 2012 |
— |
2,281 |
235 |
2,046 |
Mar. 2013 |
— |
2,359 |
259 |
2,100 |
June 2013 |
— |
2,148 |
217 |
1,931 |
Sept. 2013 |
— |
2,409 |
147 |
2,262 |
No Data on Contractors Released by USCENTCOM from March 2014-September 2014 |
||||
June 2015 |
Up to 3,550c |
43d |
No Data Available |
No Data Available |
Sept. 2015 |
Up to 3,550c |
87e |
No Data Available |
No Data Available |
Sources: Troop levels from September 2007-December 2013 are drawn from the DOD's "Boots on the Ground" monthly reports to Congress. Troop levels for December 2014-September 2015 are drawn from the White House's semiannual "War Powers Resolution Report" to Congress. Contractor levels are drawn from USCENTCOM Quarterly Contractor Census Reports.
Notes: DOD did not begin releasing data on private security contractor personnel levels in USCENTCOM until December 2007, and initially ceased reporting data on DOD private security contractor personnel in Iraq in September 2013. See Table 3 for further discussion of U.S. troop and contractor levels in Iraq since December 2011.
a. USCENTCOM reported that DOD contractors in Iraq from December 2011 through December 2013 were supporting both U.S. Mission Iraq and the Office of Security Cooperation Iraq.
b. USCENTCOM Quarterly Census Reports from August 2008 and November 2008 also included Coalition personnel in the reported totals of U.S. private security contractor personnel.
c. Force Management Level for Iraq, as reported by The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, "Letter from the President—Six Month Consolidated War Powers Resolution Report," June 11, 2014, at https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/06/11/letter-president-six-month-consolidated-war-powers-resolution-report.
d. In its June 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, USCENTCOM indicated that 43 contractors fell under a "security" mission category in a summary of contractors in Iraq by mission category distribution.
e. In its October 2015 Quarterly Contractor Census Report, USCENTCOM indicated that 87 contractors fell under a "security" mission category in a summary of contractors in Iraq by mission category distribution.
Table 5. DOD Contract Obligations in Iraq and Afghanistan Theaters of Operation
(FY2007-FY2014; in millions of FY2015 dollars)
FY2007 |
FY2008 |
FY2009 |
FY2010 |
FY2011 |
FY2012 |
FY2013 |
FY2014 |
Total |
||
Iraq Theater |
Iraq |
14,418.98 |
17,179.22 |
10,393.93 |
7,744.93 |
5,120.48 |
605.97 |
526.94 |
75.86 |
56,066.31 |
|
Bahrain |
578.24 |
1,273.36 |
2,152.28 |
597.90 |
515.96 |
331.97 |
866.74 |
207.99 |
6,524.43 |
|
Kuwait |
4,892.67 |
4,712.3 |
5,718.48 |
4,955.38 |
3,905.53 |
2,562.62 |
3,078.67 |
1,766.52 |
31,592.18 |
|
Qatar |
317.59 |
448.16 |
870.79 |
344.83 |
824.22 |
854.30 |
423.78 |
171.89 |
4,255.56 |
|
Saudi Arabia |
206.78 |
358.88 |
971.86 |
791.27 |
303.43 |
559.19 |
945.21 |
1,227.08 |
5,363.7 |
|
Turkey |
369.08 |
184.53 |
306.28 |
140.55 |
182.30 |
280.90 |
187.92 |
180.72 |
1,832.26 |
|
UAE |
256.59 |
1,266.96 |
300.38 |
2,612.06 |
1,039.10 |
1,439.83 |
2,236.88 |
1,717.46 |
10,869.26 |
|
Oman |
92.57 |
102.71 |
83.81 |
123.51 |
139.38 |
210.60 |
224.34 |
104.19 |
1,081.12 |
|
Jordan |
82.33 |
88.15 |
14.55 |
13.51 |
39.22 |
53.14 |
173.62 |
164.42 |
628.95 |
Total Iraq Theater |
21,214.83 |
25,614.28 |
20,812.37 |
17,323.94 |
12,069.61 |
6,898.51 |
8,664.1 |
5,616.13 |
11,8213.77 |
|
Afghanistan Theater |
Afghanistan |
3,731.7 |
6,755.71 |
8,055.86 |
12,833.67 |
17,794.75 |
19,056.94 |
14,711.26 |
6,083.85 |
8,9023.73 |
|
Kazakhstan |
5.95 |
29.47 |
47.22 |
65.04 |
73.80 |
77.02 |
91.73 |
56.20 |
446.44 |
|
Kyrgyzstan |
419.24 |
19.89 |
367.86 |
131.61 |
889.06 |
1,951.00 |
1,983.52 |
668.58 |
6,430.76 |
|
Pakistan |
73.13 |
230.18 |
249.44 |
176.12 |
63.81 |
16.98 |
-3.58 |
21.25 |
827.33 |
|
Tajikistan |
— |
0.01 |
1.07 |
3.72 |
3.48 |
8.71 |
9.07 |
7.32 |
33.38 |
|
Turkmenistan |
0.44 |
18.92 |
9.08 |
23.76 |
10.25 |
4.36 |
13.69 |
1.44 |
81.93 |
|
Uzbekistan |
13.69 |
15.74 |
9.73 |
22.30 |
16.12 |
23.37 |
18.72 |
21.65 |
141.33 |
Total Afghanistan Theater |
4,244.15 |
7,069.92 |
8,740.25 |
13,256.23 |
18,851.26 |
21,138.38 |
16,824.42 |
6,860.3 |
96,984.91 |
|
Total Iraq and Afghanistan |
25,458.98 |
32,684.2 |
29,552.62 |
30,580.17 |
30,920.88 |
28,036.88 |
25,488.52 |
12,476.43 |
215,198.67 |
Source: Federal Procurement Data System, as of October 2015 for FY2007-FY2014 data; CRS adjustments for inflation using deflators for converting into constant dollars derived from Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), Department of Defense, National Defense Budget Estimates for FY2015, "Department of Defense Deflators – TOA By Category 'Total Non-Pay,'" Table 5-5, p. 56-57, April 2014.
Author Contact Information
1. |
See Department of Defense Instruction 3020.41, Operational Contract Support (OCS), December 20, 2011, p. 48, at http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/302041p.pdf. |
2. |
See Joint Publication 4-10, Operational Contract Support, July 2014, p. 211, at http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/new_pubs/jp4_10.pdf. |
3. |
See Department of Defense (DOD), Contractor Support of U.S. Operations in the USCENTCOM Area of Responsibility to Include Iraq and Afghanistan, July 2015, at http://www.acq.osd.mil/log/PS/CENTCOM_reports.html; Boots on the Ground Report, June 2015. |
4. |
See DOD, Contractor Support of U.S. Operations in the USCENTCOM Area of Responsibility to Include Iraq and Afghanistan, October 2015; DOD, "Statement from the Department of Defense on Additional U.S. Personnel to Deploy to Iraq," June 10, 2015, at http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/605555. |
5. |
Iraqi areas of operation are defined by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) as Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Jordan. Afghani areas of operation are defined by CRS as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. |