Defense Commissary Agency

The Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) is an agency of the United States Department of Defense that manages 284 grocery stores on U.S. military installations worldwide. The current (2009) director of Defense Comissary Agency is Philip E. Sakowitz Jr. ^[1].

These stores, called commissaries, function much the same as a typical civilian supermarket in the United States. Goods are sold at cost, plus a five percent surcharge to the total to pay for building new commissaries, maintenance, and operations equipment. DeCA states that a family of four can save over 30% or nearly $3,000 a year on their food purchases by shopping at the commissary. DeCA derived this statistic from cost-of-food figures from the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion and figures from DeCA's price comparison study, which compares commissary prices with those of local supermarkets, major grocery store chains, and supercenters. Commissaries offer items typically stocked at a civilian supermarket; non-grocery items such as clothing and televisions are instead sold on military installations at a store called an Exchange not under DeCA control. In 2007, DeCA had annual sales of over $5.54 billion^[2].

DeCA was activated in 1991 to consolidate the commissary functions previously performed by the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. The origins of DeCA are traced to the Second World War, when a rise in black market activity prompted the United States War Department to consider a central office through which goods and services could be provided to deployed service members who would otherwise seek such goods through illegal means^{[citation needed]}. The commissary system in the United States dates back to 1867 when Congress first authorized the Army to sell food items at cost^[3].

The Defense Commissary Agency is a civilian agency, but employs some military personnel for liaison functions, mostly from the Quartermaster and Supply Corps branches. DeCA also issues a limited series of awards and decorations^[4] including:

DeCA Distinguished Civilian Service Award ribbon

• DeCA Distinguished Civilian Service Award
• DeCA Meritorious Civilian Service Award
• DeCA Superior Civilian Service Award
• DeCA Civilian Career Service Award
• DeCA Certificate of Appreciation
• DeCA Certificate of Appreciation in Equal Opportunity
• DeCA Disabled Employee of the Year
• DeCA Director's Award for Volunteer Service
• DeCA Civilian of the Year Award
• Michael W. Blackwell Leadership Award (civilian and military eligible)

DeCA employees may also be awarded the Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award.

See also

• Awards and decorations of the United States government
• Base exchange
• Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes

References

1. ^ Defense Agencies
2. ^ Defense Commissary Agency Annual Report 2007
3. ^ History of U. S. Military Commissaries
4. ^ DeCAD 50-8.PDF

External links

• Defense Commissary Agency
• Department of Defense DIRECTIVE NUMBER 5105.55, March 12, 2008, SUBJECT: Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA)
• Congressional Budget Office study (1997)
• Title 32 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations 383a

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