Under which circumstance is a Report of Survey (ROS) not mandatory?

A Report of Survey (ROS) is a formal process used by the Air Force to account for property losses or damages. It is essential for evaluating accountability and determining liability for lost, damaged, or destroyed government property. The threshold for when a ROS is required is generally associated with the monetary value of the property in question.

In the case of property valued at $500 or less, a ROS is not mandatory because the cost and administrative burden of conducting a formal survey may outweigh the benefits of tracking such low-value items. This policy allows for more efficient resource management within the Air Force, as it focuses efforts on investigating and documenting losses of higher-value assets that have a more significant impact on operations or budget.

For property losses exceeding $500, such as in the case of theft or loss during training exercises, a ROS becomes necessary to ensure proper accountability and to ascertain the circumstances leading to the loss. Thus, for low-value items, the ROS process can be bypassed, streamlining procedures for managing less critical losses.