Abstract : Why and how did the Department of Defense (DOD) in summer of 2001 budget drills cut 19 civilian positions effective in FY 03 from its 34 civilians assigned to the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI), threatening a reduction in force (RIF) and partial mission stoppage in DOD's only equal opportunity (EO) training school? Why and how did the DOD in 2002 direct reinstatement of the positions, and why is the reinstatement uncertain? The answers to these questions lie in the interagency budgeting and decision-making process, as well as the organizational cultures and individual personalities involved in the process. This paper will analyze the interagency decision process that led to the 2001 reduction and the 2002 reinstatement of the positions. The analysis will focus on the 2001 and 2002 budget review and amendment process as well as the organizational cultures and individuals involved. This paper will analyze how those elements resulted in: 1) the unilateral July 2001 AF Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (AF DCS (P)) (as executive agent) decision to cut the 19 DEOMI positions, and 2) the August 2002 decision by the Assistant Secretary of the AF, Manpower and Reserve Affairs (ASAF (M&RA)) to reinstate the positions--a reinstatement action that remains uncertain. The reinstatement action appears uncertain because even though a 15 August 2002 ASAF (M&RA) senior executive memo to OSD claimed that the ASAF (M&RA) reinstated the positions, an 18 December 2002 email communication from ASAF (M&RA) and the AF Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (AF DCS (P)) action officers revealed that only FY 03 funding was definitely secured. The FY 04-09 funding remained questionable.