WASHINGTON (AP) -- A legal aid group that defends gays in the military says anti-homosexual harassment in the services declined slightly last year, largely because of improved Army training programs.

But the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network says in its seventh annual report on the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy that anti-gay behavior remains common in all the services, including among officers,

The report issued Thursday says many commanders continue to violate the policy by overzealously investigating the sexual orientation of service members. The policy allows gay men and lesbians to serve as long as they keep their sexual orientation private and do not engage in homosexual acts.

The report urges Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld to develop procedures for disciplining service members who engage in, condone or ignore anti-gay behavior and to strongly state the Pentagon's opposition to anti-gay behavior.

"We now stand at a political crossroads and the question is whether the Bush administration will do what the Clinton administration failed to do and enforce don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue, don't harass with fairness and compassion," the report says.

President Bush has said he supports the "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

Reports of harassment to the legal aid group had jumped to 986 in 1999, more than double the previous year's 400.

But in 2000, reports of anti-gay harassment declined 10 percent to 871, the organization says in its latest survey. The Army accounted for most of that decrease, with complaints falling to 209, from 276.

"The Army appears to be leading the way among the services in implementing training programs and holding those found responsible for anti-gay misconduct accountable," the report says.

The Navy led the other services in reported cases of harassment in 2000, with 332, up from 330 the year before.

The report also says the Air Force, more than the other services, conducts "fishing expeditions" into the sexual histories of admitted or suspected homosexuals and has been particularly aggressive about trying to force gays and lesbians to repay scholarships or bonuses after they have been involuntarily discharged.

The report says incidents of physical violence have been rare. But it cites the case of an Army private at Fort Jackson, S.C., who was beaten in his bed soon after a drill sergeant singled him out using an epithet. The private later admitted he is gay and was discharged.