Posted on Sep 25, 2015
"DOD: No troop pay, civilians could be furloughed if government shuts down"
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From: Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON – Troops will not get paychecks and Defense Department civilians could be furloughed if Congress fails to pass a new federal budget and the government shuts down Thursday, according to a DOD memo sent out to personnel.
The department was still holding out hope for a solution on Capitol Hill, according to the Friday memo from Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work. However, if lawmakers do not act by midnight Wednesday, the fallout could be similar to the last government shutdown in 2013, which caused turmoil and temporarily forced about 350,000 Pentagon workers on leave without pay.
“During a government shutdown, all military personnel would continue in a normal duty status. However, they would not be paid until Congress provides funding,” Work wrote.
The DOD has updated its plans to determine which civilians will continue reporting to work and which will be furloughed, he wrote. The letter did not provide any additional details.
“As we saw in 2013, should a shutdown occur, and depending on the length of the shutdown, these determinations may change over time as circumstances evolve,” Work wrote.
The last time the government shut down for more than two weeks – over attempts to defund Obamacare -- about 800,000 federal workers were placed on furlough. But the DOD was able to bring its civilians back to work after about a week.
Troops and personnel were to be contacted by their chains of command with more details on the shutdown plans.
The clock was ticking on Capitol Hill on Friday with a glimmer of hope for a budget deal in the Senate early next week following a fight over defunding Planned Parenthood, but there was major political upheaval in the House with the announced resignation of Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
Senators rejected a temporary Republican budget Thursday that would have cut all support for the federally subsidized health care provider, in what was seen as an attempt to appease right-wing conservatives in the party.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was set to introduce a new budget resolution Monday that could fund the government at current levels until December but does not include the controversial Planned Parenthood measure.
“There are two different roads that we can take. One is to insist that no more money go to Planned Parenthood and cause a government shutdown,” McConnell said after his first budget proposal failed Thursday. “The other is to take a slightly longer-term approach, taking advantage of the fact that we have the attention of the country as probably never before.”
However, the effort to defund Planned Parenthood using a federal budget bill may not be over in the House.
Boehner stunned Washington by announcing he will resign from Congress in October, a move that was seen as a victory for conservative Republicans who want to a more hardline strategy on Planned Parenthood and other issues.
“It was my plan to only serve as Speaker until the end of last year, but I stayed on to provide continuity to the Republican Conference and the House,” he said in a written statement. “It is my view, however, that prolonged leadership turmoil would do irreparable damage to the institution. To that end, I will resign the Speakership and my seat in Congress on Oct. 30.”
Boehner’s ouster showed the power of his far-right foes in the party, who may insist on defunding the health care organization and hold up any budget in the meantime.
http://www.stripes.com/dod-no-troop-pay-civilians-could-be-furloughed-if-government-shuts-down-1.370194
WASHINGTON – Troops will not get paychecks and Defense Department civilians could be furloughed if Congress fails to pass a new federal budget and the government shuts down Thursday, according to a DOD memo sent out to personnel.
The department was still holding out hope for a solution on Capitol Hill, according to the Friday memo from Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work. However, if lawmakers do not act by midnight Wednesday, the fallout could be similar to the last government shutdown in 2013, which caused turmoil and temporarily forced about 350,000 Pentagon workers on leave without pay.
“During a government shutdown, all military personnel would continue in a normal duty status. However, they would not be paid until Congress provides funding,” Work wrote.
The DOD has updated its plans to determine which civilians will continue reporting to work and which will be furloughed, he wrote. The letter did not provide any additional details.
“As we saw in 2013, should a shutdown occur, and depending on the length of the shutdown, these determinations may change over time as circumstances evolve,” Work wrote.
The last time the government shut down for more than two weeks – over attempts to defund Obamacare -- about 800,000 federal workers were placed on furlough. But the DOD was able to bring its civilians back to work after about a week.
Troops and personnel were to be contacted by their chains of command with more details on the shutdown plans.
The clock was ticking on Capitol Hill on Friday with a glimmer of hope for a budget deal in the Senate early next week following a fight over defunding Planned Parenthood, but there was major political upheaval in the House with the announced resignation of Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
Senators rejected a temporary Republican budget Thursday that would have cut all support for the federally subsidized health care provider, in what was seen as an attempt to appease right-wing conservatives in the party.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was set to introduce a new budget resolution Monday that could fund the government at current levels until December but does not include the controversial Planned Parenthood measure.
“There are two different roads that we can take. One is to insist that no more money go to Planned Parenthood and cause a government shutdown,” McConnell said after his first budget proposal failed Thursday. “The other is to take a slightly longer-term approach, taking advantage of the fact that we have the attention of the country as probably never before.”
However, the effort to defund Planned Parenthood using a federal budget bill may not be over in the House.
Boehner stunned Washington by announcing he will resign from Congress in October, a move that was seen as a victory for conservative Republicans who want to a more hardline strategy on Planned Parenthood and other issues.
“It was my plan to only serve as Speaker until the end of last year, but I stayed on to provide continuity to the Republican Conference and the House,” he said in a written statement. “It is my view, however, that prolonged leadership turmoil would do irreparable damage to the institution. To that end, I will resign the Speakership and my seat in Congress on Oct. 30.”
Boehner’s ouster showed the power of his far-right foes in the party, who may insist on defunding the health care organization and hold up any budget in the meantime.
http://www.stripes.com/dod-no-troop-pay-civilians-could-be-furloughed-if-government-shuts-down-1.370194
Government
DoD
Troops
Government Shutdown
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 62
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Government shutdowns really don't affect the military. They end up funding the government something like 80%. It's all just BS. I think there were 8 of them during the Reagan years. Due to budget, my classmates and I were frocked early to O-3 and promoted more than 3 months late. Don't sweat it.
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DoN civilian here at Great Lakes here. They ALWAYS get back pay. We civilians will not. We are just told to suck it up.
Sequestration was a good example.
Sequestration was a good example.
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Congress has failed to do it's job for many years. They are always late and last minute with everything they do. It is time to throw all the bums out and start over with new blood.
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Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D.
In truth, the House passed appropriation bills this Congressional session as well as funding bills, However, Senate Democrats choose to block votes on these bills.
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Not a threat. Obama made the last shut down as unnecessarily difficult as possible including shutting down access to private property (the Mount Vernon Estate) and shutting down public roads keeping kids living near and in Federal Parks from getting to school. Remember the barracades around public monuments in D.C during the last one. Expect that kind of crap to happen again.
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Not a threat. Obama made the last shut down as unnecessarily difficult as possible including shutting down access to private property (the Mount Vernon Estate) and shutting down public roads keeping kids living near and in Federal Parks from getting to school. Remember the barracades around public monuments in D.C during the last one. Expect that kind of crap to happen again.
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How can they keep doing this to us. They have one job and it's one that we allow them to have with our blood sweat and tears. This hurts all and retention. I hope they can fix this. Great post.
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There probably won't be a shutdown thanks to the Boehner resignation. The bigger question is how much the Haster rule is going to be tossed in the next month; there are a number of things like the debt ceiling that he could clear before the end of October.
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I have been retired for 15 years and heard this many times while on active duty and since retirement. It has not happened yet where the military have not received a paycheck. Every year we hear the same thing. Keep your head up and keep standing the watch!
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