Obama's budget calls for 2.9% military pay raise

[babylonsister]

Obama's budget calls for 2.9% military pay raise
By Jeff Schogol and Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Friday, February 27, 2009


ARLINGTON, Va. — President Barack Obama’s proposed fiscal 2010 budget calls for a 2.9 percent pay increase for servicemembers, according to the Office of Management and Budget.

That compares with a 3.9 percent pay increase for this fiscal year.

This fiscal year’s budget initially called for a 3.4 percent pay raise, but Congress increased that amount during budget negotiations. Lawmakers also increased the fiscal 2008 pay raise from 3 percent to 3.5 percent.

All told, the Defense Department has asked for $533.7 billion for fiscal 2010 along with $130 billion to fund operations overseas, according to the budget outline released Thursday by the Office of Management and Budget.

more...

http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60998

[LynnTheDem]

1. PORK!!1! PORK!!1!

Next thing you know, the fungible pawns will be wanting ARMOR!!1!

[pnutbutr]

2. wait wat?

Is it 2.9, 3.9. 3, 3.4 or 3.5. I'm confused?

Whatever it is I'm not opposed to paying our military members more money. They put their lives on the line for us and the country despite the fact that I disagree with the orders they are given on most occasions.

[Metta]

3. That's a slap in the face. Get them off of food stamps and give them adequate health care.

This is more sizzle than steak.

[babylonsister]

4. They seemed happy about the pay raise today.

And I don't know how much things have changed, but my DH retired from the military. We were never on food stamps.

I do agree more has to be done about the current lack of care for those wounded in the occupation.

[bdab1973]

5. Food stamps? Do you even know how much military folks make?

For example, an E-3 that's married and lives off base near Ft Benning, GA, brings home around $3112 a month...that includes base pay, BAS and BAH. Do people who make $38,000 a year qualify for food stamps?

[Metta]

What about all those stories in the news about families going to food banks?

and making $2.00 a day or so in Iraq?

[Metta]

6. What about all those stories in the news about families going to food banks?

and making $2.00 a day or so in Iraq?

[bdab1973]

7. It's $3.50 a day, and that's the per diem rate...

Go look up the pay tables for yourself at www.dfas.mil. For a military person living off base, they get base pay (based on rank and years of service), Basic Allowance for Housing (separate link for that..look under the useful links under military pay on the toolbar) and Basic Allowance for Subsistence. If they have special qualifications, then they get that extra pay as well (ie, jump pay, flight pay, submarine pay, etc). If you live on base with dependents, you get Base Pay, specialty pay and BAS, but do not receive BAH (housing is being provided). If you are single living on base (only enlisted can do this, single officers cannot live on base), you only get Base Pay, plus specialty pay (no dependents to feed, plus free food in the chow hall). Officers can live in base housing if it's available, or they can opt to take the BAH pay and live off base in rental property or buy a house.

The $3.50 a day you hear about is the per diem rate in the combat zone...well, it's not really "per diem", but something else called "incidentals", which is supposed to cover costs of things like soap, shampoo and that other stuff you have to buy at the PX/BX. In addition, military personnel with dependents can get Family Separation Pay, which is $250 a month, and all deployed personnel in the war zone get Hostile Fire Pay, which is $225 a month. Some locations, because of additional risk, get Imminent Danger Pay, which works out to be about $100 a month or so, but varies based on location.

Also, deployed members do not pay federal payroll taxes for the months they are deployed (up to the maximum of an E-9's base pay...anything above that is taxed). So that's an additional several hundred dollars a month saved (plus significant tax advantages come April 15 the next year since that pay does not count towards your taxable income).

The quote I gave you was for an E-3 (junior enlisted) that has a dependent (child or spouse) and lives off base, with the base pay, BAH and BAS added together. It's more if they have any special qualifications, or if they have been deployed.