Our Army, an All-Volunteer Force, remains dedicated to the defense of our Nation and the protection of our national interest. Although the Army remains at war, it continues to transform. Our Soldiers continue to train, deploy and fight for the causes that promote our Nation’s best interests. We appreciate the continued support of Congress and the Administration in improving military compensation, but much remains to be done. It is imperative that Congress provide our Soldiers with pay raises that close the gap with the private sector and improve their Quality of Life benefits.

As the Army continues to compete for a limited resource of high quality people, military compensation and benefits must be comparable to those in the civilian sector in order to attract, recruit and retain skilled and motivated Soldiers. However, disparities still remain between military and private sector compensation and benefits. These disparities, coupled with Soldiers’ extended and repeated involvement in conflicts and deployments, have contributed to the loss of highly qualified Soldiers and potential recruits.

The Army relies on the total force to accomplish its missions of protecting and defending our Nation from its enemies, domestic and abroad. Because of the continued increased dependence on the Reserve Component (RC), it is essential that their compensation and benefits be equitably aligned with those of the Active Component (AC).

Our Nation’s Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) further stretches our human resources and requires that Congress address the long-term consequences for the All-Volunteer Force. This war requires a dedicated and intensive commitment by Soldiers and their families. Military service should not be the primary cause of Soldiers and their families’ major financial or health-related distress. Our Soldiers’ compensation and retirement benefits should be proportionate with the level of their service.

WE THEREFORE RESOLVE to urge the Administration and Congress to:

• Eliminate the pay gap and make pay commensurate with level of responsibility and maintain comparability in the out years
  
  
• Support legislation that allows the participants of the Veterans’ Education Assistance Program (VEAP) the opportunity to enroll in the Montgomery GI Bill
  
  
• Fund transferability of the Montgomery GI Bill benefit earned by servicemembers to their family members
  
  
• Continue to support reducing the cost of permanent change of station moves by increasing per diem and Temporary Lodging Expense rates, increasing weight allowances and streamlining the moving process
  
  
• Provide Reserve Income Replacement Program (RIRP) payment to eligible RC Soldiers on a 15 month or more of involuntary mobilization, after 90 days deployment
  
  
• Encourage the congressionally-established Reserve Component Commission to determine the feasibility of providing incentives to employers of RC personnel, including small businesses, that would provide that employer with a compensation package that would allow them to offset the Soldier’s loss of related take-home pay due to mobilization
  
  
• Provide tax credits for employers of mobilized RC Soldiers
  
  
• Increase special pay and bonus programs to recruit and retain RC Soldiers with critical skills, i.e. health care professionals, on par with their AC counterparts
  
  
• Update military longevity pay to match every pay grade’s Retention Control Point (RCP)
  
  
• Fund equity of retirement and VA benefits to National Guard Soldiers and Airmen serving in any mobilization status
  
  
• Expand concurrent receipt entitlement legislation to include all veterans that are medically retired
  
  
• Enact legislation to give RC Soldiers and their families compensation and benefits equal to AC Soldiers while on active duty
  
  
• Encourage states, when RC Soldiers are mobilized, to waive or reimburse tuitions and fees for undergraduate studies at community colleges and state universities; to provide academic leave for Soldiers who depart during an academic term and to refund dormitory and certain other fees. Upon return provide priority placement for class enrollment
  
  
• Accelerate the development of a single pay system for AC and RC Soldiers
  
  
• Continue to review and update the current RC compensation system to include educational benefits for retired Guard and Reserve members who have served at least 20 years
  
  
• Support initiatives to protect and enhance the exchange benefit including specifically military exchange shared-services initiatives that will result in benefit enhancements and cost savings for beneficiaries while ensuring that there is no reduction in Morale Welfare and Recreation (MWR) funds provided to services and that any changes are invisible to the customer
  
  
• Increase the maximum number of inactive duty points (service performed in which points are not awarded, AFTP, MCFP) that RC Soldiers can earn in a retirement year to 120
  
  
• Change VA regulations to allow servicemembers who are stationed overseas to use their VA entitlements for home purchase, regardless of its immediate occupancy
  
  
• Ensure funding is available for the congressionally approved Welcome Home Warrior Citizen Award Program for RC Soldiers
  
  
• Strengthen financial protection under the Servicemembers’ Civil Relief Act
  
  
• Support legislation for a balanced ratio of RC education benefits proportional to active duty programs such as the Montgomery GI Bill and the RC Student Loan Repayment Program commensurate with the active Loan Repayment Program (LRP)
  
  
• Enact legislation to create parity between Title 32 and Title 10 Active Guard Reserve Soldiers’ Montgomery GI Bill education benefits
  
  
• Amend legislation to provide preference to all RC Soldiers, who complete 20 or more years of service, for hiring in the Civil Service System
  
  
• Amend legislation to prevent receipt of FSGLI proceeds by relatives of those convicted of wrongdoing in the death of their spouse, and potentially the wrongdoers themselves