ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

7/29/2015  Message from the AUSA PresidentGen. Mark A. Milley told Congress this week that if confirmed as the next Army Chief of Staff, he’d take a “hard look” at the balancing act of three priorities -- readiness, troop strength and modernization -- but that readiness was his top priority so no soldier is sent into harm’s way who is not fully prepared and equipped. He shouldn’t have to choose where to cut. The Army needs to be ready to fight anywhere at any time.

WHY DID DEMOCRATS TORPEDO THE DEFENSE SPENDING BILL?On June 11, Republican and Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal 2016 defense spending bill, 27-3.  On June 18, those same Democrats joined forces with the rest of their party and blocked the measure from reaching the floor for debate and a full vote.  The 50-45 vote failed to achieve the 60 votes needed to advance the bill.Democrats are opposed to the GOP maneuver that added $38 billion to the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) fund.  Since the OCO fund is not subjected to budget caps, this would

CALL TO ACTION!  Despite a veto threat from the White House, the Senate kicked off consideration of the fiscal 2016 defense authorization bill last week. AUSA has a big problem with some of the provisions approved by the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) last month.  These include provisions that would only provide a 1.3 percent pay raise instead of 2.3 percent; reduce Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH); reduce funding for commissaries and double TRICARE pharmacy co-pays over ten years.“The FY 2016 SASC mark proposes a 1.3 percent pay raise cap (vs.

WHAT’S THE RUSH? Lawmakers on the Senate Armed Services Committee approved the fiscal 2016 defense authorization bill last week.  Included in the measure is a proposal that would fundamentally change the current military retirement system.The proposed retirement system overhaul reflects the recommendations made earlier this year by the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission (MCRMC) and largely mirrors language included in the defense authorization bill passed last week by the House of Representatives.Instead of the current 20-year, cliff-vested retirement benefit, ser

DEFENSE PANEL APPROVES POLICY BILL Who said Congress never works?  Around 4:30 this morning, after almost 19 hours of debate, the House Armed Services Committee passed their version of the fiscal 2016 defense authorization bill by a vote of 60-2.    The bill would authorize $515 billion in national defense funding, $495.9 for the Pentagon's base budget and $19 billion for national security programs within the Energy Department.   It would also provide $89.2 billion in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO), some $38.3 billion above the president's request.  The added funds, authorized

4/16/2015 Message from the AUSA PresidentAt Fort Drum, N.Y., Defense Secretary Ash Carter told soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division last week the nation faces many challenges, and “we cannot meet them in garrison. We have to be out there.” His words serve as a reminder to us all that the Army will remain globally engaged, and will need the best people with the best skills on hand to deploy to dangerous places and do dangerous things.

3/24/2015 “A LOT OF PEOPLE don’t realize that since 2010, defense has been cut 18 percent.  It’s actually 24 percent if you count the effects of inflation.  Defense is now 16 percent of the federal budget, and yet it has had to absorb 50 percent of the cuts under the Budget Control Act.  And the world is not 18 or 24 percent safer now than it was when the Budget Control Act passed.”  Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, Chairman, House Armed Services Committee, March 16, 2015.Way to go, Rep.

TOP ENLISTED LEADERS TO CONGRESS:  BUDGETS “CUT TO THE BONE"In a hearing before the House Military Construction and Veterans’ Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, the services’ top enlisted leaders said that service budgets have been "cut to the bone" by limits imposed by sequestration.  "We may have to tell good soldiers to go home," said Sergeant Major of the Army Dan Dailey. His counterpart in the Air Force agreed.  "Thirty years ago, if you were a good airman and worked hard, you could serve for 20 years.

2/11/2015 

1/29/2015  AUSA: Seeking Stability (& Sanity) In 2015 The regular Army and the National Guard are increasingly at loggerheads — not because they don’t respect each other, but because both want to protect their funding, their mission, and their people from zero-sum budget cuts.