NCNGA Weekly Guardsman for May 27, 2021

May 27th, 2021

 

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 IN THIS EDITION:

Brown or Raymond? Milley Hints One Will Replace Him as ‘Next Chairman’ of Joint Chiefs AFMag 
U.S. National Guard brigade receives new M109A7 Paladin howitzer DefenceBlog 
House Bill 83 Almost Back on Track NCNGA 
The 2021 National Guard Almanac & Education Guide EANGUS
WGU North Carolina Military Service Scholarship WGU 
Apply for the $5,000 Scholarship NGAUS
This Week in NCNG History NCNG Museum 
May 27th — Today in Guard History National Guard 


Brown or Raymond? Milley Hints One Will Replace Him as ‘Next Chairman’ of Joint Chiefs AFMag 

The next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff could well be an Airman or Guardian, hinted Gen. Mark A. Milley, the current CJCS, while speaking at the graduation ceremony for the U.S. Air Force Academy on May 26.

Milley pointed toward Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. and Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond as the obvious candidates.

“I want to thank the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff—it’s going to be either Brown or Raymond. Take your pick, Space or Air Force,” Milley said in a half-joking tone after thanking Acting Air Force Secretary John P. Roth for his attendance.

Milley then playfully polled the crowd of graduates and family members in attendance, asking them to cheer if they wanted Brown, then Raymond. He proceeded to acknowledge others in attendance, including senior enlisted adviser to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Ramon “CZ” Colon-Lopez.

Milley began a four-year term as Chairman in October 2019 as the 10th member of the U.S. Army to hold the position. In contrast, Gen. Richard Myers was the last Airman to serve as CJCS, holding the job from 2001 to 2005. Since the founding of the Air Force as a separate branch in 1947, only four Airmen have ever ascended to the role.

Read More…

U.S. National Guard brigade receives new M109A7 Paladin howitzer DefenceBlog 

North Carolina National Guard has announced that the 1st Battalion, 113th Field Artillery Regiment (1-113th FA), 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) conducted an artillery live-fire exercise with the newly fielded M109A7 Self-Propelled Howitzer System at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, May 20-21, 2021.

The 30th ABCT was the first National Guard brigade to receive the newest iteration of the Paladin and trained for almost two weeks before the live-fire event.

During the training, 1-113th Soldiers had the opportunities to learn the differences between the old hydraulic system and the new electric system before heading to the range.

Staff Sgt. Cody Fields, a section chief with C Battery, 1-113th FA, was excited to learn the new system.

“The new weapons system allows us to do it a little bit faster,” Fields said. “Everything went from hydraulic to electric. It allows us to mitigate some of the maintenance issues we had in the past.”

Col. Wes Morrison, the 30th ABCT Commander, saw the opportunity to be the first Guard unit to receive the Paladins as an honor.

“The 1-113th, with their history and the leadership they show in the field artillery community, they’re certainly deserving,” said Morrison.

Read More…

House Bill 83 Almost Back on Track NCNGA 

Representative John Szoka of Fayetteville continues to fight for military pension tax exemption. After meeting with him this week he is hopeful that it should be back before the full House later this week or next. Once it receives the support of the full House it can then be considered by the Senate.

Your support is still needed if you haven’t done it yet please contact you NC Representative. To find them visit ncleg.gov/FindYourLegislators and enter your address. Below is a sample letter/email for your use.

In addition to contacting your local Representative it is critical to contact John.Szoka@ncleg.gov, George.Cleveland@ncleg.gov, Keith.Kidwell@ncleg.gov, Tim.Moore@ncleg.gov

Your Association is working closely with other organizations in this effort. However, it is your individual voice that will make the difference in this effort.
Sample Letter Body:

Dear Elected Official,

Did you know that 33 states fully exempt military retirement pay and North Carolina is not one of them? In addition to these 33 states several have pending legislation that impact military retirement pay.

As your constituent, I write to ask that you support House Bill 83 that will eliminate state tax on military pension.
This important measure would extend tax exemption on retirement pay for a retired member of the Armed Forces of the United States or as survivorship benefits for survivors of active duty or retired members of the Armed Forces of the United States. Currently, only those military members who have five or more years of creditable service as of August 12, 1989 have their military retirement pay exempt from state income tax. Also there is no current tax exemption on survivor benefits.

More than likely, those Servicemembers retiring from North Carolina’s military, a population of well over 120,000, and making the choice to stay in North Carolina can expect to pay state taxes on their military retirement income. This taxation impacts the most recent group of retiring Service Members who very likely served in combat at least once, if not multiple times, since 1990. Taxation of their retirement income can be a serious consideration in deciding in which state to retire.

On average, military retirees are under 50 years of age with over 20 years of work history and a desire to start a second career. This type of employee profile is exactly what is needed to fill civilian or contractor positions within North Carolina’s military and defense sector.

I strongly support this legislation and ask that you support this bill and use your influence to advance the bill during the upcoming short session.

Thank you for considering my views. I look forward to your response.

The 2021 National Guard Almanac & Education Guide EANGUS

This year’s publication includes two sections:

  • An Education Section includes information about scholarship opportunities and other resources available to National Guard members.
  • The Almanac Section highlights key National Guard leaders for each of the 54 States, Territories, and the District of Columbia as well as their State Association contact information and State benefits.

We thank Grantham University for their sponsorship of this publication. We are proud to continue our partnership with Grantham and have highlighted information in the Education Section regarding their educational programs and the two scholarships they are offering this year.

We are also extremely grateful for the continued partnership and scholarships offered to our EANGUS members, their spouse, and dependent children by Colorado Technical Institute, Grand Canyon University, and the University of Phoenix. Along with Grantham University, these institutions provide a total of eight full-tuition scholarships, which are a significant benefit to those selected as the recipients each year. We are also appreciative of the additional funding provided for scholarships at Excelsior College, and the scholarship funds provided by USAA, AFBA, and the CSM Advisory Council which can be used by the recipient at the college or university of their choice.

On behalf of the EANGUS Executive Council, I trust that you will find this information of value, and we wish the best to our members pursuing their dreams of a higher education.

Sincerely,

Karen M. Craig
CSM, USA, Retired
EANGUS President

2021 National Guard Almanac & Education Guide

WGU North Carolina Military Service Scholarship WGU 

WGU North Carolina is pleased to once again offer the Military Service Scholarship. We are proud to support our troops and their families by awarding $2,500 scholarships to local currently serving military members, veterans, and their family members.

For 11 consecutive years, WGU has been named one of the “Top Military-Friendly Colleges and Universities” by Military Advanced Education and Transition Magazine and has demonstrated a strong commitment to helping servicemen and women apply their knowledge and life experiences towards a high-quality degree that will open the door to career opportunities in business, healthcare, education, or information technology.

Read More…

Apply for the $5,000 Scholarship NCNGA

AFBA/NGAUS Scholarship

Now accepting applications

NGAUS Active Life Members and their dependents are eligible to apply for the AFBA (Armed Forces Benefit Association)/NGAUS scholarship, awarding two applicants, each with a $5,000 scholarship.

Now accepting applications through June 1, 2021.

Apply Now

Not a NGAUS Active Life Member? Become one today.

Please feel free to contact membership@ngaus.org with any questions you may have about the NGAUS and AFBA Scholarship or NGAUS Life Membership.

Chief Details National Guard Contributions in a Year of Trial DOD News

Over the past year, National Guardsmen were called on time and again to help out their fellow U.S. citizens, and they deployed to operations around the world, National Guard Bureau Chief Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense yesterday.
“The year 2020 was unprecedented and historic,” Hokanson said in written testimony.” National Guard members supported every combatant commander around the globe and met every mission here at home. On June 6, 120,000 National Guard soldiers and airmen were mobilized in support of overseas and domestic missions — one of the highest levels of National Guard support to our nation since World War II.”

Guardsmen participate in a socially distant deployment ceremony in a hangar.
And National Guardsmen helped their fellow Americans in many different ways.

The coronavirus pandemic saw large numbers of Guardsmen called up, first to help in testing stations and later at vaccination sites. “The men and women of the National Guard served more than 7.6 million days in support [of] the COVID-19 pandemic – a mission that continues today,” the chief said. “They provided over 632 million meals to neighbors; distributed over 539 million pieces of personal protective equipment to essential workers; and tested or screened over 16.1 million people for the virus across the 50 states, 3 territories and the District of Columbia in 2020.”

Read more…

This Week in NCNG History NCNG Museum 

If you know of anything significant to the NCNG that occurred on any of these dates, and would like it added to our records, please email 1LT Dearie at kory.k.dearie.mil@mail.mil

May 27th — Today in Guard History National Guard 

1908
Washington, DC – Congress passes the “Second Dick Act,” one of a series of laws enacted between 1903 and 1916 that completely restructured the old “militia” into the modern “National Guard.” This law requires the federal government to call forth the Guard in case of emergency before accepting any volunteers for military service. It also removed the previous nine month limitation on militia service, and stated that such service could take place “either within or without of the territory of the United States.” This last aspect of the law was critical, because it appeared to remove a major objection the Army had regarding the militia: inability to employ the militia outside of the U.S. borders. However, less than four years later this aspect of the law was overturned when the Judge Advocate General of the Army and the Attorney General of the United States both opined that employing militia outside the boundaries of the country violated the Constitution, which limited Congress’ power to call forth the militia to only three purposes: “to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.” It was only after World War I, when the entire National Guard had to be “drafted” into the Army as a quick and dirty way of getting the troops deployed to Europe, that the Congress in 1933 finally passed a new law giving every Guard member “dual status” in both the militia and as a federal reserve of the Army. In the latter capacity Guardsmen could be deployed overseas.

Read More…

The Weekly Guardsman


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