NCNGA Weekly Guardsman for March 17, 2022

March 17th, 2022

 

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Armed Forces Benefit Association



 IN THIS EDITION:

Roll Call: Drill Weekend Talking Points EANGUS 
Student Artist Apply Today! MCEC 2022 Call for the Arts NCNGA 
EANGUS Roll Call: Drill Weekend Talking Points EANGUS 
Tickets-At-Work: Members get Discounts on Tickets NCNGA 
This Week in NCNG History NCNG Museum 
March 17th — Today in Guard History National Guard 


Roll Call: Drill Weekend Talking Points EANGUS 

There is an ubiquitous phrase in American Politics that seems to be ever-present here in Washington D.C and on Capitol Hill. That phrase is “Kick the can down the road.” For many years, Congress has struggled to pass bills that provide approval for fiscal expenditures, known as Appropriations Bills, in a timely fashion.

Typically, there are 12 separate Appropriations bills that Congress creates each year; however, out of these bills, there really are only two that are germane to DoD. The first bill is called Defense Appropriations and the second is called the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriation. The appropriation bills are critical pieces of legislation because they provide the funding needed for DoD to conduct business as well as the funding needed for military construction projects or facilities. Unfortunately, for the last several years, Congress has been unable to complete the Appropriation bills in a timely manner which has forced them to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) that enables federal agencies, to include DoD, to continue to function but limits them to the funding levels from the prior year.

In 2021, Congress missed the 30 September deadline to pass the 2022 Appropriations bills. This resulted in Congress passing a short-term Continuing Resolution. The information below shows step by step what work Congress has done regarding the 2022 Appropriation bills.

The table above highlights how Congress continues to “Kick the can down the road” when it comes to the FY 2022 Appropriations Bills. The constant passage of Continuing Resolutions and the inability of Congress to pass the 2022 Appropriation bills will cause an adverse effect on the National Guard Community.

Presently, Congress is trying to move forward in an effort to complete the FY 2022 Appropriations bill. However, since we are already more than five months into Fiscal Year 2022, it is likely that Congress will try and complete what is known as an Omnibus Bill, which means instead of building 12 separate Appropriations bills, they will combine it all into one large package.

However, if Congress is unable to work across the aisle and in a bipartisan way between the majority and minority parties, it is very possible that Congress will continue to “Kick the can down the road” once again and will be forced to pass another Continuing Resolution before the March 11th deadline.

Unfortunately, no one has a crystal ball and can say for certain what will happen with the FY 2022 Appropriations Bill. What we do know is that Congress continues to struggle to find common ground and pass Appropriations bills in a timely manner. Eventually, Congress must stop ‘Kicking the can down the road” and do the job that they were elected to do.

GI Bill Parity for the National Guard

Another important topic that EANGUS is actively working on here in Washington D.C. is GI Bill parity for National Guard and Reserve Servicemembers. On January 12, 2022, the US House of Representatives passed H.R. 1836, Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2021. This legislation would adjust the type of service that entitles a member of the Armed Forces, Reserves, or National Guard to GI Bill eligibility. Under the bill, service by a reservist or National Guard member that is entitled to pay counts toward benefits eligibility. Such service includes training, active military service, inactive training, and general duty for which basic pay is warranted.

Currently, the US Senate is working on their version of this legislation S. 2644, GRAD VA Educational Assistance Parity Act of 2021.

EANGUS is actively working with the Senate so that when the bills are negotiated between the House and the Senate that they keep the best parts of each bill intact. Specifically, EANGUS would like them to include accrual time for Inactive Duty Training (IDT) (Drill Weekends) as qualifying time that is listed in the house bill and would like them to also include the immediate effective date once the legislation is approved that is listed in the Senate version.

We are optimistic the House and Senate can come to a bipartisan agreement on these two pieces of legislation and provide what will be the most consequential change to the post 9-11 GI Bill, specifically for the Reserve Component, since the inception of the program.

EANGUS Legislative Action Center

Student Artist Apply Today! MCEC 2022 Call for the Arts NCNGA 

2 0 Y E A R C E L E B R A T I O N O F M I L I T A R Y – C O N N E C T E D S T U D E N T S’ A R T
THEME: CELEBRATION

Using art in any of its forms, share how you celebrate, what you celebrate, and why it is important to celebrate in 2022.

Eligibility + Submission Requirements
* Open to children in grades K-12
* All submissions must reference life as a military-connected child
* Only original work will be accepted (no copies of artwork/song/video)
* All submissions should be titled Creative writing, poetry, or prose (Not exceed 500 words)
* The branch of armed services being artistically represented must be identified

Submissions due by March 20, 2022
APPLY TODAY!

All submissions must be submitted by:
EMAIL: Callforthearts@militarychild.org
OR mailed to:
Call for the Arts
Military Child Education Coalition
909 Mountain Lion Circle
Harker Heights, TX 76548

For more information about 2022 CFA
Visit our website

EANGUS Roll Call: Drill Weekend Talking Points EANGUS 

Ensuring benefits parity between the National Guard and the active component has always been a priority for EANGUS. Over the last several years, EANGUS has worked with Congress to address issues such as allowing National Guard Servicemembers to receive 180 days of premium-free transitional health care benefits under the Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) after serving more than 30 consecutive days on active duty to support COVID-19 response as well as advocating for equal pay for National Guard Servicemembers assigned to and performing hazardous duty jobs.

In the Fiscal Year (F.Y.) 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Congress approved section 602, which authorizes the reserve components of the Armed Forces to incentive pay in the same monthly amount as that paid to the Active Components performing comparable work requiring comparable skills. For example, a National Guard Servicemember qualified and assigned to an airborne position would be entitled to receive the full airborne hazardous duty pay that an Active Component servicemember receives instead of the prorated 1/30th of the pay for each day on duty. The qualifications, requirements, and risks of performing a hazardous duty job are the same regardless of the component a Servicemember serves. It is fantastic that Congress has finally taken this step to close this parity gap. However, even though Congress approved this section, there is still specific language in the text that does not allow implementation of this benefit until the Secretary of Defense submits a report to Congress no later than September 30, 2022, outlining the steps to implement this as well as the cost associated with it. Furthermore, the Secretary of Defense must certify that providing this equal pay will not have a detrimental effect on the Force Structure or recruiting or retention of Active-Duty Components. While EANGUS does not believe that providing equal incentive pay will damage the Active Components, it will be essential to ensure that this section is tracked very closely to implement this incentive pay.

Yet another parity issue that EANGUS is working on is GI Bill Parity. For many years, EANGUS has been educating Congress on the need to adjust the GI Bill. Currently, there are strict limitations on what type of status and periods a National Guard Servicemember must serve on Active-Duty orders to qualify for Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. In March of 2021, EANGUS was able to gain the support of several members of the House of Representatives to have the H.R. 1836, Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2021 introduced for consideration. This bill would expand the eligibility criteria for the National Guard and Reserve components to make it easier for these Servicemembers to qualify for this benefit. This bill would allow Guard and reserve Servicemembers on Active-Duty for training orders to earn qualifying time towards Post 9/11 GI Bill eligibility. Additionally, starting in 2032, this bill would allow inactive duty training (IDT) as a qualifying time towards Post 9/11 GI Bill eligibility.

EANGUS sent out a Call-To-Action on this bill in January 2022 to ask our membership to respond and let their congressional members know the importance of this legislation. Our voices were heard, and on January 12, 2022, the House of Representatives approved HR 1836. Currently, this legislation is being reviewed and considered by the U.S. Senate in bill number S. 1349. EANGUS will continue to communicate with Congress to express the importance of this legislation and continue to work on your behalf to ensure that the National Guard receives the benefits they duly deserve.

EANGUS Legislative Action Center

We’re excited to partner with Hoovers Sweets and Treats for our upcoming convention! NCNGA 

We’re excited to partner with Hoovers Sweets and Treats for our upcoming convention! They’re offering $2.00 off all Hoovers Milkshakes for any NCNGA members attending the Convention in March, so don’t forget to sign up at www.ncnga.org/events.php.

 

 

 

Tickets-At-Work: Members get Discounts on Tickets NCNGA 

Tickets at Work: The benefits are endless when it comes to being a NCNGA member! Check out our Tickets-At-Work program, where members can get discounts on tickets from Busch Gardens all the way to Disney. For more information, visit https://www.ncnga.org/benefits.php#Discount

 

 

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

March 17th — Today in Guard History National Guard 

March 18, 1754
Williamsburg, VA – The Virginia legislature approves the organization of the Virginia Regiment. It consist of full-time soldiers, paid by the colony to garrison frontier outposts against Indian incursions. Most of its men are enlisted from the militia of the western frontier, primarily Augusta and Frederick counties in the Shenandoah Valley. They are to be uniformed and equipped at the colony’s expense. One of the officers appointed to this force is Major (later Colonel) George Washington.
Read More…

The Weekly Guardsman


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