The Biden administration has expressed its strong opposition to a proposal that aims to increase the pay of junior enlisted service members in the military. This opposition comes despite the fact that the administration has spent nearly seven times the proposed amount on Ukraine and the broader region’s security.
The House Armed Services Committee’s draft of the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes a provision for a pay raise for all junior troops, amounting to approximately $24.4 billion over a span of five years, as estimated by the Congressional Budget Office. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Biden administration stated that it does not support this proposed pay hike, which is deemed “significant” and “permanent,” until a compensation review has been conducted.
“The Administration is strongly committed to taking care of our Servicemembers and their families, and appreciates the Committee’s concern for the needs of the most junior enlisted members, but strongly opposes making a significant, permanent change to the basic pay schedule before the completion of the Fourteenth Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation,” the White House budget office said.
The Biden administration allocated more than $175 billion towards aid for Ukraine and European security since 2022, which is approximately one-seventh of the suggested salary increase for junior troops, as reported by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. The $175 billion has been distributed across various packages within a two-year timeframe, with the latest aid package totaling $61 billion in April.
“When accounting for inflation, the average American makes less today than when Joe Biden took office. The White House wants to block Republicans from giving our troops the raise they need to make ends meet in the Biden economy,” Republican Indiana Rep. Jim Banks, a HASC member, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Meanwhile, they’ve sent the Ukrainian government $11,500 per Ukrainian household. It’s shameful.”
The HASC, consisting of members from both political parties, advocated for the salary hike for junior troops as a means to enhance recruitment and retention, which has become a growing challenge for the military. In April, the HASC conducted an extensive study lasting a year, which revealed that “servicemembers, especially junior enlisted servicemembers and servicemembers supporting large families, struggle to afford housing and feed their families.”
No servicemember should ever struggle to feed their family or afford housing.
The FY25 #NDAA will boost servicemember compensation w/ a 15% pay raise for junior enlisted servicemembers, expand allowances for housing & food, & improve the cost of living calculation. pic.twitter.com/X3Hmw4mH66
— Armed Services GOP (@HASCRepublicans) April 11, 2024