{"id":31234,"date":"2024-01-23T18:26:08","date_gmt":"2024-01-23T18:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/01\/23\/pentagon-can-boost-pay-for-separated-families-to-400-but-hasnt\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T20:51:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T20:51:38","slug":"pentagon-can-boost-pay-for-separated-families-to-400-but-hasnt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/fedlife\/benefits\/2024\/01\/23\/pentagon-can-boost-pay-for-separated-families-to-400-but-hasnt\/","title":{"rendered":"Pentagon can boost pay for separated families to $400 \u2014 but hasn\u2019t"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Defense Department, thanks to the fiscal year 2024 defense policy bill, has the authority to increase family separation allowance sharply. But it hasn\u2019t happened, yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In its current form, <a href=\"https:\/\/militarypay.defense.gov\/pay\/ALLOWANCES\/fsa.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">family separation allowance<\/a> provides an additional tax-free $250 per month to service members who are involuntarily separated from their families for 30 days or more. Eligible circumstances include dependent-restricted permanent duty tours (unless the member volunteered), sea duty and temporary duty away from the member\u2019s permanent station. The defense policy bill, which President Joe Biden signed on Dec. 22, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/pay-benefits\/2023\/12\/19\/military-families-will-see-a-boost-in-separation-pay-in-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\">authorized DoD to boost the allowance<\/a> to $400 per month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite the updated law, officials are waiting to decide whether they\u2019ll do it, according to a Pentagon spokesperson and an internal newsletter obtained by Military Times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Department has not made any decision to change the monthly amount of Family Separation Allowance at this time,\u201d said a Pentagon official who argued that Congress intended to create \u201ca payment range with upper and lower payment boundaries.\u201d The official, who requested anonymity to discuss ongoing policy deliberations, said the law gives the DoD \u201cflexibility over time to adjust payment levels \u2026 without having to seek specific legislation to change the payment amount.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The defense policy bill also required the Pentagon\u2019s regular reviews of military pay \u2014 which occur every four years \u2014 to include family separation allowance rates in their studies. The Pentagon official said the review commission is expected to issue its final report and recommendations by the end of 2024, though it\u2019s uncertain whether family separation allowance will increase before (or even after) the study concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the law\u2019s original sponsors, Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, emphasized that the changes are intended to increase the amount of money going into troops\u2019 pockets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOur military families make great sacrifices every day \u2014 it\u2019s only fair that we do everything we can to improve their quality of life,\u201d Gonzales said in a statement to Military Times. \u201cThat is why I pushed hard to increase the Family Separation Allowance in this year\u2019s NDAA for the first time in two decades. I will continue to work with the Department of Defense to ensure this boost is made a reality for military parents across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Advocates for military families expressed frustration with the Pentagon\u2019s inaction when reached by Military Times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt has been 20 years since the last increase of the Family Separation Allowance. It\u2019s time to bring it in line with the current cost of living,\u201d said Kelly Hruska, government relations director for the National Military Family Association. \u201cThis is what Congress intended. We are disappointed that DoD chose to ignore the will of Congress and keep this allowance flat.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Despite Congress authorizing the increase, the Pentagon is treating it as optional amid an ongoing compensation study.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":106827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":54,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[54,11,31,15,69],"tags":[8438],"coauthors":[3370,3306,3294],"class_list":["post-31234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-benefits","category-fedlife","category-home","category-management","category-pay-benefits","tag-military-pay"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"MP25O7YEWRCGRPMCUPFQE27N3E","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-military\/2024\/01\/23\/pentagon-can-boost-pay-for-separated-families-to-400-but-hasnt\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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