ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL

In the category of "old business" I failed so far to follow up on the issue of Hostile Fire Pay and Family Separation Pay.

You may recall that when congress increased the amounts of these two special pays, the increases were set to expire at the end of the fiscal year (30 September, for the US Government).

There was discussion that the Pentagon and the Administration didn't want to extend the benefits (which was not the same thing as wanting to reduce the amount of money the Soldiers get...but some tried to make it appear that way...

Well, as CPT Patti gets her Army pay only once per month - at the end of the month, it was only the at the end of October that I could see the figures for those special pays are exactly the same as they were in the months before.

So I looked it up...here is what I found.

Congress will soon deliver to President Bush a compromise $87.5 billion package for Iraq and Afghanistan bearing hundreds of millions more than he requested for U.S. troops who served in those operations...

Troops in combat zones would be entitled to higher rates of "imminent danger" pay and family separation pay, which is added to their regular paychecks. And extra funds were added for body armor, cleaning up unexploded ammunition and strengthening the armor of Humvees.

Well, that is good to know.