DoD To Implement Retroactive Stop Loss Special Pay
I’m completely against giving special pays to people who signed a contract. Everyone that enlists into the military signs a contract that makes it crystal clear that regardless of how long you enlist for, you are undertaking an 8-year commitment. But, the entitlement society that we live in doesn’t want to just hold people to legal contracts they signed. Instead, we have to baby people because they were “extended” with stop-loss orders.
Now, I’m not completely against this pay. For example, I think that if a service member has already served their 8-year active duty and IRR commitment but were still stop-lossed, then they DO deserve that money. Absolutely! Because they were kept beyond their obligation. We’re not doing that. We’re giving extra money to ANYONE that was stop-lossed beyond their active duty commitment, regardless of how much time they still owed in IRR. Just insane.
Anyway, here’s the information you stop-loss troops are looking for.
The Defense Department announced today the services’ implementation plans to provide retroactive stop loss special pay. Active, reserve and former service members who had their enlistment extended or retirement suspended due to stop loss are eligible for this special pay, if they served on active duty between Sept. 11, 2001 and Sept. 30, 2009.
Service members may begin submitting their claim for retroactive stop loss special pay on Oct. 21, 2009. In accordance with the 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Act, all applications must be submitted to the respective services no later than Oct. 21, 2010. Eligible personnel will receive a payment of $500 per month for each month (or any portion of a month) that a member was retained on active duty due to stop loss. Applicants for retroactive pay who are no longer in the military had to be honorably discharged, and for those who were stop lossed in fiscal 2009, may only receive payment from one stop loss authority – either the money appropriated for stop loss special pay in the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009, or the money allocated for retroactive stop loss special pay in the 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Act, but not both.
Service members must provide documented proof they were stop lossed with their claim. Family members of deceased service members should contact the appropriate military service for assistance in filing their claim.
Information on how to contact each of the services is listed below:
Army: Go to https://www.stoplosspay.army.mil or email RetroStopLossPay@CONUS.Army.Mil
Navy: Email NXAG_N132C@navy.mil
Marine Corps: Go to https://www.manpower.usmc.mil/stoploss or email stoploss@usmc.mil
Air Force: Go to http://www.afpc.randolph.af.mil/stoploss/
Stop loss provides a valuable and critical tool to quickly retain and generate forces to surge in a major conflict. However, as deployment schedules stabilize, the department must then adapt and minimize its use of stop loss. The secretary of defense announced in March a comprehensive plan to eliminate the current use of stop loss, while retaining the authority for future use under extraordinary circumstances.
Jason
October 24th, 2009 at 8:14 pmWell, they give billions out in wellfare compensation and aid to illegsal immigrants who never lifted a finger for the US of A. A vast majority of those don’t deserve it either. So what if a little something is given to vets who actually did something???
Sibnuts
October 26th, 2009 at 4:46 pmThey give billions to AIG, and the Big 3, why not give a little bonus to the people that actually fought for this country? It’s not like they get paid a whole lot for their sacrifices.
Anonyvet
October 26th, 2009 at 5:08 pmWelfare, Stimulus package, Corporate Bailouts… yeah, those free-loading soldiers don’t desrve a dime!
Chad
November 2nd, 2009 at 4:08 pmCJ,
I view the stoploss pay the same way I view seperation pay, jump pay, hazard pay etc. The special pay allowances are, to my understanding, in place to compensate those people who are asked to do more while fulfilling contractual obligations than others who signed the same contract. This doesn’t necessarily make me a “baby” for accepting the $250 seperation pay for example while deployed even though I was fully aware that there would be long periods of time spent away from my spouse and children before I signed the dotted line. Complaining about stoploss prior to fulfilling the req. 8 years is indeed absurd but to complain about giving out 1 special pay allowance brings into question all special pay allowances and that makes about as much sense as two dudes kissing.
INFANTRY Vet
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:28 pmWhile I completely respect and understand your opinion on the subject, I disagree. I was stop-lossed 2 months out from a 15-month deployment and 2 more months when we returned home. Before getting stop-lossed I was excited and had made plans on post-Army endeavors. The Commanding Officer of my company sat me down in front of all the Platoon Sergeants and Platoon Leaders and asked me if I wanted to get out of the Army or go on the deployment with my Brothers. I told him I decided to get out. It was understood in my head that I was getting out, moving on. My supervisors also understood. It is about a week process to “get out of the Army” and clear Fort Stewart. I was 3 days into the process already when the stop-loss hit me.
Yes, I signed a contract. Yes, it was for 3 years + 5 IRR. Still…I believe that some un-needed pyscological tampering could have been avoided. 6 dead Brothers, my driver that will never walk correctly ever again and 2 Purple Hearts for myself later…….I welcome the compensation. If things are going to be a little easier for my family, I’m happy. Is that wrong?
Scars are forever, we fought hard.
SSG Hayes
November 5th, 2009 at 10:16 pmHey CJ, were you stop lossed? If so are you going to give the money back?
native4alpha
November 13th, 2009 at 4:55 pmWell its certainly easy to be a hardass when you’ve got nothing on the line.
Others have said it before but I’ll reiterate; our government rewards losers with welfare and food stamps and a number of other programs which has created multi-generational .gov teat sucklers who contribute nothing but CO2 while living in subsidized housing and pumping out another monthly stipend generator whenever they feel the need.
Why don’t you blog about slashing welfare? when an able-bodied female bitches about how medicaid won’t cover her name brand antidepressants I die a little inside. Yet you want to flex your iron fist on a bunch of guys who WENT TO WAR???
I don’t recall any veteran groups marching on washington demanding we get $500 per month we were stop-lossed. Our bloated and inefficient congress decided to give a little taste to the troops as they spend our grandchildrens money.
I’m looking forward to the 7k I should be getting, I don’t think I “deserve” it but I know for a fact that I earned it. I doubt you have the slightest clue what members of the military go through when in a war zone. I’m not presumptuous enough to think I speak for the troops but when you find yourself on a rooftop behind a wall that is slowly but surely being knocked down, you look to your buddy so you can share the “this is it” look-only your “buddy” in this instance is an Iraqi Lieutenant bleeding from a nasty cut on his neck…tough break GI! But I know others have similar stories-the fact is that war is pretty tough. I may be biased but I think that veterans are a national treasure and deserve any good thing that comes their way.
Please don’t cheapen their sacrifices with your indignation. Its misplaced and makes you look like a tool.