s/o Possible Impact of Government Shutdown

[Sebastian (a lady)]

A friend of mine writes for Military Spouse magazine. She is quite the services and benefits wonk and used to also write for Military One Source. She has been tracking a lot of the potential closures if there is a government shutdown.

 

This release from the Office of the Secretary of Defense outlines some of what will happen in case of a government shutdown.

 

The situation is still quite fluid in terms of what will and won't be open. For example, services funded by non-appropriated funds (ie MWR or funded by users) could stay open, but could close if the customers aren't there because of the shutdown.

 

I've been seeing differing reports on closures at commissaries and exchanges.

 

Military Spouse article (with updates).

 

If you have info about other agencies, feel free to add them here. For example, I'm expecting the Smithsonians to all be closed and for access into national monuments to be closed.

[AvasMom]

My dh texted me and said the commissary will probably close.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

My dh texted me and said the commissary will probably close.

 

Guess I need to get off the board and go shop then. :auto:

[TXMomof4]

Should I go buy more groceries? Yowza - the local food prices are outrageously high compared to the commisary and if we're going to go without pay for a while I would rather have food on hand than try to budget an extra hundred dollars to make up the difference.

 

I don't like this at all.

[*lifeoftheparty*]

.

[MaMa2005]

I know this isn't close to home, but the US embassy in Guangzhou, China will be shut down. Since you must go through the embassy to get your newly adopted child's visa to enter the USA, it is going to catch a lot of people that are already in China and in the process of adopting.

[AvasMom]

Here are a couple of links that my dh's XO sent out:

 

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/04/military-government-shutdown-details-040711w/

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/04/military-commissaries-shutdown-040711w/

[*lifeoftheparty*]

.

[Mabeline]

Guess I need to get off the board and go shop then. :auto:

 

:iagree: Me too!

[mlbuchina]

I understand that the closings and things will be hugely inconvenient, but not getting paid is what will hurt us the most. And what really crawls up my butt and dies is that Pres. Obama and Congress will go right on getting their paycheck no matter that the gov. has been shut down. But not our servicemen. That is just backward to me. *grrrrrr*

[SailorMom]

Yeah - we're wonderring if we'll get a paycheck on the 15th (Active Duty). What really chaps me is that Congress and the Pres. will still get paid, but we won't. All those deployed service members really need one more thing to worry about - like thier spouses not being able to pay the bills and buy food while they are deployed. My DH is an officer, and we have credit cards, etc. We'll survive for a short while (although with a kitchen remodel right now and a trip the beginning of May, not sure where all the $$$ is going to come from), but the enlisted guys - especially the E-5's and below - they can't take a hit like this.

[Mrs Mungo]

Yeah - we're wonderring if we'll get a paycheck on the 15th (Active Duty). What really chaps me is that Congress and the Pres. will still get paid, but we won't. All those deployed service members really need one more thing to worry about - like thier spouses not being able to pay the bills and buy food while they are deployed. My DH is an officer, and we have credit cards, etc. We'll survive for a short while (although with a kitchen remodel right now and a trip the beginning of May, not sure where all the $$$ is going to come from), but the enlisted guys - especially the E-5's and below - they can't take a hit like this.

 

If the government shuts down we will get paid for one week instead of two on the fifteenth. We will essentially be getting paid through the 22nd. After that is the question.

 

I agree with you, it will hit the lower enlisted the hardest.

[SailorMom]

If the government shuts down we will get paid for one week instead of two on the fifteenth. We will essentially be getting paid through the 22nd. After that is the question.

 

I agree with you, it will hit the lower enlisted the hardest.

 

Right, so - if they get it figured out in a week - would the check still be the same??? How are we supposed to plan? I am going to avoid any political comments, SWB really doesn't need another thread to deal with :), but it is hard.

[Mrs Mungo]

Right, so - if they get it figured out in a week - would the check still be the same??? How are we supposed to plan? I am going to avoid any political comments, SWB really doesn't need another thread to deal with :), but it is hard.

 

If they get it figured out in the next week, then we should receive a normal paycheck.

[AvasMom]

Yeah - we're wonderring if we'll get a paycheck on the 15th (Active Duty). What really chaps me is that Congress and the Pres. will still get paid, but we won't. All those deployed service members really need one more thing to worry about - like thier spouses not being able to pay the bills and buy food while they are deployed. My DH is an officer, and we have credit cards, etc. We'll survive for a short while (although with a kitchen remodel right now and a trip the beginning of May, not sure where all the $$$ is going to come from), but the enlisted guys - especially the E-5's and below - they can't take a hit like this.

 

My husband is E-6 and we will be just fine. We're careful with our finances and have built up a healthy savings account. Enlisted does not equal poor despite our husbands not being officers.

[clarkacademy]

I know this isn't close to home, but the US embassy in Guangzhou, China will be shut down. Since you must go through the embassy to get your newly adopted child's visa to enter the USA, it is going to catch a lot of people that are already in China and in the process of adopting.

 

That is so sad. All those babies waiting to come home so so sad.

[Mrs Mungo]

especially the E-5's and below - they can't take a hit like this.

 

My husband is E-6 and we will be just fine. We're careful with our finances and have built up a healthy savings account. Enlisted does not equal poor despite our husbands not being officers.

 

You aren't even in the demographic she expressed concern about? A brand-new private makes about half of what you make.

[AvasMom]

You aren't even in the demographic she expressed concern about? A brand-new private makes about half of what you make.

 

We were in that demographic just a few months ago. I'm just clarifying that it IS possible to be financially ok despite not being an officer or even high ranking enlisted. The assumption throughout the military is otherwise...the lower enlisted can't manage their money, etc. Sorry, just struck a nerve. I'm sure I'm reading waaaay too much into this based on experience. I'll go back to my seat now. :)

Edited April 8, 2011 by tjlufkin

[Mrs.MacGyver]

Yes, we are essentially getting paid through the 22nd... I just really hope this doesn't drag on and on past that. It's not the money at this point - its the guys and gals that are deployed right now ... not a big morale booster.

 

I am getting comments like, "Do we really want to be risking our lives if we aren't getting paid?" How can they expect them to go out on missions when they are worried that the SGLI might not get paid (I am not even sure about that one - just an example)? - - That's why I just can't see it happening. They will have to resolve this thing quickly or it is going to be rough on people, and not just financially.

[Pretty in Pink]

Well, I don't think that the assumption is that they can't manage their money so much as there just isn't much to go around. I remember when my dh was an E-3 and made under 1300.00/mo. after taxes. We had two children to support, two car payments (I came into the marriage with one and he also had one), car insurance, and a home phone. Those were our only bills, but money was tight! Over half of our monthly income went towards our vehicles. Thankfully the we had WIC for the baby and our eldest didn't eat much yet. We never went without, but receiving just half a paycheck or no paycheck at all would have been, well, quite the inconvenience to say the least.

[Pretty in Pink]

I just received this information in an email being forwarded by Marines at our local base:

 

In the event of a government shutdown, the following information is provided:

 

Navy & Marine Corps Relief Society will be open for normal operations during a shutdown. They are prepared to provide rapid, short-term, no-interest loans, to those in need, for essential items (food, gas, etc). Pre-approved assistance is available in form of a check - $300 for single Marines/Sailors and $600 for families. Client only needs to show ID and sign repayment document.

 

Navy Federal Credit Union plans to cover the April 15 payroll for those active duty members who have their direct deposit of pay at Navy Federal. Service members will not see any difference in their April 15 pay. For more information, go to: https://www.navyfederal.org/about/government.php

[Renthead Mommy]

Those of you who have kids in the military, as well as yourselves, and especially those of you that are a 'group spouse leader', especially over the younger families (who obviously make less money and have less experience in saving/spending) - You may want to remind people to check their automatic bill payment and drafts.

 

One wonky payment is all it will take to really mess someone up who is either not getting paid or missing a week of pay or whatever. So often we have things set up to pay that little bit extra each month to pay something down quicker, or to draft directly into a college fund or something. Remind them to go in and check for those and maybe reset to a lower amount for this month. Or it's something that only bills once or twice a year like an insurance or membership or something. Things that you may easily forget are coming due this month because it just automatically happens.

 

My husband always does the bills. He set up auto pay for most things in the year before his deployment. At that time everything was really taking off on the paperless wave of bill payment. I was still pretty much in the paper checkbook/bill in mail mindset. At that point, and still now all these years later, if the bill comes in the mail, (newspaper, membership, landscapers, services) I'm the one that pays it, and I pay it by a paper check. I know back then I NEVER would have though to go in and check for extra payments or to cut back higher payment, until it was of course too later.

 

So if you run a spouse list, or your facebook has a number of active duty/government people on it, you may want to just drop a reminder out there.

 

I'd hate to see someone destroy all the good they've been doing paying something down every month simply because they forgot to take that extra $100 off a cc or loan payment or stop the college fund auto draft for month and then end up overdrawn or out of money.

[Oak Knoll Mom]

Hey our friends work at that Embassy!

 

And, awwwww, my friend here is adopting from China and all they are waiting on is Visa's :(

 

I have a friend currently in China to adopt. I hope everything works out for them!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Just saw on the news that the Statue of Liberty would close.

 

Here in DC, the Cherry Blossom Parade AND the Kite Festival would be canceled, along with the museums and National Parks.

 

I'm thinking of going in to DC next week if it closes.... that will be interesting, it's prime tourist season right now!

 

The radio this afternoon had info that the parade would go on, even if the government shut down. They said that there might be a route alteration, that would in particular effect people with tickets to grandstand seating.

 

Here's info from the festival website.

[Oak Knoll Mom]

I have a friend currently in China to adopt. I hope everything works out for them!

 

I just checked her website. They are not scheduled to get her Visa until April 21. I hope all this is worked out by then.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I understand that the closings and things will be hugely inconvenient, but not getting paid is what will hurt us the most. And what really crawls up my butt and dies is that Pres. Obama and Congress will go right on getting their paycheck no matter that the gov. has been shut down. But not our servicemen. That is just backward to me. *grrrrrr*

 

Well, I can't do anything to make money appear in my account if they aren't paying us. I can make sure that I'm stocked up on food and gas and that I don't head downtown, assuming that something is will be open that isn't.

 

And I do have a similar reaction to Congress collecting their pay, while others do not. To my way of thinking, as soon as the fiscal year rolled over, all of Congress and their staffs should have had their pay cut until a budget was passed. It is a Constitutional duty that they've fallen short on.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

We were in that demographic just a few months ago. I'm just clarifying that it IS possible to be financially ok despite not being an officer or even high ranking enlisted. The assumption throughout the military is otherwise...the lower enlisted can't manage their money, etc. Sorry, just struck a nerve. I'm sure I'm reading waaaay too much into this based on experience. I'll go back to my seat now. :)

 

I don't think that anyone meant to be insulting or to imply that you were less capable of managing your finances. Junior enlisted (much like ensigns) are often younger, less experienced and generally operating on a smaller margin. Their families also tend to be younger, less experienced and sometimes less knowledgable about how the system ought to work and when to push on someone to do the right thing.

 

(And as someone who was in charge of a shipboard division, I didn't get calls telling me that someone's finances were hunky dory. I did have to deal with almost daily calls about someone who was behind in payments on something. It does tend to color perceptions, even when you know in your head that most people ARE doing the right thing.)

[Sebastian (a lady)]

You also want to look at what gets paid by allotment. I'm planning on verifying that our insurance payments actually get paid on time, since a couple of those are done through allottment. (Of course in the end, that will probably end up with out over paying and needing a refund. :willy_nilly:)

[AvasMom]

I don't think that anyone meant to be insulting or to imply that you were less capable of managing your finances. Junior enlisted (much like ensigns) are often younger, less experienced and generally operating on a smaller margin. Their families also tend to be younger, less experienced and sometimes less knowledgable about how the system ought to work and when to push on someone to do the right thing.

 

(And as someone who was in charge of a shipboard division, I didn't get calls telling me that someone's finances were hunky dory. I did have to deal with almost daily calls about someone who was behind in payments on something. It does tend to color perceptions, even when you know in your head that most people ARE doing the right thing.)

 

You're right. Like I said, I was posting while I was feeling a little toooo overly sensitive. I feel like a dweeb for posting it now. :blush:

[Sebastian (a lady)]

You're right. Like I said, I was posting while I was feeling a little toooo overly sensitive. I feel like a dweeb for posting it now. :blush:

 

Don't feel like a dweeb. We all have our hot buttons. I think that anytime I feel like I'm being discounted just because of a stereotype would be one of those moments for me. :grouphug:

[4everHis]

Well, I can't do anything to make money appear in my account if they aren't paying us. I can make sure that I'm stocked up on food and gas and that I don't head downtown, assuming that something is will be open that isn't.

 

And I do have a similar reaction to Congress collecting their pay, while others do not. To my way of thinking, as soon as the fiscal year rolled over, all of Congress and their staffs should have had their pay cut until a budget was passed. It is a Constitutional duty that they've fallen short on.

 

:iagree:

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Here are some resources from National Military Family Association

[Parrothead]

If the government shuts down we will get paid for one week instead of two on the fifteenth. We will essentially be getting paid through the 22nd. After that is the question.

 

I agree with you, it will hit the lower enlisted the hardest.

Do you know if this is just a military thing? We would normally get paid on the 18th, but it is just so up in the air. Dh says he has *heard* that yes, we will get the 18th's pay but it is all rumor.

 

remind people to check their automatic bill payment and drafts.

 

 

Thanks for that reminder. I actually have less money than I thought but it is good to know.

[Mrs Mungo]

And I do have a similar reaction to Congress collecting their pay, while others do not. To my way of thinking, as soon as the fiscal year rolled over, all of Congress and their staffs should have had their pay cut until a budget was passed. It is a Constitutional duty that they've fallen short on.

 

I agree. They are supposed to pass the budget in October. If they don't do it, then their pay should be completely suspended until they do pass the budget. They should not be able to pass an extension of their own pay.

 

Don't feel like a dweeb. We all have our hot buttons. I think that anytime I feel like I'm being discounted just because of a stereotype would be one of those moments for me. :grouphug:

 

:iagree: I completely understand. Obviously, not all junior enlisted (E-1s to E-4s) have issues. But, many of them do. They have less money, they have less experience dealing with the military. We *already* had the wife of a deployed soldier show up at ACS because she didn't know if they were going to get paid, etc.

 

Do you know if this is just a military thing? We would normally get paid on the 18th, but it is just so up in the air. Dh says he has *heard* that yes, we will get the 18th's pay but it is all rumor.

 

The military gets paid on the first and the fifteenth or the Friday before. Our Leave and Earnings Statements came out today. So, we already know that there's only eight days of pay on them. I don't know about other government employees, sorry.

[Mrs.MacGyver]

 

The military gets paid on the first and the fifteenth or the Friday before. Our Leave and Earnings Statements came out today. So, we already know that there's only eight days of pay on them. I don't know about other government employees, sorry.

 

Yeah, I just saw that. Is this just precautionary or do they already know that this bill isn't going to get passed? I'm guessing that even if there is a deal struck, the LES isn't going to change, we are just going to get that extra week tacked onto the next paycheck - does that sound right?

[razorbackmama]

My dh will only work one week out of four (and get the subsequent pay:glare: ). He works for the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. He's in management, and there has to be a manager in the district offices at all times, so he and the other 3 in his office will be rotating.

 

On the positive side, he was supposed to go to Hawaii in 2 weeks (missing both his birthday and our son's birthday), and that has been canceled.:D

 

On the negative side, I can't wait to see what things *I* have to cut from our budget since we'll only have 1/4 of it....

[BikeBookBread]

PDG has just been diagnosed with migraines. I took her to Walter Reed this morning. I was waiting on a second referral to come through for an opthalmology appointment to rule out further eye issues, and Tricare wouldn't give me an appointment -- nothing available...because non-emergecy medical care is being put off. They wouldn't give me an civilian referral either. Told me to call back Monday...at which time there probably won't be anyone manning the phones.

 

:glare:

 

Grrrrrrrr.

[QueenCat]

What really chaps me is that Congress and the Pres. will still get paid, but we won't.

 

I've been trying to find out if this is true or not, as the only place I've heard it is on FB and on here. Are you sure their paychecks won't be delayed too? Trying to find a verifiable source on this one. It seems like they would have the same type of delays as the the essential govt. workers, military, contractors, etc.

[AvasMom]

Don't feel like a dweeb. We all have our hot buttons. I think that anytime I feel like I'm being discounted just because of a stereotype would be one of those moments for me. :grouphug:

 

Thanks. :) :grouphug:

[Mrs Mungo]

Yeah, I just saw that. Is this just precautionary or do they already know that this bill isn't going to get passed? I'm guessing that even if there is a deal struck, the LES isn't going to change, we are just going to get that extra week tacked onto the next paycheck - does that sound right?

 

Right now, nobody seems to know. I don't know if they are going to issue another LES on the 22nd or pay everyone for the three weeks on the first. Either of those scenarios is assuming the budget is passed by the 22nd or the first.

 

PDG has just been diagnosed with migraines. I took her to Walter Reed this morning. I was waiting on a second referral to come through for an opthalmology appointment to rule out further eye issues, and Tricare wouldn't give me an appointment -- nothing available...because non-emergecy medical care is being put off. They wouldn't give me an civilian referral either. Told me to call back Monday...at which time there probably won't be anyone manning the phones.

 

:glare:

 

Grrrrrrrr.

 

Boo. I'm sorry, it really stinks.

[Mama Butterfly]

You're right. Like I said, I was posting while I was feeling a little toooo overly sensitive. I feel like a dweeb for posting it now. :blush:

 

Don't back down, no need to feel like a dweeb. My reaction was exactly the same when I read those posts. We are in that specified bracket, yet we still managed to be responsible adults and save up past our 6 mos. of expenses for situations like this and we too have access to credit cards, although we will not need to rely on them. I can easily see why you responded the way you did. The truth is there will be E's and O's who will be hurting badly by this and there will E's and O's who will merely be experiencing more annoyance than anxiety. I'm glad your family is also in the latter catergory ;)

Edited April 8, 2011 by Mama Butterfly

[SweetBean]

I've been trying to find out if this is true or not, as the only place I've heard it is on FB and on here. Are you sure their paychecks won't be delayed too? Trying to find a verifiable source on this one. It seems like they would have the same type of delays as the the essential govt. workers, military, contractors, etc.

I was wondering the same thing.

[Oak Knoll Mom]

I've been trying to find out if this is true or not, as the only place I've heard it is on FB and on here. Are you sure their paychecks won't be delayed too? Trying to find a verifiable source on this one. It seems like they would have the same type of delays as the the essential govt. workers, military, contractors, etc.

 

It's true. I just heard on NPR that several Congressmen have vowed to either return their checks or donate them to charity. Since they are refusing them or donating them, it seems that they are planning to get paid.

[Mrs.MacGyver]

To all of you who are active duty ... has your spouse been briefed on any of this at work or have any of the FRG type groups been briefing families on what will be happening if this shutdown comes about and what kind of relief contingencies there might be (like for instance what you guys mentioned about Navy Federal and Navy/Marine Corps Relief, etc.)?

 

I just talked to DH and even though most people are taking this thing in stride, he was concerned that the chain of command isn't passing any information down the line to the guys. They all just saw that their LES was already changed, and they have to find out all of their information from the internet ... just seems like there should be some kind of briefing for the soldiers on this stuff (especially when they are deployed!).

 

I know they chain of command doesn't know everything about what is going on, but they could be relaying information so that people don't start getting upset - and the FRGs could be letting the families at home know about services on post, etc as they find out information.

 

Just seems like a lot of stress could be eliminated if only there was some kind of dialogue going on - is anyone else's command relaying any kind of information down the line?

[Mrs Mungo]

To all of you who are active duty ... has your spouse been briefed on any of this at work or have any of the FRG type groups been briefing families on what will be happening if this shutdown comes about and what kind of relief contingencies there might be (like for instance what you guys mentioned about Navy Federal and Navy/Marine Corps Relief, etc.)?

 

We had a steering committee meeting today, but right *now*? It seems like some things are up in the air. Army Emergency Relief will be open. We were also given alternative civilian organizations to call that give grants vs. loans. I'm not sure how stressed those services will be though. Kind of scary for really big bases. We're passing the information on in a variety of ways through our unit, I can't speak for all of the units. And whether it gets home to the spouses? That's always a question mark. We can contact those we have numbers for, we can post it on the unit's facebook, etc. But there are always spouses who don't want contact. What can you do in that case?

[Pretty in Pink]

To all of you who are active duty ... has your spouse been briefed on any of this at work or have any of the FRG type groups been briefing families on what will be happening if this shutdown comes about and what kind of relief contingencies there might be (like for instance what you guys mentioned about Navy Federal and Navy/Marine Corps Relief, etc.)?

 

I know there has been talk around the shop, but that is just amongst the Marines that my dh works with. He has not had any sort of formal briefing yet. I haven't heard a peep from my FRO (Family Readiness Officer) and she is my point of contact for such things; in fact, I forwarded the information I shared about Navy Federal, etc. to her late this morning and haven't heard anything back from her (not that I need to back from her, but it is unusual as she usually shoots a quick 'Thanks' when someone passes along information).

 

This is specific to my husband's unit only though; I don't know for certain what is going on in other units or on other installations. I do have friends with husbands in other units who are having the same experience.

[MindyD]

I understand that the closings and things will be hugely inconvenient, but not getting paid is what will hurt us the most. And what really crawls up my butt and dies is that Pres. Obama and Congress will go right on getting their paycheck no matter that the gov. has been shut down. But not our servicemen. That is just backward to me. *grrrrrr*

 

 

:iagree:We're in the same boat. We'll be okay, we have some savings, but I know this will HURT a lot of military.

[QueenCat]

It's true. I just heard on NPR that several Congressmen have vowed to either return their checks or donate them to charity. Since they are refusing them or donating them, it seems that they are planning to get paid.

 

But are they getting paid as normally scheduled, or in arrears, like will happen to the military and other govt. workers, should the shutdown occur? I can't seem to find verifiable information on that aspect.

[Pretty in Pink]

My dh just walked in and said that they were briefed before leaving for the day. Apparently Navy Federal, Marine Federal, and USAA are all three covering direct deposit customers in the same way, so that they will receive a full paycheck on the 15th of April. Pass the news ladies!

[MindyD]

I haven't read all the responses and someone might have mentioned this, but another concern for military is that there won't be people to certify the pay so even though they're supposed to be paid through today, there's no way for them to actually get it until this is settled. My dh works as a civilian for the AF Reserves and they're talking about them not working and not getting backpay either. I'll make a political statement. This should have been taken care of many many months ago. I don't see any way that Reps can be blamed for this when the Congress last fall could have passed whatever they wanted. I'm done.