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Division lays over bill to add 5% pay bonus for state active duty service
Summary
Vice Chair Olsen advanced House File 2338, a bill that would provide a 5% pay bonus for service members called to state active duty as a temporary offset until the state can pursue purchase of federal retirement points. The division laid the bill over for possible inclusion in the omnibus.
Vice Chair Olsen on March 26 presented House File 2338 to the House Veterans and Military Affairs Division. The bill would provide a 5% pay bonus to service members for time served on state active duty; proponents described it as a partial, immediate compensation measure until a possible federal solution to purchase retirement points is available.
Olsen described the retirement‑point gap for soldiers called to extended state active duty during major events in 2020–21 and said the bill would provide modest relief. "Five percent is not a whole lot," Olsen said, "but... it's a great thing that we're doing today to ensure that our soldiers are treated the same as every other soldier." He said an updated estimate of the fiscal impact is approximately $2,000 per year in a typical non‑emergency year, acknowledging costs would be higher in periods with large state mobilizations such as 2020–21.
Lieutenant Colonel Eric Athalman, director of operations for the Department of Military Affairs, said the department supports the concept and is also pursuing federal language in the National Defense Authorization Act that could allow states to purchase retirement points for members. "We'll continue to try to press to get some language into the NDAA, to allow us to buy those retirement points," Athalman said, while describing the 5% bonus as a useful interim measure.
The division laid House File 2338 over for possible inclusion in the division omnibus; committee discussion noted the bill's limited fiscal footprint in ordinary years and its intent to provide parity for service members serving on state missions.
