Pentagon Seeks Hikes in Wages, Pensions

In an effort to entice its men and women in uniform to stay, the Pentagon said Monday it will ask Congress to restore military retirement to 50% of base pay and raise paychecks by 4.4% for fiscal 2000.

In announcing the package, Defense Secretary William S. Cohen and Army Gen. Henry H. Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said they were addressing concerns the troops have raised on several occasions.

“What we’re indicating is that we’ve been listening to the men and women who’ve been serving us,” Cohen said. “We want the best that we can attract and . . . we are determined to make sure that we give them as much incentive to come in and to stay in the military as we possibly can.”

Shelton, who left for Bosnia later Monday, said he will carry the good news to U.S. troops stationed there.

“Adopting these compensation initiatives now is the right decision if we are to sustain the quality force that will enable us to safeguard the nation’s vital interests,” Shelton said.

Cohen declined to discuss numbers, saying he wanted to give President Clinton the opportunity to present his budget publicly.

But a senior defense official who briefed reporters on details of the program said the cost of the new benefits is estimated at more than $30 billion over six years. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.

The proposal will be sent to Congress with the Pentagon’s 2000 budget proposal. The White House is working on its budget for fiscal 2000, which begins Oct. 1, 1999.

The package was welcomed by incoming Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John W. Warner (R-Va.), who said his panel would consider it and other proposals promptly when the Senate convenes in January.

Warner said the committee’s package “must close the pay gap between our servicemen and those in the private sector, address retention issues, reexamine the equity of the military retirement plan,” promote personal saving by service members and alleviate the hardship imposed on families of service members who are on extended deployments.

The pay and retirement changes are expected to garner support from members of the House and Senate Armed Services committees, who have expressed concern over the state of morale in the ranks. But liberals are concerned that pumping up the military budget would consume savings that could be put toward domestic programs.

GOP lawmakers have pressured the White House for a sizable increase in defense spending to improve the military’s readiness.

Cohen said the proposed across-the-board 4.4% increases for all service members would be made Jan. 1, 2000. Raises of 3.9% would be given from 2001 through 2005, he said.

The plan also envisions targeted pay raises, with certain noncommissioned officers and mid-grade commissioned officers receiving raises, Cohen said.