Air Force is pausing bonuses and personnel moves

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Brittany Scott, 20th Force Support Squadron outbound assignments personnel specialist, works with a customer over the phone at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, Nov. 13, 2017. In addition to face-to-face counseling, outbound assignments Airmen provide customer service via telephone and e-mail communication. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Destinee Sweeney)

David Matthews
New York Daily News
(TNS)

The U.S. Air Force is pausing bonuses and personnel moves for several months because of a funding shortfall.

The military branch cited “higher-than-projected personnel costs” as the reason behind the pause. The move was needed “to avoid exhausting funds” before the end of the fiscal year.

The personnel moves will begin affecting airmen next month, since “orders are being reviewed and approved on a priority basis.”

Airmen who are serving overseas and were originally set to return stateside between October and December will instead have their returns delayed to between January and March 2024, the Air Force said.

Certain bonus payments are also being suspended, including the selective reenlistment bonus program and extra pay for tough or prolonged assignments.

A new bonus program for aviators will undergo a “restructure” and be available within several weeks, the branch said.

Both personnel moves and bonuses are expected to resume Oct. 1, the start of the next fiscal year.

“The Air Force continues to work through additional options to avoid the funding shortfall and will provide more information when available,” the service said.

The pause comes as Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Brown’s nomination to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is being held up by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who is blocking nominations in the Senate Armed Services Committee over the U.S. military’s reproductive health policies.

Lawmakers in Alabama also paused funding that was earmarked for the Air Force until the branch announces where the Space Force’s permanent headquarters will be. The HQ was planned for Colorado originally but moved to Alabama during the Trump administration. The temporary headquarters are in Colorado.

The Biden administration is reportedly considering changing the headquarter’s location because of Alabama’s strict anti-abortion laws.

With News Wire Services

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