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Washington, DC – Congressman Steven Palazzo (R-MS) today announced the addition of an amendment to the House version of FY14 Defense Appropriations that would include military technicians in a Department of Defense furlough exemption that was announced in July 2012.  The amendment is similar to another Palazzo provision, H.R. 1014, which would include military technicians in a more permanent exemption, and currently has 65 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle.

In remarks made on the House floor, Palazzo stated:  

“These dual status technicians work every day in direct support of our warfighters. They supply our troops with the equipment they need to fight and win and return home safely. But because of a technicality – because they are paid out of a different account - these Guardsmen and Reservists have been on furlough for almost a month now. All my amendment would do is ensure that these men and women receive the same treatment as our other uniformed personnel, and are included in the furlough exemption.”

As a result of defense cuts enacted as part of sequestration, military technicians with National Guard and Reserve units across the nation were placed on furlough in the last few weeks, despite the fact that all other uniformed, deployable service personnel were exempted from the same furloughs. In Mississippi alone, more than 1,400 military technicians were furloughed in early July. Palazzo introduced H.R. 1014 in March of this year to address the oversight and include military technicians in the Department of Defense furlough exemption that was announced in July 2012. The bill currently has 65 House cosponsors, and has been endorsed by the National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) and the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS). The Congressional Budget Office has verified that Palazzo’s amendment will add zero cost to the defense appropriations bill.

"This amendment is a big first step to correcting an oversight that hurts nearly 50,000 dedicated uniformed soldiers and airmen and erodes the National Guard's ability to respond both at home and abroad," said retired Maj. Gen. Gus L. Hargett Jr, president of the National Guard Association of the United States. "Rep. Steven Palazzo recognized this situation early. His efforts led to yesterday's action. National Guardsmen and those they serve across the country are in his debt."     

“The President, Congress, and DoD all agreed to exempt uniformed personnel from being furloughed in order to limit the impact on military readiness,” stated Seth Waugh, Director of Government Affairs for the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States. “We believe the furlough of National Guard military technicians violates that intent and are pleased that Congressman Palazzo has stood up, once again, for the National Guard.  By allowing these uniformed members of our Armed Forces to be protected in the same way as their active duty counterparts, Congress is honoring their commitment to our military.  Without Congressman Palazzo’s amendment, the readiness of our National Guard will continue to be in jeopardy, not only for state emergencies, but for federal missions as well.”    

In his statements early Wednesday morning, Palazzo also reiterated concerns with sequestration’s effects on the Department of Defense:

“I have supported several alternatives that would resolve this sequestration mess across our defense budgets and across the federal government. I have lain awake at night, worried about the damaging effects these cuts will have if we do not prioritize cuts and fix this problem.  I hope we will see some consensus on a real fix to sequestration soon. 

“But the exception has already been made for the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to defend this nation. And rightly so. My amendment simply ensures we include all of our deployable men and women in uniform in that exemption.”

Palazzo is a Marine veteran of the Persian Gulf War, an actively-serving member of the Mississippi National Guard, and serves on the House Armed Services Committee.

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