At least a 4.6% pay increase for service members is looking more likely as the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee approved its markup for the 2023 defense authorization bill.
The raise could be a floor though, considering the current inflation rates and housing markets. While the markup officially has the president’s requested 4.6% bump in it, House Armed Services Committee staff said that’s not necessarily set in stone.
“We’re certainly concerned about inflation,” a staff member said. “We’ll continue to look at that. I think right now, our understanding is 4.6% is what we have. Until we make it further congressional action on this, we don’t know if we will or not, but 4.6% is the pay to pay raise the pay increase right now.”
Some service members are already having issues with pay. Last year, Congress passed a law allowing the Defense Department to implement a basic needs allowance for troops who were food insecure. A Blue Star Families survey also found that more than three-quarters of service members are paying more than $200 out-of-pocket for housing after their basic allowance for housing (BAH) benefit.