Armed Forces Compensation During a Lapse in Appropriations

INSIGHTi

Armed Forces Compensation During a Lapse

in Appropriations

Updated September 30, 2025

Compensation for members of the Armed Forces (i.e., Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space

Force, and Coast Guard) is funded through annual appropriations to personnel-related line items in

accounts of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Department of Defense (DOD),

which is “using a secondary Department of War designation” under Executive Order 14347 dated

September 5, 2025. These accounts include funding for pay and allowances of active and reserve

component members, along with travel-related expenses.

At this date, no appropriations are in place to fund pay and allowances of active and reserve component

members into FY2026.

In anticipation of, or during, previous lapses in appropriations, Congress has considered actions to ensure

that members of the Armed Forces continue to receive pay and benefits. Since 2013, two lapses in

appropriations affecting DOD and DHS generated particular congressional interest in Armed Forces

compensation. In FY2014, a lapse in appropriations resulted in a shutdown of numerous government

operations for 16 days, affecting both DOD and DHS. In FY2019, while DOD was not affected by a

partial government shutdown, DHS—and thus the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)—was among the entities

affected by a 35-day lapse in appropriations.

Although military retirement is partially funded through annual appropriations, retired pay and survivor

benefits are distributed from the Military Retirement Fund. As such, retirees and survivor benefit plan

beneficiaries generally continue to receive disbursements during a lapse in appropriations.

Selected Lapses in Appropriations

FY2014

Immediately preceding the FY2014 shutdown that affected DOD, on September 30, 2013, then-President

Barack Obama signed the Pay Our Military Act (POMA; P.L. 113-39). This legislation provided an

automatic continuing resolution to cover FY2014 pay and allowances for members of the Armed Forces

on active duty, including reservists on federal active duty, as well as certain DOD and DHS civilian

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personnel and contractors supporting military personnel. Section 3 of the POMA contained a termination

provision, and the law is no longer in effect. In subsequent years, some Members have introduced similar

legislation, such as the Pay Our Military Act of 2025 (S. 876) and the Pay Our Troops Act of 2026 (H.R.

5401).

In 2013, Congress debated the Obama Administration’s interpretation of language in POMA. Some

Members questioned the DOD’s determination that POMA did not provide for expenses related to

military personnel death gratuities and funeral expenses. On October 10, 2013, President Obama signed

the Department of Defense Survivor Benefits Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2014 (P.L. 113-44),

which provided for the payment of such expenses.

On January 17, 2014, President Obama signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014 (P.L. 113-76),

which included the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2014 (Division C) providing full-year

appropriations for pay and allowances of members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force; and

the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2014 (Division F) providing full-year

appropriations for pay and allowances for USCG members.

FY2019

On September 28, 2018, President Trump signed the Department of Defense and Labor, Health and

Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act, 2019 and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L.

115-245), which included the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2019 (Division A), providing

full-year appropriations for pay and allowances of members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air

Force. DHS was funded under continuing resolutions (Division C of P.L. 115-245; and P.L. 115-298) for a

period through December 21, 2018. When neither a full-year appropriations act nor another continuing

resolution was enacted after the expiration of the continuing resolution, a 35-day funding gap occurred,

affecting DHS, as well as certain other departments and agencies.

On December 27, 2018, the USCG published a document stating Coast Guard members would not be

paid “until we have an appropriation, continuing resolution (CR), or passage of an alternative measure.”

In January 2019, legislation was introduced to provide USCG pay and allowances during a lapse in

appropriations (e.g., H.R. 350, H.R. 367). On January 15, then-Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Karl

L. Schultz said, “To the best of my knowledge, this marks the first time in our Nation’s history that

servicemembers in a U.S. Armed Force have not been paid during a lapse in government appropriations.”

On January 25, President Trump signed the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L.

116-5), ending the partial shutdown. On February 15, President Trump signed the Consolidated

Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L. 116-6), which included the Department of Homeland Security

Appropriations Act, 2019 (Division A) providing full-year appropriations for pay and allowances for

USCG members.

Selected Guidance Documents

DOD Guidance

On September 27, 2025, the Trump Administration issued “Contingency Plan Guidance for Continuation

of Operations in the Absence of Available Appropriations,” which states that, “Military personnel on

active duty, including reserve component personnel on Federal active duty, will continue to report for

duty and carry out assigned duties.” A prior Biden Administration memorandum to accompany shutdown

planning guidance noted that, “Military personnel will not be paid until such time as Congress

appropriates funds available to compensate them for this period of service.” Per the

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DOD Financial Management Regulation, military paydays occur “the first calendar day of the month after

the month in which the entitlement was earned.”

Pursuant to section 8123 of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2021, and DOD planning

documents, if no appropriation for military personnel accounts is available for obligation of death gratuity

payments under 10 U.S.C. Ch. 75, such payments may be charged to unobligated, unexpired Defense

Health Program appropriations.

DHS Guidance

On September 27, 2025, DHS published updated procedures relating to a lapse in appropriations,

consistent with prior planning documents. The document states that USCG servicemembers comprise an

excepted category during a lapse in appropriations due to the “express statutory authority [under 37

U.S.C. §204] to incur obligations in advance of appropriations,” and active duty servicemembers “may

perform normal duties during a lapse.” The guidance states that “payroll liability accrues on a monthly

basis. Thus the pay of USCG members will depend on the timing of the appropriation lapse.”

Author Information

Kristy N. Kamarck

Specialist in Military Personnel

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff

to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of

Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of

information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role.

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