Despite Shutdown, U.S. Coast Guard Will Still Receive Next Paycheck

 

The U.S. Coast Guard's active-duty servicemembers will receive their pay on time and as scheduled on October 15, the service confirmed Monday, despite the government shutdown. Unlike circumstances during the last shutdown, when servicemembers had to wait for Congress to pass an appropriations bill in order to receive back pay, the White House has redirected R&D funding to cover military salaries. 

"Our people are the heart of the Coast Guard," said Acting Commandant Admiral Kevin Lunday. "We are grateful for the actions taken by President Trump and Secretary Noem to ensure that our members — who protect and defend our nation’s maritime borders and our citizens every day — receive the pay they have earned."

Active duty military servicemembers have to remain at their posts during a shutdown, along with essential civilian federal employees. The Coast Guard's civilian workforce is not expected to receive pay at this time, but the service's leadership said that it continues to advocate for full funding. 

The financing for the military pay comes from $8 billion in unobligated funds for military R&D, testing and evaluation, according to Politico. This temporary shuffle may be on uncertain legal ground: the Antideficiency Act bans federal officials from spending funds that have not been appropriated by Congress. The criminal penalties are relatively light, capped at two years in prison or a small fine, and were not enforced during the 2019 shutdown.  

While military pay will go out on time on October 15, funds for the October 31 pay period will still have to be appropriated by Congress, or the administration will have to find another way to reallocate additional funding in order to meet payroll obligations. 

Across the country, servicemembers have been leaning hard on food pantries and charities in expectation of a missed paycheck, military-service nonprofits report. The shutdown does not relieve active-duty personnel of their financial obligations, like rent and utilities, even though they are legally required to continue to work without pay.