Military Families Struggle with Pay Issues Amid Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The ongoing government shutdown, now in its fourth week, is impacting hundreds of military families. Many service members reported receiving incorrect pay or no pay at all during the mid-month pay cycle, raising concerns about their financial stability.

According to the National Military Family Association, out of 369 families who reached out for help, 164 reported being underpaid. The underpayments ranged from $148 to $2,000, with most families missing about $600 to $800. Raleigh Smith Duttweiler, chief impact officer at the association, said, “A quarter of military families don’t have more than $500 in savings. We are not a demographic set up to absorb a missed paycheck and keep working.”

In addition to underpayments, 55 families claimed they received no pay at all. “There was no [leave and earning statement], there was nothing,” Smith Duttweiler said. “They still showed up at work on Oct. 15 and 16, but zero pay.” Meanwhile, others reported accidental overpayments, with one family receiving three times its normal paycheck.

Many families were unable to reconcile discrepancies between their leave and earnings statements and their bank accounts. “When you’re trying to go back and get the money that you rightfully earned, your pay stub says you got it, but your bank says you didn’t. It doesn’t help that all these things don’t match,” Smith Duttweiler added.

The U.S. Defense Department has not disclosed the number of troops affected or the reasons behind these pay issues. Families report contacting their finance offices but often received no response.

Smith Duttweiler raised concerns about the impact of ongoing pay issues on families’ bills, especially those on auto-pay such as rent and car payments. With families already carrying debts from recent moves, the timing could not be worse. “The government doesn’t pay you back your APR,” she said.

A family currently in the middle of a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move is living in a hotel due to a government furlough delaying on-base housing. Smith Duttweiler emphasized that many military families feel they have no viable options for financial relief as the government shutdown drags on.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent projected that troops would receive their paychecks by the end of the month but warned that if the shutdown extends beyond November 15, pay could be disrupted. “I think we’ll be able to pay them beginning in November, but by November 15 our troops and service members who are willing to risk their lives aren’t going to be able to get paid,” Bessent noted.

Smith Duttweiler claimed there is a growing unease among military families about whether service is a sustainable choice for their future as the shutdown continues. “For the first time, we have people saying, ‘We’ve always loved this life, but I don’t know that I’d recommend it to my kids when I don’t know that it’s a steady way for them to make ends meet,’” she said.

With families caught in a financial bind and no resolution in sight, the shutdown has put military families in a precarious position.