The Senate Armed Services Committee is talking about whether to continue raising servicemembers’ salaries faster than the rate of inflation or advocate “targeted” increases instead, said Sen. James Webb (D-Va.). Webb, who chairs the SASC personnel panel, said committee members recognize that military pay is eating into the funds available for buying new equipment, but he declined to say whether the 10-year run-up in overall pay is over. During his meeting with defense reporters in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, Webb said he’s looking at pay increases for “the most in-demand” specialties, but was vague about whether that would mean higher base pay in some specialties or bonuses. (For more from Webb’s roundtable, see Webb Not Happy with Pentagon’s Transparency and Cutting Back.)
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
