What’s in the 2024 NDAA Besides a 5.2% Pay Raise For Troops
Update: The House and Senate have passed the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, and the bill was been sent to the President’s desk for signature in December. It was signed into law Friday December 22nd 2023. We review some of the most relevant benefits-related features of the NDAA below.
What to Know About the 2024 NDAA
The passage of the NDAA is different from the passage of the full-year spending bill. The NDAA does not extend the operation of the federal government or fund the larger federal government above and beyond the DoD.
Related: Military Money 101
Over $840 Billion for the Department of Defense
The 2024 National Defense Authorization Act funds the DoD to the tune of $841.4 billion.
5.2% Pay Raise For Troops in 2024
The 5.2% pay raise proposed in earlier drafts of the NDAA survived to the final version. This is the largest pay increase for military members in two decades.
Family Separation Allowance Increase
The 2024 NDAA increases the Family Separation Allowance (FSA) to $400 per month. Family Separation Allowances are paid in cases where married service members are assigned to a location where dependents cannot travel. FSAs are just one type of military allowance you may qualify for when serving.
Basic Needs Allowance Program Reform
The 2024 NDAA reforms the Basic Needs Allowance or BNA. According to the DoD, the new rules allow the exclusion of military housing allowances when calculating the gross household income of a service member applying for the BNA, expanding eligibility for many more service members.
The BNA is offered to service members with dependents with gross household income less than or equal to 150% of federal poverty guidelines.
Space Force Innovations
Air and Space Forces Magazine reports among the many provisions of the 2024 NDAA, one unique measure applies to Space Force. Under the 2024 NDAA, Space Force is trying a new approach to military service commitments.
There is no Space Force Reserve at press time, and that will continue after the 2024 NDAA. What’s different about Space Force is that the NDAA creates opportunities to serve full-time or part-time under the same personnel management system. There is no separate designation for Space Force Reserve.
Air And Space Forces Magazine’s article notes, “Space Force leaders wanted the change in order to provide more flexibility to hire highly-skilled Guardians who might otherwise leave the service. In this scenario, Guardians might move from full-time to part-time, creating an entirely new approach to managing careers and the force as a whole.”
This development could, if the program succeeds, change how the DoD approaches Guard and Reserve issues including pay and benefits in the future.
Read more: Military Money 101
About the author
Editor-in-Chief Joe Wallace is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter/editor for Air Force Television News and the Pentagon Channel. His freelance work includes contract work for Motorola, VALoans.com, and Credit Karma. He is co-founder of Dim Art House in Springfield, Illinois, and spends his non-writing time as an abstract painter, independent publisher, and occasional filmmaker.
