FY2015 NDAA

[Guest]

Saw some interesting bits in the new 2015 NDAA just passed by the House and now going to the Senate. These changes are almost definitely going to be signed into law by the President.

The number of AD Enlisted Aides in the entire DOD will be restricted to 300 (current level) OR double the number of AD O-10's plus one each for the number of O-9's, whichever is less. So currently there are around 300 Enlisted Aides for the 165 O-9's and O-10's, but that will shrink to around 245. There are currently about 80 Air Force Enlisted Aides. If our portion remains consistent, that should shrink to about 67, or 13 people doing a real job again in FY15.

Non-AD (retirees, dependents, etc.) pharmacy copays for Rx's filled outside the MTF will increase beging CY15, but it hasn't been determined how much the cost increase will be. The idea is to minimize off-base TriCare usage and maximize MTF use.

Pay raise locked at 1% (instead of 1.8%) for all Enlisted and O-1 to O-6. O-7+ pay is frozen for FY15. BAH frozen until inflation/economy reaches 95% of cost of living for that zip code/assignment location.

Grandfathers personnel who join the military on or before 31 Dec 2015 to receive normal retirement rates vice the CPI -1. This is great news for recent recruits and prospective DEP'rs. Previous law was retroactive only back to 1 Jan 2014.

$39M for additional Air Force infrastructure in the Pacific. Rumor mill is that most of it is going to Anderson AFB/Guam.

$5.8B for JSF acquisition for all DOD. How many that shakes out to go to the Air Force is still indeterminate. If current cost over-runs remain consistent, we'll probably end up with half an engine, a re-furbished F-16 ejection seat, and a copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator.

$1B for E-2D, $1.5B for KC-46Am and $1.4B C-130 acquisition. Also, the A-10, U-2, and AWACS can't be retired (yet). Additionally, A-10 funding increased by $256M and AWACS increased by $35M.

$48M for C-130 AMP and Engine upgrades, and prohibits any use of funds to investigate retiring the C-130.

BRAC hasn't actually been approved, however funding is approved to inventory and investigate a future BRAC. Plans and recommendations for a BRAC must be submitted by the SECDEF to the HASC/SASC before FY 2016. My guess is we'll see the start of an actual BRAC in FY 2017. These funds can also be used to recommend closing infrastructure (not a full installation, just individual structures) early if it is determined to be an excess. Money used for BRAC research is shared between base modernizations (new housing, energy conservation upgrades, etc.)

$500M to train foreign governments, specifically in coordination with withdrawal from Afghanistan, but other sites as well.

DOD personnel travel budgets cut by $75M. TDY's and PCS's will continue to be more infrequent.

Prevents the Navy from investigating or pursuing the retirement of the USS George Washington.

FY15 End Strengths will be:

Army - 490,000 (30K less than FY14)

Navy - 323,600 (unchanged from FY14)

Marine Corps - 184,100 (6.1K less than FY14)

The Air Force - 311,220 (16.4K less than FY14)

Force Management Programs authorized through Dec 2018 at the discretion of the individual services, meaning AFPC will continue to cock-up its' programs for another 3.5 years.

Authorizes the SECDEF to purchase/exchange land with Arlington, VA to enlarge the National Cemetary, potentially to include the Air Force memorial.

Caps annual pay for retired generals/flag officers to $181.5K. This was kinda a runaway problem as some retired officers were getting more pay than when they were AD due to various bonuses and benefits. Glad to see this was capped.

[Mustache Sally]

Sad to see AWACS is still being funded. What a worthless piece of junk.

[stract]

any mention of funding the CRH? (replacement CSAR helo)

[Skitzo]

So basically we are authorized to operate above strength for three years? Sure would be nice to both cut missions and people at the same time.

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[MD]

Is the funding for the A-10 actually in the bill from Appropriations? I had thought that it wasn't inserted or mentioned by them yet? So though it's been approved by Armed Services, the people holding the money bags made no mention of it, as of yesterday.

Edited June 3, 2014 by MD

[deaddebate]

any mention of funding the CRH? (replacement CSAR helo)

After looking again, there is no mention of it in this bill. Some recent news articles indicate the contract might be awarded in the next 3 months but funding won't actually come as part of the NDAA. At a guess, I wouldn't expect anything until Feb 2015 after the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Comission (MCRM) is published. Too much is happening right now as Congress and the White House digest the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force (NCSAF), and much more will happen with the MCRM leading into a benefit/retirement reform and simultaneous BRAC discussions. You can bet the FY16 NDAA will be chock full of various bitter pills that somebody is going to swallow. How is the CRH going to be shoe-horned into that?

Let's play a game of pretend and assume that the F-35 will get some serious development completed in 2014-2015 so the acquisition folks are hopeful for major deliveries in 2016-2017. Could that push retirement of the A-10, U-2, and AWACS in 2016? Would that would free up enough money for the Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) and Combat Rescue Helicopter (CRH) contract completion? Would that then initiate the retirement of the HH-60G's? How much money will a BRAC generate in the long term, and how much will it cost in the short-term?

It's hard to make predictions, especially about the future.

So basically we are authorized to operate above strength for three years? Sure would be nice to both cut missions and people at the same time.

What are you talking about?

[Skitzo]

What are you talking about?

The reduction in end strength. Earlier guidance was to get to end strength over two rounds over FY 14 and 15.

You mentioned that force management programs will run until 2018, so we are either operating over FY 15 end strength until 2018 Or we are kicking the can down the road for several more years which is not what senior leadership intended. Or are we spending FY 16,17 and 18 separation Pay / TERA now in this years bill ?

Posted from the NEW Baseops.net App!

[Herk Driver]

Congress gave us 5 years to get to the number. The AF chose to do all the cuts in one (now two) years.

Posted from the NEW Baseops.net App!

[matmacwc]

A-10 funding not in draft.

https://www.arizonadailyindependent.com/2014/05/30/barber-caught-off-a-10-guard/

[MD]

A-10 funding not in draft.

https://www.arizonadailyindependent.com/2014/05/30/barber-caught-off-a-10-guard/

That's what I had thought, with my post above. Just hadn't seen it in an article yet.

Thing is, just because the the authorization for funding was made by the House, that doesn't directly translate to Appropriations allocating $$$ for it. The fact that there was a super-majority vote will help, so long as it can be maintained. If it can't, then a Presidential veto (were it to come to that down the road) wouldn't be able to be overturned.

[Azimuth]

any mention of funding the CRH? (replacement CSAR helo)

We fly helos?

[HeloDude]

We fly helos?

Yep, they even give us green flight suits, colorful name patches with real wings on them, and other cool neato stuff! It's almost like we're real pilots and aircrew!...almost

Ha!

(it's fun being the red headed stepchildren sometimes)

[Surf70]

48M For the C-130 AMP program! I thought this was dead? AMP is back again! I knew Boeing would never let that one go as they are the ones doing the Mod's. Lockheed has been lobbying for more J models instead. I guess the Boeing lobby power paid off this time again. And I guess Lockheed will try to kill it again in FY16 in order to force the AF to buy C-130J's for the Guard and Reserves. Word is AF will be out of the Legacy C-130 world by the end of FY14. I guess the Guard and Reserves will be rolling with the C-130X with the new engines and props according to the NDAA. Sad news for the Navigators all around though...

[Tonka]

Word is AF will be out of the Legacy C-130 world by the end of FY14.

So... In 3 months?

[HiFlyer]

So... In 3 months?

No, the "plan" is the end of FY15, not end of FY 14, so its 15 months. Perhaps a slight extention for the Yokota guys to get new J aircraft/crews in place. At least, thats the info from the active C-130 unit at Peterson co-located with the Reserve (or Guard?). Of course, that's the "plan"...we'll have to see how the "plan" sorts out after Congress gets done with the FY 15 budget. So far both the House and Senate authorization committees have played havoc with the AF plans.

[HercDude]

$48,000,000 to keep a program alive that we've known for 10 years was a horrible investment. I remember going through GRACC (back when you actually WENT to GRACC and didn't do it via DCO) and hearing the 18 AF/CC tell us that AMP was going nowhere, was a terrible investment, didn't address the more serious wing box issue with the older Es & Hs, and that he expected the program to be eliminated within the next two years. That was in 2006.

When we can't retire the airplanes we want, close the bases we want, or kill the programs we want, what pot of money is left to find our sequester-mandated spending levels?

[busdriver]

O & M

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[BB Stacker]

O & M

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Yuuuuuuuuup

[Dupe]

O & M

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Not entirely true.... You can also cut personnel.

[Guest]

The HASC released a fact sheet about the FY 15 NDAA compromise. https://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=F477F464-90AE-4B7A-AD7A-438065807D04

Here's the SASC version of nearly the same thing, but substantially more detailed. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/press-releases/senate-committee-on-armed-services-reach-agreement-with-house-counterparts-regarding-the-national-defense-authorization-act-for-fiscal-year-2015

Here's the text of the full NDAA, a whopping 1600 pages if you care to piss against the wind and try to read it.https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/CPRT-113-HPRT-RU00-S1847.pdf

So the there is also this joint explanatory document that is more comprehensive than the HASC/SASC summaries but not quite as mind-numbingly long and thick as the full NDAA. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/113-S1847-JES.pdf

Highlights:

1 percent across-the-board pay raise for members of the uniformed services in pay grades O-6 and below.

Freezes pay of general and flag officers

[...]

$3.00 increase in pharmacy copays for non-active duty TRICARE beneficiaries who fill prescriptions outside of military treatment facilities

[...]

Authorizes an additional $35.8 million in Air Force procurement for procurement and installation of C-130 Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) kits

[...]

Authorizes an additional $22.6 million in Air Force procurement for C-130 engine upgrades and $30.0 million for propeller upgrades.

[...]

Prohibits the Air Force from retiring or preparing to retire any A-10 in FY 2015. However, allows a reduction in A-10 flying hours under limited circumstances. In particular, if the Secretary of Defense, after receiving an independent review by the Director of the office of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, determines that it would be necessary to avoid unacceptable reductions in readiness or unacceptable delays in the F-35 activation program, he may authorize the Air Force to reduce flying hours for active-duty A-10s by placing up to 36 aircraft on “backup flying status” for the duration of the year.

Prohibits the Air Force from retiring or preparing to retire any Airborne Warning and Control Aircraft (AWACS)

[...]

Requires service secretaries to ensure that the performance appraisals of commanding officers indicate the extent to which the commanding officer has or has not established a command climate in which allegations of sexual assault are properly managed and fairly evaluated.

[...]

Exempts those who first join military service prior to January 1, 2016, from the reduced COLA applicable to military retired pay

[...]

Prohibits the Air Force from retiring, preparing to retire, or placing in storage any U–2 aircraft.

Lastly, the FY 2014 authorized the ADAF end strength to 327,600. This NDAA sets the FY 15 end strength at 312,980. However, FY14 FMP's have been processing throughout the year in preparation for these cuts. As of Nov 2014, the current AD level is about 310K. This is probably about accurate as the Air Force has chronically critically manned AFSC's it always needs filled. Cutting SF bodies does not magically create a new doctor or TACP.

Considering how little time is left to avoid another shutdown (11 Dec), and that the House and Senate have been working on this since May 2014, it's pretty safe to say that almost nothing will be changed in this proposal.

[Champ Kind]

1%.

Sweet.

[Fifty-six & Two]

1%.

Sweet.

Shouldn't surprise you since we are overpaid.

[Homestar]

Exempts those who first join military service prior to January 1, 2016, from the reduced COLA applicable to military retired pay

This is good. MOAA was pretty active on this point after Congress tried to pull this one over on us.

[flyjetz]

Does it say anything about carrying the 75 days of leave past 30 Sep 2015?

[HU&W]

Does it say anything about carrying the 75 days of leave past 30 Sep 2015?

no