AD troop cost $158K a year?

[eckerph]

[guitar-nut]

Well, at least our tax dollars are being put to work. I'd rather the government spend billions on military healthcare rather than healthcare/education for illegals.

[rero360]

If that is total cost than its not much, figure:

Pay, food, housing, clothing, equipment, health care, weapons, vehicles, ammo, transportation for training, fuel, etc etc.

Thats assuming a normal accounting practice of amortization of vehicles cost over their expected service life along with other such items.

[DaveInOroValley]

They should force prisoners into battle. We only pay around 65-80K a year for them.

[jgleg111]

So what your saying is that we still need to raise troops salaries another $20,000. That would bring them equal to a Congressmen's pay. Or should we just take it up another $100,000 to equal the speaker of the house's pay?

[rero360]

So what your saying is that we still need to raise troops salaries another $20,000. That would bring them equal to a Congressmen's pay. Or should we just take it up another $100,000 to equal the speaker of the house's pay?

That is not, I repeat NOT just soldier's salaries, I wish, but its not.

I am an E-6 with 12 years in, BEFORE taxes if I was on Active Duty I would be looking at base pay of $41,241.60 a year, now that doesn't take into account BAH, clothing allowance and any other additional pay I may earn (been a few years since I've been Activated, things probably have changed)

As an E-5 with 6 years in, in a combat zone, with a 15K reenlistment bonus, hazardous duty and hostile fire pay, BAH and all that I still brought home just under 63 thousand, I might have broken 70K including the three months of mobilization.

Now a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a few other key positions, i.e. Commandant of the Marine Corps, they earn $247,051.20 base pay, before tax, but you are only looking at a handful of people.

So that 158K is by no means just salary, that has to account for other pay, medical, housing and the like, clothing and feeding. It possibly also accounts for training and equipment maintenance.

I mean a brand spanking new Private only earns $17,892.00 a year before taxes in base pay.

[Snoopy47]

[jgleg111]

That is not, I repeat NOT just soldier's salaries, I wish, but its not.

I am an E-6 with 12 years in, BEFORE taxes if I was on Active Duty I would be looking at base pay of $41,241.60 a year, now that doesn't take into account BAH, clothing allowance and any other additional pay I may earn (been a few years since I've been Activated, things probably have changed)

As an E-5 with 6 years in, in a combat zone, with a 15K reenlistment bonus, hazardous duty and hostile fire pay, BAH and all that I still brought home just under 63 thousand, I might have broken 70K including the three months of mobilization.

Now a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a few other key positions, i.e. Commandant of the Marine Corps, they earn $247,051.20 base pay, before tax, but you are only looking at a handful of people.

So that 158K is by no means just salary, that has to account for other pay, medical, housing and the like, clothing and feeding. It possibly also accounts for training and equipment maintenance.

I mean a brand spanking new Private only earns $17,892.00 a year before taxes in base pay.

As a E-6 who got at last year I am right there with you. I just got out last May(active) so I am well aware of what soldiers actually make. Now within the numbers quote in the article I am sure a majority of that comes from the cost to operate Tricare. While the majority of Soldiers probably never use Tri-Care, the cost of the families would be included in those numbers. Im pretty sure this is where most of the cost quoted in the article comes from. I am sure the number is averaged out to the median cost and then reported. I am sure that single soldiers are far less then the reported number. I know I cost the Army a lot less when I was single then when I was married. So overall the numbers are bull****.

I was mainly trying to point out the irony Congress, who has a substantially larger salary yet none of the risk, would complete a study on how much each soldier cost them.

[Flipper]

Here is the armytimes article on it:

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2012/07/military-pay-costs-projected-to-spike-in-coming-years-071212w/

[Linh]

So what your saying is that we still need to raise troops salaries another $20,000. That would bring them equal to a Congressmen's pay. Or should we just take it up another $100,000 to equal the speaker of the house's pay?

You should join the military so you too can make six figures.

[jgleg111]

You should join the military so you too can make six figures.

Thanks I already did in 2003 but thanks for the re-up advice. I think after eight years active Ive put in enough time. With my previous post(I apologize if the sarcasm didn't come across), I just found it ironic who was conducting this study, how much they actually cost taxpayers a year, and what they try and pass off to the public as soldiers "salaries".

[Linh]

Thanks I already did in 2003 but thanks for the re-up advice. I think after eight years active Ive put in enough time. With my previous post(I apologize if the sarcasm didn't come across), I just found it ironic who was conducting this study, how much they actually cost taxpayers a year, and what they try and pass off to the public as soldiers "salaries".

lol my bad didn't catch the sarcasm.

[jgleg111]

lol my bad didn't catch the sarcasm.

Yeah this report just gives them leverage to cut troop incentives and programs. I could just see the GI Bill getting a little trim soon enough.

[Linh]

I could just see the GI Bill getting a little trim soon enough.

I would seriously doubt that, the GI Bill was at $1,200 which was plenty for my community college cost and now the Post 9/11 is $2k plus the VA pays for the cost of tuition.

Yeah I didn't NEED the extra money to pay for school but I guess there was enough vets complaining and congress passed the Post 9/11 GI Bill.

So I think Congress would have to vote to undo this new Post 9/11 bill and who would want to do that?

[jgleg111]

I would seriously doubt that, the GI Bill was at $1,200 which was plenty for my community college cost and now the Post 9/11 is $2k plus the VA pays for the cost of tuition.

Yeah I didn't NEED the extra money to pay for school but I guess there was enough vets complaining and congress passed the Post 9/11 GI Bill.

So I think Congress would have to vote to undo this new Post 9/11 bill and who would want to do that?

I don't think they are going to do away with it just lower the amount and make more stipulations. I know the President already signed an executive order changing several parts of it like the amount of units required to make you a full time student to receive full BAH(Used to be 10, now its 12).

I ran into that problem last semester. I could not get enough units at Grossmont due to all the classes being cut from the budget cuts. I guess that's what I get for having already completed my basic ed.