As the government shutdown nears its 23rd day, some troops did not receive their correct paycheck — or got paid at all last week — according to service members Task & Purpose spoke with and a non-profit that supports military families. This comes after the Pentagon shifted $8 billion in research funds to cover military pay amid the federal shutdown. 

The full scale of the paycheck errors is unclear. But at least 164 active-duty military families were underpaid, with amounts ranging from a couple hundred dollars to as much as $2,000, said Raleigh Smith Duttweiler, a military spouse and chief impact officer for the National Military Family Association. Since last week, Smith Duttweiler said she has talked with more than 360 service members or their spouses, and dug into their pay records with them.

One prior-enlisted Army officer Task & Purpose spoke with said that he only made about 60% of his usual pay from their Oct. 15 paycheck and was unsure why or from where the missed amount came from. Other troops also posted online about sporadic pay issues.

“What we’re asking of our families right now is completely unacceptable,” Smith Duttweiler said in an interview with Task & Purpose on Thursday. “We are asking them to sit through financial instability that is absolutely not their fault and to just hold the line and be okay.”

Among the active-duty military families she spoke with, 55 said that they had expected to be paid last week, but weren’t. Twelve families weren’t paid, but pay documents indicated they might be paid over the next few days. According to Smith Duttweiler, more than 80 people said they were paid on time and with the correct amount of money reflected in their leave and earnings statement. 

Troops and family members Smith Duttweiler spoke to said that they were struggling to keep up with loan payments or bills, fearing that they would default on both, as well as other expenses. She added that all of the families she spoke to — either spouses or service members themselves — were on active duty, many single parents with children.

Another 50 families were overpaid, she said, some as much as several hundred dollars and at least one got triple their usual pay. The prior-service Army officer and Smith Duttweiler both urged troops who were overpaid to set that extra money aside because the government will likely recoup it at a later date.

In a statement to Task & Purpose on Wednesday, a Pentagon official said that “all members with active pay accounts received mid-month pay on October 15th” and that the Defense Finance Accounting Service, or DFAS — which handles troop pay, “recommends that if service members feel their pay is incorrect, they should contact their local finance office or chain of command to review their pay account.”

The Pentagon did not immediately respond Thursday to follow-up questions regarding the number of military families and troops reporting issues. Task & Purpose began asking the Defense Department about troop pay issues over a week ago.

“If your pay isn’t correct, it’s not a feeling, it’s your finances,” Smith Duttweiler said after hearing the statement. She said she was grateful that the military was able to pay out as many paychecks as they have amid the shutdown “and really it should be on Congress to ensure that we get paid every single time.”

But, she said she has been “hearing again and again” that families “are calling and nobody is answering” at finance offices. 

Meanwhile, the shutdown has also affected service members beyond their paychecks. 

Troop food pantries saw surging requests in recent weeks as many military families already experienced food insecurity outside of the shutdown. Some services reported halts in change of duty station moves, which also incur personal costs and expected reimbursements from the federal government. 

The Senate also failed to pass legislation on Thursday that would start troop pay, leaving service members without a clear way forward as the next payday draws near. 

“When we carry all of the weight of a government shutdown, we’re left with that financial instability,” Smith Duttweiler said.

Did you receive your full mid-month military paycheck, a partial payment or an overpayment? Task & Purpose is tracking military pay during the shutdown. You can contact Drew F. Lawrence at drew.lawrence@taskandpurpose.com.

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