Hardship Duty Pay. Previous law set limits hardship duty pay to a maximum of $300 per month. Section 627 increases the maximum amount DoD can pay to $750 per month. DoD sets the amount payable (within the limits authorized by law), annually, based on the "hardships" incident to the assignment location.
Foreign Language Pay Lump Sum. Section 639 of the bill authorizes the services to pay up to $12,000 per year for those authorized to receive Foreign Language Proficiency Pay, instead of the currently monthly payments of up to $1,000 per month. Lump sum payments are authorized for both active duty, and reserve component members.
Thrift Savings Plan. Under previous law, the services may make a matching contribution to the TSP for members who serve in critical specialties and agree to re-enlist in that specialty for at least six years. However none of the services ever chose to implement this option. Section 605 of the new law allows each military service to make matching contributions to TSP for new recruits, who enlist for a period of two or more years. Note, that implemantation is not mandatory, so it is unclear if any of the services (except the Army -- see below) will take advantage of this authorization.
Section 606 of the new law mandates that the Army conduct a one-year pilot test-program of the new authorization. It is unclear whether the Army will include all new first-termers in the pilot program, or whether they will restrict it to certain critical MOSs (jobs). The maximum amount of contributing funds can be no more than 5 percent of the member's base pay.
Adoption Leave. Section 593 of the bill allows military members who adopt a child and are entitled to military adoption reimbursement provisions, to take 21 days of non-chargeable "adoption leave." For dual military couples, only one member would be entitled to take the "adoption leave."
Household Goods. Under Section 654 of the bill, household good weight allowance for PCS moves are increased for senior enlisted members. The new weight limits will be:
Members with Dependents
E-7 - 13,000 pounds
E-8 - 14,000 pounds
E-9 - 15,000 pounds
Members without Dependents
E-7 - 11,000 pounds
E-8 - 12,000 pounds
E-9 - 13,000 pounds
Bonuses
Active Duty Enlistment Bonus. Section 635 of the new law increases the maximum non-prior service enlistment bonus for active duty from $20,000 to $40,000.
Referral Bonus. Under Section 635 of the act, the Army will conduct a one-year test, offering a referral bonus of $1,000 to any member of the active Army, Army Reserves, or Army National Guard (except recruiters and career counselors) who refers a non-family member for enlistment for Army active duty or Army Reserves. The bonus is payable when the member completes basic training and AIT (job training). The test is limited to one year, and the Secretary of the Army may limit participation in the program.
Reenlistment Bonus. Under previous law, reenlistment bonuses were capped at $60,000 and could not be paid to those who reenlist at more than 16 years of service. Section 629 of the bill increases the the maximum to $90,000 and allow those with between 16 years and 20 years of service to be eligible for re-enlistment bonuses, depending on the "needs of the service."
Reserve Enlistment Bonus. Section 631 of the bill increases the maximum non-prior service enlistment bonus for the Reserves to $20,000, and allows (at the service's discretion) the bonus to be paid in a "lump sum."
Transfer Bonus. Section 641 of the bill authorizes (not mandates) the military to pay a bonus of up to $2,500 to any member who transfers from one branch of service to another. This is primarily focused for the Army's Blue to Green Program, which encourages members of the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps to apply for early separation in order to enlist in the active duty Army. Under current law, bonuses are only paid if the member is already qualified (trained) in a skill designated as "critical manned," by the Army.
