Government Shutdown Impact
The ongoing federal government shutdown continues to have significant effects on the National Guard and its members.
Key impacts:
- Unpaid Title 32 Guard members: Thousands of Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) personnel and Dual-Status Technicians (DSTs) remain without pay, despite performing essential duties.
- Readiness degradation: Cancelled training, delayed maintenance, and halted logistics operations are reducing overall unit readiness and mission capability.
- Title 32 vs. Title 10 disparity: Guard members under state control (Title 32) are excluded from pay protections and benefits afforded to federal (Title 10) counterparts, further highlighting the need for duty status reform, a 2026 priority for EANGUS.
Legislative Action
EANGUS has taken proactive steps to protect National Guard members affected by the shutdown:
- EANGUS Shutdown Fairness Letter (Oct. 23): EANGUS sent its own letter to Senate leadership urging that Title 32 AGRs and DSTs be explicitly included in Senator Ron Johnson’s Shutdown Fairness Act (S.3012).
- These members have been forced to work without pay or furloughed, threatening readiness and family stability.
- Joint Association Letter (Oct 28): EANGUS joined NGAUS, AGAUS, and ROA in calling on Congress to pass a Continuing Resolution or stand-alone bill to pay AGRs, TARs, technicians (civilian and dual-status), and drilling reservists.
- The coalition emphasized how cancelled drills and furloughs compound readiness losses and harm families.
Member & Leadership Engagement
- Washington, D.C. Field Visit: Legislative Director Nick Weinstein and Director of Marketing and Business Development Elizabeth Moseley spent a day alongside Mississippi National Guard members serving the D.C. Safe and Beautiful mission, observing their daily operations and learning how EANGUS can better support them.
- Hill Meetings: EANGUS Executive Director John Gipe and the Legislative Director also met with Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Mississippi Guard leaders. The visit provided Guardsmen an opportunity to meet their Senator and share experiences from their deployment. The Senator’s team was eager to coordinate a follow-up meeting with EANGUS to discuss Guard priorities in greater depth.
- Special Recognition: EANGUS extends sincere appreciation to SFC Chris Mitchke and SGM Short, both EANGUS members and Guardsmen from Mississippi, currently deployed to Washington, D.C. with the 112th Military Police Battalion out of Canton, MS, for their leadership in coordinating EANGUS’s participation in the meeting and inviting our team to spend a day alongside the Mississippi National Guard.