White House taps multiple accounts to pay troops amid shutdown
“We’ve always said we are going to take care of our troops,” the Office of Management and Budget said.
The White House is tapping into three Defense Department’s accounts to pay troops this week as the government shutdown stretches on.
A senior White House official confirmed to Federal News Network that the administration has identified $1.4 billion from the research, development, test and evaluation account — the Defense Department already used $8 billion from the same account to issue mid-month paychecks.
The administration also found $1.4 billion from the department’s procurement account and $2.5 billion from the One Big Beautiful Act that was signed into law in July. The money was originally set aside to fund the basic allowance for housing — a monthly stipend service members receive to cover housing costs. Lawmakers allocated a total of $2.9 billion to supplement the program.
Axios first reported that the administration had found funds to cover military pay after days of uncertainty over whether troops would get their paychecks.
The White House said it cost about $6.5 billion to cover military pay for the first half of October.
The Office of Management and Budget said the $5.3 billion the administration has identified is enough to cover this pay period, adding, “We’ve always said we are going to take care of our troops.”
“President Trump is continuing to make good on his promise to take care of the troops despite the fact Democrats have shut down the government and are fine with our bravest men and women getting no pay,” a DoD official told Federal News Network.
Elaine McCusker, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Pentagon comptroller, said the $5.3 billion the White House identified this time, combined with roughly $1.5 billion left from the $8 billion transferred earlier this month, could be just enough to keep this round of paychecks flowing. And if there’s a gap, she said, the government could temporarily delay some payroll-related costs to make the numbers work.
“If it is short, they may be able to defer payment of some military pay expenses that come at the end of the month, not in the middle of the month, like retirement accrual and Social Security tax until the shutdown ends. If they say the cost was $6.5 billion in the middle of month, and they have $6.8 with those various sources available for tomorrow, it could be pretty close. And if they have a little bit of a gap, they might be able to temporarily defer some of those other payroll-type costs until they can replenish the fund,” McCusker told Federal News Network.
The Defense Department also received a $130 million donation from billionaire Timothy Mellon to fund military salaries.
During the previous pay cycle, service members started seeing money deposited into their accounts from Oct. 13 through Oct. 15 — several days after the Defense Department announced it was moving $8 billion out of research and development funds to cover military pay.
With troops scheduled to be paid on Friday, most haven’t seen their paychecks pending as of Thursday.
Navy Federal Credit Union placed a banner on its website and mobile app Thursday, notifying its members that it has not received military pay funds and that it was monitoring for status updates.
A Navy Federal spokesperson told Federal News Network the credit union has received some military pay funds, but it remains unclear when they will receive the remaining funds.
The credit union also notified its members that those enrolled in its government shutdown assistance program will have funds available by the end of the day on their official pay date.
Senate Democrats on Thursday introduced the Armed Forces Pay Act, a bill that would ensure military personnel continue to be paid during the government shutdown. The measure, led by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), was blocked by Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) after Coons sought unanimous consent to pass the legislation.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week suggested that service members will most likely miss their Nov. 15 paychecks if the government shutdown continues.
If you would like to contact this reporter about recent changes in the federal government, please email anastasia.obis@federalnewsnetwork.com or reach out on Signal at (301) 830-2747.
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