(Army Times)-- Congress has passed emergency legislation to prevent thousands of Post-9/11 GI Bill students from a drop in tuition payments next week when new policies will simplify the popular education program.

President Obama is expected to sign the bill, and Veterans Affairs Department officials are trying to work out a way to apply the change to the GI Bill without delaying processing of claims for the fall term. Most Post-9/11 GI Bill claims are supposed to be calculated and paid using a new, fully automated system, but passage of the new tuition rate protection will require some claims to be processed by hand.

The House passed the bill on Tuesday by a 422-0 vote. The Senate had approved the measure by voice vote on July 21, so it now heads to the White House. It is not clear whether Obama will receive the bill in time for it to be signed by Aug. 1, when the GI Bill changes are to take effect, but the tuition fix will be effective Aug. 1 even if it is signed into law after that date.

The bill, HR 1383, protects about 30,000 students in seven states - Arizona, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas - from the effects of a new nationwide tuition and fee cap of $17,500 that could leave some students paying thousands of dollars out-of-pocket to remain in school.

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A sweeping new plan to overhaul the Pentagon's retirement system would give some benefits to all troops and phase out the 20-year cliff vesting system that has defined military careers for generations.

In a massive change that could affect today's troops, the plan calls for a corporate-style benefits program that would contribute money to troops' retirement savings account rather than the promise of a future monthly pension, according to a new proposal from an influential Pentagon advisory board.

All troops would receive the yearly retirement contributions, regardless of whether they stay for 20 years. Those contributions might amount to about 16.5 percent of a member's annual pay and would be deposited into a mandatory version of the Thrift Savings Plan, the military's existing 401(k)-style account that now does not include government matching contributions.

A critical new feature would adjust those contributions to give more money to troops who deploy frequently, accept hardship assignments or serve in high-demand jobs. It would also give the services a new lever to incentivize some troops to leave or stay on active duty longer.

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MOAA has a web-based system to send messages to your elected officials supporting a bill that would keep military pay moving freely during a government shut-down.  You can use the system here.

WASHINGTON, April 7, 2011 - The Defense Department is hopeful that a government shutdown will be averted, but is releasing guidance to help plan for an orderly process if a shutdown becomes necessary, Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said in a memo issued today.

"The president and the [Defense] Secretary [Robert M. Gates] know that the uncertainty of the current situation puts federal employees in a difficult position and are very much aware that a shutdown would impose hardships on our military and civilian personnel as well as our military families," Lynn wrote.

Operations and activities essential to safety and to protect human life and property will not be shut down, he wrote.

Addressing duty status, Lynn wrote that military personnel are not subject to furlough and should report for duty during a shutdown. Civilian personnel performing excepted activities will continue to work during a shutdown, he wrote.

The Defense Department will continue to conduct activities in support of national security, Lynn wrote, including operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and Japan, as well as Libya-related support operations and other activities essential to national security.

Continuing operations include the following, Lynn wrote:

-- Inpatient and emergency outpatient care in DOD medical treatment facilities and emergency dental care;

-- Dining facilities and child-care activities;

-- Some legal activities, and contracting and logistics operations supporting excepted activities;

-- Some education and training activities, including Department of Defense Education Activity schools, and some financial management activities.

"In the absence of appropriations, non-excepted activities that have not already been fully funded will need to be shut down in an orderly fashion," Lynn wrote.

He will issue more detailed guidance to the department regarding specific activities that are considered excepted or non-excepted. Lynn wrote that he understands the military departments, defense agencies and individual commanders must tailor this guidance to many different situations around the world.

"Therefore, should there be a government shutdown, DOD personnel will be informed through their chain of command about how a shutdown may affect them personally," he wrote.

On the topic of military, civilian and retiree pay, Lynn said if the government shuts down because of a lack of funding, DOD will have no funds to pay military members or civilian employees for the days during which the government is shut down.

But military and civilian personnel will receive pay for time worked before the shutdown, he said, and military personnel and civilians in excepted positions will be paid retroactively for their work during the shutdown once the department receives additional funding.

"Congress would have to provide authority in order for the department to retroactively pay non-excepted employees for the furloughed period," Lynn wrote.

Benefits for military retirees and annuitants should continue without interruption, he added.

BAGHDAD, IRAQ (AFNS) -- While emphasizing that service members eventually will receive the pay they would earn during a government shutdown, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates acknowledged here April 7 that if the government shuts down for a week starting April 8, their mid-month paychecks would include only the pay they earned for the first week of the month.

During a visit with U.S. Division Center Soldiers at Camp Liberty, the first question posed to the secretary concerned the possibility of a government shutdown and the effect it would have on service members' pay.

"Over time, they won't lose anything," the secretary told reporters after the visit. "But you all know as well as I do that a lot of these young troops live pretty much paycheck to paycheck, and when I start to think about the inconvenience that it's going to cause these kids and a lot of their families, even half a paycheck delayed can be a problem for them.

"So I hope they work this whole thing out," he added.

Shouts of "Hooah!" rang out among the 175 Soldiers gathered for the secretary's visit when Secretary Gates began his answer to a question about the possible shutdown by saying, "First of all, let me say you will be paid."

Secretary Gates joked that as a historian, it always has occurred to him that "a smart thing for government is always to pay the guys with the guns first." But he then explained how the shutdown would affect the Soldiers' pay.

"Based on some stuff I read this morning, if the government shutdown starts on the 8th and goes for a week, you'd get half a check," he said. "If it goes from the 15th to the 30th, you wouldn't get a paycheck on the 30th, but you would be back-paid for all of it (when the government resumes operations)."

Service members are paid on the 15th and last day of each month.

Secretary Gates told the Soldiers he knows that could present a tough situation for them.

"Frankly, I remember when I was your age, I did a lot of living from paycheck to paycheck," he said, "and so I hope this thing doesn't happen, because I know it'll be an inconvenience for a lot of troops."    

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - The Directorate of Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation will sponsor the 3^rd annual Operation Care Fair for the Soldiers, Airmen and Families of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord community on Saturday, February 5, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the McChord Field Club.

This event offers Service members and Family members free, fun, and educational ways to develop and live a healthier, happier lifestyle by providing them with morale-boosting activities to help escape the ‘blahs' of the long winter season, and to aid families who are in the midst of a deployment.

The fair will offer a variety of services beginning at 10 a.m. in the McChord Field Club and includes chair massages, mini-makeovers, skin and hair care, tips on healthy cooking, talks from health care and fitness professionals, and other demonstrations.

Other events scheduled for the fair include live music, exhibits, door prizes and vendors in support of healthy living, mental wellness, and stress relief.

This from The News Tribune: Washington lawmakers want to make it easier for veterans to apply their military training to civilian careers. They're advancing bills in the state House and Senate that would require state agencies to evaluate whether military experience can be applied to a variety of professional licenses ranging from nursing to cosmetology.

Some licenses require hundreds of hours of training and work under supervision - experience that the bills' supports say veterans already have.

"This is fair and right to the person who served, and it's a smart deal for taxpayers not having to spend money or time training people for things they already know," said Sen. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor.

Veterans say the changes are overdue, particularly for high-demand careers such as nursing.

"This is in a field where every time you turn around you hear they're crying for nurses, but here they've got this crop of people they're not going to help get certified," said Mike Dalzell, 59, of Bremerton.

Dalzell retired from the Navy in 2003 as a master chief hospital corpsman with a 31-year career behind him. He couldn't find civilian employment without returning to school that would have compelled him to take basic classes.

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WASHINGTON - First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, today lauded the government's new military family support effort, calling it an "important next step" in the nation's support of troops and their families.

Speaking from the White House earlier today, President Barack Obama unveiled a new, whole-of-government approach to military family support, with agencies uniting to create new resources and support programs for military families worldwide.

"I want to emphasize that this is not a one-time press conference," the first lady said at the event attended by the Defense Department's top brass and other senior government officials. "These are lasting commitments by the government to address your needs and concerns for years to come. And my hope is that these recommendations will live on no matter the president, no matter the party."

Nearly a year ago, Mrs. Obama announced that the president had directed his Cabinet to identify new priorities and partnerships to support military families. The government answered today with nearly 50 specific commitments aimed at improving military families' quality of life, she said.

Obama cited the Education Department as an example. The department is simplifying its financial aid application process for military families. And the Labor, Commerce and Defense departments and the Small Business Administration are working with the business community to expand career options for spouses, she said.

Additionally, the Health and Human Services, Education, Agriculture and Defense departments are working to expand child care options for families from all service branches.

"The list of commitments goes on and on," the first lady said, "addressing everything from homelessness to mental health to employment opportunities for young adults. So this effort gives you all a seat at the table not just at the White House or at the Pentagon or at the [Veterans Affairs Department], it gives you a seat at the table all across the federal government."

Today's release of the review is not the end of the process, she added, but rather is the start of a long-term effort on behalf of military families.

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WASHINGTON - Additions to the TRICARE military health plan's website are giving beneficiaries easier access to their personal health data, more convenient appointment scheduling and better communication with their health care providers, the top TRICARE official reported.

TRICARE Online, the military health system's patient portal, already enables users who get care at a military treatment facility to schedule appointments, track their medications, order prescription refills and view and even download their personal health records, Navy Rear Adm. (Dr.) Christine S. Hunter told American Forces Press Service.

Later this year, patients also will be able to get their laboratory and X-ray results through the portal, along with secure messaging from their health care providers, Hunter said.

"You will be able to go there and it will say you have two messages from your doctor," she explained. "You will click on it, and it may be the nurse telling you that you are overdue for something, and maybe a lab result and an explanation of the findings."

The next goal will be to expand these capabilities so beneficiaries can track what immunizations they received and when, and get a "heads up" from their health care provider when they're due for their next one, she said.

Meanwhile, TRICARE plans to increase the number of clinics that offer online appointment scheduling and tailor the process to offer the broadest selection of openings so beneficiaries can select what's most convenient for them.

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WASHINGTON (AFPS) -- Defense Department civilian employees affected by the federal pay freeze for 2011 and 2012 will still have the opportunity to receive performance awards, promotions and normal longevity increases, a senior defense official said.

Pasquale M. Tamburrino Jr., the deputy under secretary of defense for civilian personnel policy, said senior leaders are working to ensure that employees are treated fairly during the freeze.

"We value the contributions of our career federal employees, and we value their service to the nation," he said. "Nothing has changed there." 

From the time the pay freeze was announced, the emphasis has been on ensuring all federal employees receive equal treatment, he said.

"Whether you're the most junior civil servant on the first day of the job or you're a member of the executive leadership team, it applies to you," he said. 

Defense leaders, he noted, have been "very clear" in directing that the freeze should affect all employees equally.

"Not everything is covered by statute," Mr. Tamburrino said, noting that heads of agencies have some administrative discretion in some dimensions of pay. 

Guidance on the pay freeze instructs agency heads to manage administrative privileges the same way the president treated general pay increases in the executive order, he said.    

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