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The President’s Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2011 included a much needed increase in the authorized number of non-dual status technicians for the Army National Guard. The request sent to Congress would have raised the cap on Army National Guard non-dual status technicians from 1,600 to 2,520.
The House version of the FY11 NDAA, H.R. 5136, increases the limit to 2,520; however, the Senate Armed Services Committee did not take similar action when marking up its version of the NDAA, S. 3454. The Senate Armed Services Committee deferred taking further action on this issue pending the receipt of a report on the topic mandated by Section 417 of the FY10 NDAA (Public Law 111-84).
Unlike dual status technicians, non-dual status technicians are not uniformed members of the National Guard and therefore not subject to deployment. A pressing need in the National Guard civilian work force is to expand the number of non-dual status personnel who can staff key readiness support positions and provide the essential continuity of operations, without being removed by deployment. The current high operational tempo has placed considerable strain on Guard resources.
The National Guard’s long-term ability to effectively support troop requirements for the Overseas Contingency Operation is at risk unless its troops are given the necessary full-time tools to effectively execute all National Guard missions.
Senator Joe Lieberman (CT) and Senator Scott Brown (MA) are sponsoring a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressing support for an increase in Army National Guard Non-Dual Status Technicians and requesting that Secretary Gates ensure the timely delivery of the Section 417 Report required by the FY10 NDAA.
Please urge your Senator to support an increase in Army National Guard Non-Dual Status technicians by signing on to this letter. The deadline for your Senator to sign on to this letter is Wednesday, June 23.
TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTION:
By
using the “Write to Congress” feature provided below, you can
IMMEDIATELY e-mail your elected representatives. A sample letter is
included in our “Write to Congress” feature. You can e-mail the
pre-written message or edit the sample letter as you desire. This is
the quickest and most effective method of expressing your views to
Congress. Also, contact your friends and family and urge them to “Write
to Congress” as well. For more in-depth information and background
visit our web site at http://www.ngaus.org/.
Please direct any questions concerning this issue to Kevin McColaugh, NGAUS Army Programs Manager, at 202-408-5899 or email: kevin.mccolaugh@ngaus.org.
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