Wholesale retailer Sam's Club announced this week that it will waive membership requirements for servicemembers, veterans and their families during the government shutdown, according to Military Times. A Sam's Club spokesperson told the news source that it will allow them to shop at the large retailer as if they were members and receive discounts on their purchases.
To obtain the military benefits, servicemembers must present proof of present or past military service at a Sam's Club member desk or checkout counter.
The announcement came after dozens of commissaries at U.S. military installations were forced to close Oct. 2, leaving military families already living on tight budgets with less affordable shopping options. Military families save about 30 percent on groceries and other household goods at commissaries, and the products are tax-free, according to the Defense Commissary Agency. The Associated Press reported that nearly 12 million military personnel, veterans and their family members are eligible to shop at commissaries worldwide.
"Military personnel, retirees and their families heavily depend on commissaries for low-cost groceries and everyday needs," the retailer said in a statement.
The new directive applies to every Sam's Club in the U.S. and will last until the shutdown is resolved, the news source reported.
While many overseas military programs remain open despite the government shutdown, closures are beginning to strike at global installations.
According to USA Today, the American Battle Monuments Commission just announced that all of its cemeteries will close temporarily due to lack of funding.
"ABMC will resume normal operations when a new funding measure is passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by the President of the United States," the organization said in a statement on its website.
About 20 cemeteries around the world that serve as the resting place for veterans who fought in both world wars, as well as other conflicts, will be affected. The cemeteries are located in France, Belgium, Tunisia, Mexico, Italy and Great Britain, according to the news source. One of the most visited cemeteries is in the Normandy town of Colleville-sur-Mer overlooking Omaha Beach – one of the landing places of the infamous World War II invasion – and receives about a million visitors each year.
The ABMC also stated on its website that it will be unable to respond to inquires or provide various services, including letters authorizing free passports for military families, escort assistance and arrangements for floral decorations.
Despite the recent change in the Department of Defense's policy, many same-sex military couples are facing obstacles when trying to obtain the full military benefits they were promised.
Following the landmark Supreme Court ruling of the Defense of Marriage Act, the Pentagon announced in mid-August that servicemembers involved in same-sex relationships will be eligible for a range of benefits, including low-cost health care and military identification cards, that were previously exclusive to heterosexual couples. For couples who do not reside in a state where same-sex marriage is legal, the DoD is granting them up to seven days of leave to travel to state where a marriage license can be obtained.
However, the policy has caused widespread confusion among servicemembers, according to the Los Angeles Times. Only the Marine Corps has issued official guidelines explaining the leave application requirements, the news source reported. The Air Force has yet to issue any directions to its same-sex servicemembers.
After interviewing more than half a dozen servicemembers and their same-sex partners, the news source found that same-sex service members are repeatedly having their requests for leave denied by their superiors without an explicit reason.
"[My commander] said if leave is granted for me to be married then it's not fair to heterosexuals," Ohio National Guard Spc. Jodie Harper told the news source.
Some branches of the military, including the Army, plan to remedy the leave process soon.
"[The Army] will issue additional guidance clarifying the policy in the coming weeks," Army spokesman Lt. Col Justin Platt told the news outlet.
It's only been two days since the government shutdown began, but veterans might already be feeling the strain of the federal closure. According to The Washington Post, veterans benefits are currently in danger – especially if the shutdown continues past October.
The Department of Veterans Affairs will run out of funds for disability checks, pensions and insurance for veterans by the end of the month, the news source reported. Losing these benefits might heavily impact wounded servicemembers who rely on VA paychecks to live.
"Congress and the White House, they're playing chicken with people's lives," Chief Policy Officer for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Tom Tarantino told the news source. "That's where this becomes scary."
Disability claims, which have been on backlog for the last year, are also at risk. According to the news outlet, the VA released a statement Oct. 1 warning that the shutdown will negate its recent progress on the disability claims backlog. Although the VA is keeping claims processors on staff during the shutdown, the agency was forced to suspend its overtime processors – an initiative that began in May and reduced the backlog by 30 percent.
An official from the VA predicts that the backlog will increase due to the shutdown, the news source reported. The Board of Veterans Appeals can no longer hear disability appeals cases, which might lead to a delay of thousands of appeals, according to Washington Post political reporter Steve Vogel.
Although the government shutdown is expected to have a larger effect on domestic U.S. military installations, many overseas servicemembers might feel the strain of the federal closure on some of their military benefits.
Administrative services at overseas bases will be reduced due to civilian furloughs, while the Armed Forces Network will be scaled back to only one news channel, Stars and Stripes reported. However, overseas commissaries and exchanges will remain open, despite being closed stateside.
According to the news source, military personnel will step in for furloughed civilian staff to help facilitate AFN's broadcasts.
The U.S. Air Force in Europe and Africa is expected to lose 1,400 of its 1,726 civilian workforce, the news outlet reported, while the Navy is bracing for the furlough of 60 percent of its 200,000 civilian staff.
Health care services for active-duty troops in Europe might also be reduced if the government shutdown lasts longer than a week, according to a statement released by the U.S. Army's Europe Regional Medical Command. The ERMC is suspending 38 percent of its civilian staff, and another 25 percent at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany – the largest military hospital outside the U.S.
"The absence of such a large portion of our Army Civilians could have an impact on access to care and the level of non-critical services we are able to provide," a spokesperson for the ERMC said in a statement.
A group of nearly 100 veterans did not let the government shutdown stop them from crossing the barricade of the closed World War II memorial in Washington, D.C., Tuesday Oct. 1.
According to ABC News, 92 members of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight Veterans, an organization that provides the state's WWII veterans with free trips to the nation's capital, entered the iconic memorial just hours after the shutdown, crossing a make-shift barrier that blocked the site from visitors. The memorial is currently closed to due to the shutdown.
Details of how the veterans, some of whom in wheelchairs or holding onto walkers, were able to enter the barricaded memorial remain vague. The veterans arrived at Reagan National Airport at 10 a.m. and took a charter bus to the landmark, where they were initially going to see a bagpipe procession and wreath-laying ceremony, the news source reported. Videos show the veterans taking over the memorial without escorts, while Reps. Steve King, R-Iowa, and Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., said in interviews that the gates were opened for the group.
The site was re-closed after the veterans left, and will remain closed until the government shutdown is resolved, according to the news outlet.
Many members of Congress, including Rep. Steven Palazzo, R-Miss., tweeted in support of the veterans Tuesday afternoon, asking the federal government to keep the memorials open during the shutdown.
Although active-duty troops will continue to work and receive paychecks during the government shutdown, they might find the bases in fragile conditions.
USA Today reported that the furloughing of civilian workers at military installations around the nation will affect base maintenance and might result in the suspension of various military programs. Recreational activities might also be eliminated.
One of the largest domestic U.S. bases, North Carolina's Fort Bragg, furloughed half of its 14,500 staff Oct. 1. A Fort Bragg spokesperson told the news source that there will be cuts to the base's survivor outreach program, while a free phone service for military families to call their loved ones in Afghanistan will be reduced.
Meanwhile in California, Marine Corps base Camp Pendleton furloughed more than 1,100 civilians, base spokesman 1st Lt. Ryan Finnegan told the news source.
Despite the vast effect the shutdown might have on the U.S. military, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel told reporters Tuesday that America's homeland security is not in jeopardy.
The Pentagon expects to furlough 400,000 of its civilian workforce, the news source reported. Those civilians who work in national security will be able to stay on with pay at Hagel's discretion.
The White House released a video Sept. 30 of President Obama addressing the military just hours before the government shutdown occurred. It is the first federal government shutdown in 17 years.
In the video, Obama thanks active-duty troops and defense department employees for their service before outlining the terms of the shutdown and how it is going to affect both civilians and uniformed servicemembers.
According to Obama's recorded statement, those in uniform will remain on normal duty status.
"The threats to our national security have not changed, and we need you to be ready for any contingency," Obama said in the video. "Ongoing military operations – like our efforts in Afghanistan – will continue."
Obama added that servicemembers in danger or combat zones will have the proper tools to fulfill their missions.
However, civilian employees of the Department of Defense face many uncertainties, including the possibility of being furloughed until the government shutdown is resolved. The president expressed his concern for the civilian employees and their families, stating that they deserve better than how Congress has treated them during the sequester and consequential shutdown.
"Your talents and dedication help keep our military the best in the world," Obama said of civilian defense employees.
Prior to recording the video message, Obama signed a measure into law that will maintain the issuance of paychecks and allowances for active-duty troops, according to the White House's official website.
As servicemembers were beginning to worry about their lack of pay during the first federal government shutdown in 17 years, Congress stepped in and passed a last-minute bill Sep. 30 that benefits those in uniform and their families, Government Executive reported. President Obama signed the measure just hours before the government officially closed.
The law allows active-duty troops and reserve members to receive on-time paychecks and allowances during the shutdown. According to the news source, the law affects about 1.4 million servicemembers.
Civilian employees and contractors of the defense and homeland security departments who are providing support to servicemembers will also receive their paychecks on time at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense. The Department of Defense expects 50 percent of its civilian employees to be furloughed, while the Department of Homeland Security estimates about 15 percent of its civilian staff will be suspended, the news source reported.
Sen. Ted Cruz, who tried to block the Senate from voting on the initial spending bill in a 21-hour-long speech last week, praised Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid for passing the bill.
"The men and women who risk their lives defending this nation should not have their paychecks delayed," Cruz said on the Senate floor.
As the government shutdown looms closer, the defense department is preparing for the worst.
Although servicemembers are exempt from government furloughs, military members will be working for free if Congress fails to pass its budget for the 2014 fiscal year, according to Business Insider. In the case of a government shutdown, servicemembers will have to wait for retroactive pay once the shutdown comes to a close.
However, some military banks will reportedly pay the troops through other means. The news source reports that the Navy Federal Credit Union will provide servicemembers with their scheduled Oct. 15 paycheck as long as the money is deposited directly into their accounts. According to the bank's website, this option is available to all active-duty members of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. Members must sign-up for the direct deposit prior to Oct. 9.
The Navy Federal Credit Union is not the only military bank providing assistance to at-risk servicemembers. The USAA is extending several benefits to active-duty troops, including a zero-interest payroll advance, while also remaining flexible with credit card and insurance fee payments, the news source reports.
Veteran benefits will not be affected by the possible government shutdown.