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elements of compensation as part of GHI, the service secretaries have discretion to exclude any portion of BAH in areas deemed to have a “high cost of living.” Some military family advocates have argued that despite this secretarial authority, the default inclusion of BAH in the income calculation precludes needy families from accessing BNA.

Servicemembers must apply for BNA and recertify GHI annually. Servicemembers without dependents are not eligible. Because BNA is designed to bring households up to 150% of the poverty line, the amount of assistance may vary by household size. Those most likely to be eligible for BNA are junior servicemembers with several dependents. BNA is considered taxable income under 26 U.S.C. §61 and is counted in income eligibility for federal means-tested food assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and child nutrition programs.

Proposed Legislation

The House version of a FY2025 NDAA would expand eligibility for BNA in two ways (see Table 1).

Table 1. BNA Provisions in the FY2025 NDAA

House (H.R. 8070) SASC-reported (S. 4638)

Section 621 would require BAH to be excluded from the calculation of gross household income for the purpose of determining BNA eligibility.

No similar provision

Section 1804 would raise the eligibility threshold from 150% of the poverty line to 200% of the poverty line.

No similar provision

Source: CRS analysis of legislation on Congress.gov.

Under current law, DOD estimates that in 2025 there would be approximately 2,500 eligible recipients at a cost of roughly $10 million. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that enacting both Sections 621 and 1804 would expand the BNA-eligible population to about 60,000 households and increase the benefit provided by an average of $720 per month. CBO estimates that the BNA provisions in H.R. 8070 would increase costs by $260 million in 2025 and $1.4 billion over the 2025-2029 period. Per 37 U.S.C. §402b(j), the authority to provide the benefit expires on December 31, 2027. Congress could let the benefit expire, extend the sunset date, or make the benefit permanent.

The Biden Administration has expressed support for raising the BNA threshold to 200% of the poverty line, but opposes Section 621 of the House bill, which would exclude BAH from the GHI calculation. According to the Administration, Section 621 would “result in a much less targeted expansion of payments and come at a cost of $2.8 billion in FY 2025 that is not provided.” Servicemembers are entitled to receive either BAH or in-kind housing (e.g., barracks, other government-provided housing). BAH can be a substantial portion of a servicemember’s take-home pay and varies based on paygrade (rank), geographic location, and whether the servicemember has dependents. For example, in 2024 the average annual basic pay for a married E-3 is $29,583 and average BAH is $25,538, with BAH accounting for 42% of total cash pay. As such, removing BAH from the calculation would broaden the eligible pool of recipients (see sample calculations in Table 2).

Table 2. Sample Cash Pay and Poverty Thresholds, 2024

Rank

Average

Annual

Basic Pay

Average

Annual

BAH Annual BAS

Total

Annual

Cash Pay*

Total Cash

Pay w/o

BAH

150% of the

poverty line

(4-person)

200% of the

poverty line

(4-person)

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E-3 $29,583 $25,538 $5,532 $60,644 $35,106

$46,800 $62,400

E-5 $43,370 $26,845 $5,532 $75,738 $48,893

Source: HHS Poverty Guidelines for 2024 annual thresholds for a 4-person household in the 48 contiguous states. DOD, Selected Military Compensation Tables, Detailed RMC Tables for Married Personnel, B-2, January 1, 2024. Notes: Amounts are rounded up to the nearest dollar. All enlisted servicemembers received the same basic allowance for subsistence (BAS) regardless of rank. *Total cash pay does not include the tax advantage accrued due to BAH and BAS being non-taxable allowances.

Other military pay proposals in the House and SASC-reported bills could interact with these proposed changes to BNA. Provisions in these bills would amend pay tables for junior enlisted servicemembers. The maximum proposed raise in the House version would be 19.5% while the Senate version would provide a maximum raise of 5.5% (both of these figures include a statutory 4.5% inflation adjustment). If enacted, these pay raises could reduce the size of the population eligible for BNA. Congress may consider the entire package of proposed compensation reforms as well as other efforts to address financial readiness and food security for junior servicemembers and their families.

For additional background, see CRS Report R46983, Military Families and Financial Readiness.

Author Information

Kristy N. Kamarck Specialist in Military Personnel

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.