US military servicemen denied cost of living increase in 2022

The amount of a pay raise that the United States military is forecasted to receive next year is a smaller bump that doesn't cover the price hikes caused by skyrocketing inflation rates throughout the United States.

It's a watershed moment for the economy under the Biden administration.

A devastating Fox News report spells out a blow for America's armed forces when it comes to morale and how much US servicemen will be paid for their work via the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act.

Given how Congress operates, they'll need to pass an appropriations bill to authorize the spending dictated in the 2022 NDAA.

"It addresses a broad range of pressing issues, from strategic competition with China and Russia, to disruptive technologies like hypersonics, AI and quantum computing," Democrat Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island said in a statement.

But it's not that simple.

The discrepancy arises because the 6.8 percent number for inflation comes out of the consumer price index. But that's not what's used in the Authorization Act to calculate the military's pay bump.

Fox's main insight into the matter comes from John G. Ferrari. He's a former US Army General who is now working with the American Enterprise Institute. His matter of expertise was the military's budgetary work.

Ferrari's bad news is that military members at the lower end of the paygrade will have a tougher time making ends meet. "The president will need to increase 2023 defense spending from his previously announced level of $756B to about $806B to account for inflation overall or else readiness of the force will suffer," he said.

A report from Stars and Stripes estimates that 48,000 service members will be cut from a "cost-of-living stipend" that accounts for goods and services, transportation, and various tax expenditures.

When it comes to the upcoming years 2022 and 2023, the situation might change because the cost of pay raises for troops is calculated by the Employment Cost Index. If a percentage of 4.6 or 4.7 manages to maintain course, it'd be what President Joe Biden uses in the 2023 budget.

While US military confidence has generally sank under Biden, that doesn't make them any less important to the government. This comes as tensions with Russia over Ukraine have resurfaced amidst the latest moves made by Putin.