https://www.military.com/daily...-elsewhere-army.html
The money is collected in what amounts to a tax on troops -- taken from their Basic Allowance for Subsistence payments, roughly $460 per month that is automatically deducted from the paychecks of service members

Military.com | By Steve Beynon
Published February 14, 2025 at 1:05pm ET

The Army is repurposing more than half of the money it collects from junior enlisted soldiers for food, according to data reviewed by Military.com. The numbers suggest that a large portion of those funds are not going toward feeding soldiers, a diversion of resources coming at a time when troops increasingly struggle to find nutritious food on base.

The money is collected in what amounts to a tax on troops -- taken from their Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) payments, roughly $460 per month that is automatically deducted from the paychecks of service members who live in barracks and is intended to help cover food costs. For junior enlisted troops who earn about $30,000 annually, the cost can be consequential.

2024 financial records provided by the service from 11 of the Army's largest bases show that more than $151 million of $225 million collected from soldiers was not spent on food. Given that the Army operates 104 garrisons, the true amount of unspent funds is likely far higher.

"It's just returned to the big pool of Army funds, and it's used someplace else," one service official with direct knowledge of the situation said during an interview that was arranged by the Army public affairs office, referring to redirected BAS money collected from soldiers.

At Fort Stewart, Georgia, for example, soldiers contributed $17 million, but the base spent just $2.1 million -- redirecting 87% of the funds. Schofield Barracks in Hawaii collected $14.5 million but used only $5.3 million, meaning 63% of the money was used elsewhere.

All but two bases left more than half of the money for food unspent. Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska and Fort Bliss, Texas, left 41% and 49% of funds on the table, respectively.

It's unclear what specifically the additional funds taken from soldiers are being spent on, but they do not appear to be going toward feeding soldiers. Major expenses such as dining hall infrastructure and food service worker salaries come from separate funding sources and, when pressed repeatedly by Military.com, Army officials declined to provide additional financial data.

How to feed the force is an equation service planners continue to grapple with. In 2023, Military.com reported that Fort Cavazos, Texas -- the Army's most extensive base -- was barely able to keep its food services running for much of that summer, with only two of its 10 dining facilities open, leaving soldiers struggling to find meals.

In November last year, the publication reported pervasive food shortages at Fort Carson, Colorado. Soldiers were fed meals that were just a slice of toast and lima beans, troops told Military.com.

The Army has a nutrition policy on what it is supposed to feed soldiers, though it's rarely followed and in some cases outright ignored. The service has invested in so-called kiosks, which are cheap alternatives to major dining facilities. Instead of cooked meals, soldiers have access to grab-and-go snacks and prepackaged sandwiches akin to the quality of prepared meals at a gas station.

Military.com reviewed the menus at those kiosks and found that it's virtually impossible for soldiers to stay within healthy nutrition guidelines, with most offerings being heavy in sugar and low in protein. The service's previous top enlisted leader, Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Grinston, sought to heavily invest in healthy foods, seeking to feed soldiers more like professional athletes and dramatically expand meal options to include fresh protein shakes. But those efforts never came to fruition after getting snagged in bureaucratic difficulties.

"Stealing food money from our soldiers is not how we achieve military readiness," Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, whose district includes Schofield Barracks, told Military.com when presented with the numbers. "The fact that at least $151 million was collected from soldiers and not spent on food as required demands not just an immediate investigation, but swift accountability."

Army officials declined to answer detailed, or even broad, questions about how so much money is diverted and how budgets for food are decided. The service also declined to make any senior officials available on the record for interviews.

Maj. Andrea Kelly, an Army spokesperson, told Military.com in a statement the service only uses funds "needed to feed the projected number of meals based on previous head counts," meaning historic attendance at dining facilities dictates how much food is purchased.

In the past, service officials have pointed to a lack of attendance at Army dining facilities, saying resources are continually stripped because of a perception of dwindling interest.

Reports from service members frequently describe undercooked meat, unseasoned meals, a lack of fresh ingredients, and unhealthy menu options. The substandard, and sometimes dangerous, food in turn leads to fewer soldiers using the facilities -- a downward spiral that results in even less money being spent on meals.

"The Army should be making improvements," said Rob Evans, the creator of Hots & Cots, a Yelp-style app where soldiers review military housing and dining facilities. "You wouldn't use this logic with recruiting. The Army doesn't take away recruiting resources just because of a bad year."

The issue is not new. In 2020, Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, who has since left Congress, pressed then-Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy on the matter during a budget hearing, saying the Army is either "wasting half the food, or the money is not being spent on the soldiers' food and it's being spent on something it's not appropriated for." However, there was seemingly no follow-up to that inquiry, which came just before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The following is data for the Army's 2024 fiscal year, which ran from October 1 2023 to Sept. 30, 2024. The rounded data shows the total amount of money collected for food from soldiers stationed at each installation against the money ultimately spent on food:

Fort Stewart, Georgia:
Money collected from soldiers: $17 million
Money spent on food: $2.1 million

Fort Drum, New York:
Money collected from soldiers: $18.2 million
Money spent on food: $3.9 million

Fort Carson, Colorado:
Money collected from soldiers: $22 million
Money spent on food: $5 million

Fort Riley, Kansas:
Money collected from soldiers: $19.1 million
Money spent on food: $5.1 million

Fort Bliss, Texas:
Money collected from soldiers: $22 million
Money spent on food: $11 million

Fort Cavazos, Texas:
Money collected from soldiers: $42.5 million
Money spent on food: $11.7 million

Fort Bragg, North Carolina:
Money collected from soldiers: $34.6 million
Money spent on food: $16.6 million

Fort Campbell, Kentucky:
Money collected from soldiers: $18 million
Money spent on food: $5.1 million

Schofield Barracks, Hawaii:
Money collected from soldiers: $14.5 million
Money spent on food: $5.3 million

Fort Wainwright, Alaska:
Money collected from soldiers: $9 million
Money spent on food: $3 million

Fort Richardson, Alaska:
Money collected from soldiers: $7.5 million
Money spent on food: $4 million

God bless, no words for this. Makes me absolutely irate.

Can't get much lower than stealing from enlisted military men and women

That’s immoral as described.

Gotta pay for those trials to award contracts to Sig somehow, I guess.

I was in the Air Force and had to use the Chow hall. It was pretty good compared to what the other services might have had to put up with. There was always enough food though.

I imagine most soldiers don't go to the mess hall every day because they have other options available. Probably fast food places available on base or nearby off base. That's what we did. But when money gets tight at the end of the pay period, the Chow Hall should always be there.

My mantra- Nothing Can Stop What Is Coming!

BAS is not a deduction from a soldier's paycheck. It's an addition to a soldier's paycheck. It's a benefit.

From that benifit, the government deducts meals it provides while a soldier is living on base whether the soldier eats the meals or not. Who's fault is it if a soldier doesn't go to the dining hall?

That's the basic gist of it. If the soldier is on leave, no deductions are made while on leave. If a soldier lives off base, again no deductions are made.

It's very similar to the BAH, Basic Allowance for Housing.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
BAS is not a deduction from a soldier's paycheck. It's an addition to a soldier's paycheck. It's a benefit.

From that benifit, the government deducts meals it provides while a soldier is living on base whether the soldier eats the meals or not. Who's fault is it if a soldier doesn't go to the dining hall?

That's the basic gist of it. If the soldier is on leave, no deductions are made while on leave. If a soldier lives off base, again no deductions are made.

It's very similar to the BAH, Basic Allowance for Housing.

This…

It may have changed since 1990 when I got out, but if you lived in the barracks you did not get BAS, you had a chow card and had 4 meals a day available at the mess facilities.

If you were married and in base housing or lived off-base, you received VHA (Variable Housing Allowance) and BAS. You could still eat at the mess facilities, but you paid by the meal for it as you did not have a chow card.

Yup. This is a hit piece.

Keep drilling Elon, one of these days you'll hit a real gusher!

WRT whether this is a benefit or a deduction, the fact is that they are collecting funds for a specific purpose, and spending them on something else. Whatever that "something else" is will be instructive.

As has been said, if every soldier that got BAS deducted (once it was given) then the bases would spend it all (or most) on food. Demand doesn't meet supply. I'd wager 75% of service members who don't get BAS (meaning they live on post in military barracks, and their BAS is taken out of their paycheck) don't eat on post.

I had an E3 Sailor who was having BAS deducted, AND spending 900$ a month on door dash.

This makes it read like they are stealing. When in reality, these lower enlisted are not taking advantage of just another opportunity the military provides them.

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
these lower enlisted are not taking advantage of just another opportunity the military provides them.

Maybe. However, the base is spending less money for food because fewer soldiers are using the chow hall and now they aren't spending enough to feed the soldiers who do eat there. At least according to the story.

quote:

Originally posted by Paten:

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
these lower enlisted are not taking advantage of just another opportunity the military provides them.

Maybe. However, the base is spending less money for food because fewer soldiers are using the chow hall and now they aren't spending enough to feed the soldiers who do eat there. At least according to the story.

I can tell you first hand no soldier has ever had a lack of food on base under normal circumstances.

You can believe the article or the folks who have and do work on these bases that are telling you this ain’t the case. I’ve worked on 5 army bases including ones listed in this report and honestly, I’m a little jealous of the food a the dfac.

Hit peice.

Those that know are not fooled.

Let this be a lesson that if you are not familiar with a subject, ask the good people of this forum, and get the answer.

Cave! Fictus Nuntium Machina!

quote:

Originally posted by 911Boss:

It may have changed since 1990 when I got out, but if you lived in the barracks you did not get BAS, you had a chow card and had 4 meals a day available at the mess facilities.

If you were married and in base housing or lived off-base, you received VHA (Variable Housing Allowance) and BAS. You could still eat at the mess facilities, but you paid by the meal for it as you did not have a chow card.

That is essentially the way I remember it, when I was USN (shore-based), in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

I remember a period of several months when I was recovering from an injury and was on restricted duty, I could type so I was put to work as the Leading Chief's Yeoman, basically the squadron's head enlisted admin guy. One of my duties was issuing things like liberty cards, chow passes, etc.

As has been said, hit piece...unless things have changed since '90.

We had BAQ (basic allowance for quarters) and separate rats (food allowance) for married folks and others authorized to live off post/base. This money was extra on top of your check. There was nothing deducted from the checks of those living in the barracks and eating at the mess hall.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:


That's the basic gist of it.

Yeah, no.

The Marines have the same issues. At the enlisted chow halls on LeJeune (and the same way on Pendleton), if you don’t get there as soon as they open, they run out of food quick. They have nothing to drink but water after the first 15-20 minutes. Eventually, people stop going because they know there is no sense because they are too late and there will be no food. In this cycle, because they had fewer people show, they have less food the next day.

The food is poor quality, with very few fresh fruits and vegetables. Dominos is making a killing both places because they have to the barracks delivery.

I was floored about this and couldn’t comprehend it. There is also generally no heat in the barracks and no hot water. Lots of reports of mold from water leaks.

And the Marines were the only branch to “pass” a DoD audit.

The government frequently overpays and then uses draconian tactics to get the money back. It is usually lower enlisted guys who have this problem. You cannot expect 17 year olds to figure this stuff out.
BTW the above certainly appears to be a hit piece as others have said.

Ah... The Chow Hall.
"How do you want your eggs"?
"Fucking cooked this time"!