There has been lots of discussions about DoD’s plan to transition 20% of Guard personnel to Title 5. Forty-four (44) U.S. governors sent a letter March 4 to House and Senate leaders in Congress, denouncing a plan to convert some National Guard military members to civilian employees.
The plan is spelled out in section 1053 of the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act and calls for the Secretary of Defense to convert no less than 20 percent of National Guard Title 32 technicians into non-uniformed federal civilian employees by Jan. 1, 2017.
According to the NDAA, the “dual-status” technicians typically hold civilian administration, clerical, finance or office service positions. The dual-status designation means they work civilian jobs but could be called upon by their governor to fulfill a military role in the event of an in-state emergency.
The letter asks for Congress to repeal the plan because it “represent(s) a serious shift in authority from governors” and would “deny governors’ access” to thousands of National Guardsmen in the event of a domestic emergency.
To see the letter and the list of governors who signed it, click on the link below. BTW … Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton is one of the forty-four.