Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-MN) was informed this week that the National Guard Bureau is facing a $101 million budget shortfall as the September 30th end of the federal fiscal year approaches. The Minnesota National Guard will be forced to reduce personnel and training expenditures by $3.6 million to help solve this budget problem. All state and territorial Army National Guard units have also been asked to delay drills until the end of September.
Congresswoman McCollum issued the following statement in response:
"The National Guard Bureau's $101 million budget shortfall has placed additional and unnecessary uncertainty and stress on National Guard members, their families and employers in Minnesota and across the country. These citizen soldiers have made a commitment to serve their country at great sacrifice and therefore it is essential that the Pentagon's National Guard bureaucracy do their job. In this instance they have failed. I fully support Congress allowing the reprogramming of National Guard funds, but it is also time we investigate Army National Guard budgeting practices. The National Guard Bureau needs to eliminate wasteful expenditures, like a nearly $30 million sponsorship of a NASCAR racing team, to cover future critical personnel and training costs."