Compensation will be curtailed, and fewer people wearing the uniform will be around to collect it, under the austere proposed 2015 defense-spending bill the Obama administration intends to send to Capitol Hill. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey outlined the necessity for the significantly tighter budget – particularly in the area of compensation – in Feb. 24 remarks at the Pentagon. With compensation and benefits now accounting for half of the Defense Department’s budget each year, the risk of fielding a force that is insufficiently trained and equipped looms perilously, Hagel and Dempsey believe. “Total pay and benefits increased 40 percent faster than the private sector between 2001 and 2012,” Hagel said. “We can’t continue at that rate over the long term.” The administration’s plan includes reducing commissary subsidies by $1 billion during the next three years, and consolidating services and adjusting fees for TRICARE health-care coverage. Future service members should expect a less-generous retirement system as well.