Citizen Airmen of the 932nd Airlift Wing exercise their wartime readiness skills during phase 2 of the Spartan Reserve exercise on April 5th, 2024 at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. The Spartan Phase II exercise aims to prepare airmen for complexities of modern warfare through recreating the challenges in a deployed environment. "The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement." Image: Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jon Stefanko
By: FEDweek StaffThe U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for December 9 in a case involving eligibility for federal employees who are called to active military duty as National Guard or Reserve members for “reservist differential” pay.
The case before the high court, Feliciano v. Dept. of Transportation, No. 23-861, is one of several in recent years regarding that pay, which makes up the difference between an individual’s federal salary and the often much lower military pay they receive while on active duty.
At issue is the meaning of a law conferring eligibility for service “pursuant to a call or order to active duty” under a provision of law that in turn lists several authorities and includes a catchall provision for “any other provision of law during a war or during a national emergency declared by the President or Congress.”
In a 2021 decision, the federal Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that individuals must show their service was directly involved in a military “contingency operation,” and not just that it occurred during a period of a national emergency. The Transportation Department cited that ruling in refusing to pay the differential to one of its employees in the Coast Guard Reserve called to active duty.
The employee’s brief before the high court said that such an interpretation would have “devastating” consequences for federal employees in the Guard or Reserves by discouraging federal employees from participating.
The Justice Department meanwhile defended that interpretation, saying that eligibility applies “only if they are called to active duty in the course of a national emergency—not merely while an unrelated emergency declaration happens to be in effect . . . Congress repeatedly considered and rejected broad language that would have accomplished petitioner’s preferred outcome of differential pay for all active-duty service.”
Large Share of Federal Workforce about to Experience a Payless Pay Period
OPM Details Coverage Changes, Plan Dropouts for FEHB/PSHB in 2026
OMB Says Federal Workforce RIFs are Starting as Shutdown Drags On
Financial Impact of Shutdown Starts to Hit Home; WH Threatens No Back Pay
Surge of Retirement Applications Is in the Pipeline, Says OPM
See also,
TSP Takes Step toward Upcoming In-Plan Roth Conversions
5 Steps to Protect Your Federal Job During the Shutdown
Over 30K TSP Accounts Have Crossed the Million Mark in 2025
The Best Ages for Federal Employees to Retire
