There is no information on how many Navy sailors have been affected by this delay.
Some U.S. Navy sailors have been forced to take out loans over month-long delays in pay to some service members who earned increases in their housing allowances this year due to recent marriages or moving somewhere with a higher cost of living.
Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society Vice President, Gillian Gonzalez, stated that it was happening everywhere. It did not seem like it hit one geographic location more than others.
Gillian Gonzalez Talks About The Struggling Navy Sailors
Gillian Gonzalez recounted that her group has seen an uptick in loan applications from Navy sailors who are struggling to keep up with living expenses but did not have an exact number on the increase.
Matt Knight, who is the public affairs offer at Navy Personnel Command, stated that the Defense Department required the Navy to process Basic Allowance for Housing change requests within 30 days, but also noted delays could happen.
He stated that the Navy Personnel Command and its subordinate commands take every measure to make sure the volume of transactions does not exceed their capacity. Occasional backlogs occur due to several reasons but are resolved as quickly as possible to limit its impact on the Navy Sailors.
He declined to provide details to the outlet on how many sailors are affected by the delays.
Gonzalez said that one sailor was not paid for 3 months due to an enlistment extension and pay error, and was forced to use up savings. Navy-Marine Corps Relief sent the sailor $2,500 to the sailor at home due to them being under COVID-19 quarantine.
