[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 52 (Monday, December 28, 1998)]
[Page 2521]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Pay Raises for Armed Forces Personnel

December 21, 1998

    In consultation with my Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, and the 
Joint Chiefs of Staff, I have decided to make significant improvements 
in pay and other compensation for our men and women in uniform. The 
defense budget I will submit to Congress for next year will include a 
pay raise of 4.4 percent for 2000, a restructuring of pay to reward 
performance as well as length of service, and an increase in retirement 
benefits.
    These improvements will enhance the quality of life for our men and 
women in uniform, will encourage long-term service by the most talented 
service men and women, and will increase the Armed Forces' military 
readiness to engage fully, at any time, in order to protect the security 
and interests of the United States.
    The sacrifices of our men and women in the Armed Forces are most 
vivid during the holidays while those of us at home are celebrating a 
time of peace with loved ones and family. As events in the Gulf showed 
us only days ago, our service men and women are asked by their Nation to 
travel far from home and to put their lives on the line to defend our 
interests.
    I am proud of the men and women of our military, and I am pleased 
that they will receive the pay and retirement increases they richly 
deserve. Coupled with recent quality-of-life initiatives in housing, 
child care, and other areas, these improvements will continue to enhance 
the quality of life for American service men and women.