17K California Guard soldiers will keep disputed bonuses

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — More than 17,000 California National Guard soldiers won’t have to repay more than $190 million in enlistment bonuses and other payments handed out in error between 2004 and 2010, the Pentagon has determined.

The decision closes several years of wrangling over whether soldiers should be forced to pay back the money after an audit revealed the Guard was overpaying bonuses as it faced pressure to hit enlistment goals during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Top California lawmakers in Congress successfully pushed last year for the Pentagon to waive the repayments unless it could provide evidence a solider knew or should’ve known they weren’t eligible for the money.

A Pentagon report found the vast majority of the 17,485 soldiers that got bonuses and loan aid totalling more than $190 million won’t have to pay it back or will be refunded if they already did. The report, given to the U.S. House and Senate Armed Services Committees on July 31, was first reported Friday by the Los Angeles Times.

“I am pleased that an overwhelming majority of the service members affected by the California National Guard’s bonus clawback will be able to get their bonuses back,” Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff said in a statement. “These enlistment bonuses and other benefits were accepted in good faith and were given in exchange for serving the nation.”