California National Guard soldiers ordered to repay reenlistment bonuses

Thousands of California Army National Guard soldiers that reenlisted at the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan fighting were paid thousands of dollars in bonuses to stay in. They say that in 2006 and 2007 they went to mandatory meetings where reenlistments were done "assembly line style" with bonuses up to $15,000 paid up front.

In 2011 the CANG incentive manager, and three other officers were found guilty of filing false claims of over $15M. The manager was sentenced to 30 months in prison, and the other three to parole after they paid back the amounts.

The CNG assigned 42 auditors to investigate the payment of bonuses, and found that thousands of soldiers were not eligible for the money they were paid, in both bonuses and student loans, or were paid despite paperwork problems. Now the soldiers are facing wage garnishments, interest, and collections efforts to repay the money the state says they owe. In some cases it's now over $20,000.

Soldiers are being forced to refinance their homes to come up with the money, while others are looking at selling their homes. Others are paying from each paycheck, but are paying up to 1/4th of their total income. A total of 9,700 soldiers have been ordered to repay some or all of their bonus.

www.latimes.com...

Meanwhile the scum that started those wars are rolling in millions from there actions


Why I refuse to fight in any wars unless my family are at risk.

a reply to: Zaphod58

This is wrong. Our women and men were given money to stay and protect the USA. Now the government wants it back. This makes me sad. From my heart I hope someone stands up to our government and helps the people who have to pay back money they don't have. Sad.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Jerks... take it out of the defense budget.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Wow, this is complete bull#. Hopefully a good lawyer will pick up the case pro-bono en masse to help these guys n gals out.

a reply to: crazyewok

War makes for big $.

Seems sad that so many conflicts (wars), and not just in the last century, start with lies and a conspiracy.

It's always about money and power, always.

I'm laughing to keep from crying.

The same State that messed up by giving unconstitutional tax breaks to well meaning businesses and then after the court shot it down, hit the businesses with a retroactive tax that thank god was reduced in a compromise. The businesses were tricked into taking advantage of a break, in part for keeping the work and money inside California and then screwed over for doing what the State wanted. Some could have earned more by not doing what they had to do to get the breaks in the first place.

...and now this

Come on California, fall into the ocean already. Kidding of course, but please don't let your madness keep oozing out of your borders as people flee and then try and turn other places into California Part 2.

Our people in uniform deserve better. Much better.

a reply to: Zaphod58

One more reason our government has gone rogue!

Total BS!!

Maybe the Clinton Foundation will step in and save them!

I was proud that I served my country, but I can honestly say I would do everything in my power to persuade anyone I know now who is younger to NOT sign up. It's reasons like this and the VA scandals that make me feel I am right in doing so, and that is a GOD DAMN SHAME!

Too bad CANG was not required to be bonded against fraud.
30 months in prison? For one guy?

a reply to: Zaphod58

There is little I could say that would adequately express my disgust.

It takes a common sort of thuggishness to send men and women to war, but a special kind of callousness to take from those sworn to fight in your name, the funds that are their living. What I would have thought there will be some people seeking to get themselves out sooner rather than later, from the looks of this appalling mess.

a reply to: Blaine91555

Our people in uniform deserve better. Much better.

Yes.
But be aware of who perpetrated the actual fraud.

Everyone who recieved payment fraudulently should be asked to pay it back or go to jail. I dont see a problem with the government asking for it's money back.

Can't say I'm surprised.
This is the same State that include Facebooks pending IPO into their budget that year.

The people that perpetrated the fraud should be forced to pay back the state, not the victims.

Hopefully the state will come to a common sense solution.

a reply to: Zaphod58

My God..

It sounds like White Collar Criminals are screwing over soldiers who sacrificed everything to serve their country, and some of them likely even did so based on these false promises.

Fraudulent scumbags, I don't even know what else to say.

and whos responsibility was it to make sure that the soldiers were filing the correct paper work?
not the soldiers, they aren`t specialists in re-enlistment paper work.They just signed what they were told to sign if they wanted to re-enlist.
Since there was no intent on the part of the soldiers to defraud the government of money then they should be given a pass and let them keep the money.
Thou shalt not repent if there is no intent.
if it`s good enough for Hillary it`s good enough for our soldiers.

a reply to: watchitburn

California and common sense are two words rarely put in the same sentence anymore. They'll screw anyone they can, any way they can.

a reply to: Zaphod58

I'll just delete my thread then. You beat me to it.😊
These soldiers were to sign the dotted line. If someone offred me an upfront bonus, hell yes I'm taking it. I don't care where the money came from, I'm supposed to trust my superiors am i not?

Having the Pentagon, and the IRS after me for signing up to protect my country. This may be far worse than losing a limb, being burned, shot or suffering permanently from PTSD.
Where are the Senators that are in charge of these NG Districts?

It's more likely there is 30M $ to be reclaimed. These men and women served their time, risk their lives. And now their credit is destroyed.

It's not just California . Clearly the Pentagon is not fixing this. This needs dumped on both Congress and the Senate. Better yet it needs dumped on the Arms Services Committee.

a reply to: Zaphod58

This is disgusting. America's politicians rob our nation blind, partly to buy the votes of the wealthy and the poor, and nothing is done... but God help you if you're a soldier or working class hero and get so much as one break at the government's expense...

This administration's treatment of our veterans has been a disgrace.

a reply to: Soloprotocol

The soldiers sign what the admin pukes tell them to... so why exactly would this be the soldiers fault if the admin puke screwed the pooch... or if the decision was made at a higher level.

The grunts that got the cash signed the paper work in good faith and someone else screwed up, so why should the soldiers be penalized?

originally posted by: Soloprotocol
Everyone who recieved payment fraudulently should be asked to pay it back or go to jail. I dont see a problem with the government asking for it's money back.

Then nobody owes any money back. The CANG made an offer - go fight for us and we'll pay you a bonus.

The soldiers accepted the offer and went and fought. No fraud has been alleged or shown.

This is a simple contract, and what they're doing, ten years later, is just wrong.