I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3616 
To appropriate such funds as may be necessary to ensure that members 
of the Armed Forces, including reserve components thereof, and sup-
porting civilian and contractor personnel continue to receive pay and 
allowances for active service performed when a funding gap caused by 
the failure to enact interim or full-year appropriations for the Armed 
Forces occurs, which results in the furlough of non-emergency personnel 
and the curtailment of Government activities and services, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 
Mr. FORBES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and 
Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To appropriate such funds as may be necessary to ensure 
that members of the Armed Forces, including reserve 
components thereof, and supporting civilian and con-
tractor personnel continue to receive pay and allowances 
for active service performed when a funding gap caused 
by the failure to enact interim or full-year appropriations 
for the Armed Forces occurs, which results in the fur-
lough of non-emergency personnel and the curtailment 
of Government activities and services, and for other pur-
poses. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Defending Our De-
fenders Act’’. 
SEC. 2. EMERGENCY APPROPRIATION OF FUNDS TO PRO-
VIDE PAY AND ALLOWANCES FOR MEMBERS 
OF THE ARMED FORCES AND SUPPORTING 
CIVILIAN 
AND 
CONTRACTOR 
PERSONNEL 
DURING FUNDING GAP IMPACTING THE DE-
PARTMENT OF DEFENSE OR DEPARTMENT 
OF HOMELAND SECURITY. 
(a) APPROPRIATION OF FUNDS FOR MILITARY PAY 
AND ALLOWANCES.—During a funding gap impacting the 
Armed Forces, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make 
available to the Secretary of Defense (and the Secretary 
of Homeland Security in the case of the Coast Guard), 
out of any amounts in the general fund of the Treasury 
not otherwise appropriated, such amounts as the Secretary 
of Defense (and the Secretary of Homeland Security in 
the case of the Coast Guard) determines to be necessary 
to continue to provide pay and allowances (without inter-
ruption) to the following: 
(1) Members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, 
Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, including reserve 
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components thereof, who perform active service dur-
ing the funding gap. 
(2) At the discretion of the Secretary of De-
fense, such civilian personnel of the Department of 
Defense who are providing support to the members 
of the Armed Forces described in paragraph (1) as 
the Secretary considers appropriate. 
(3) At the discretion of the Secretary of De-
fense, such personnel of contractors of the Depart-
ment of Defense who are providing support to the 
members of the Armed Forces described in para-
graph (1) as the Secretary considers appropriate. 
(b) FUNDING GAP DEFINED.—In this section, the 
term ‘‘funding gap’’ means any period of time after the 
beginning of a fiscal year for which interim or full-year 
appropriations for the personnel accounts of the Armed 
Forces for that fiscal year have not been enacted. 
SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON FURLOUGH OF DEPARTMENT OF 
DEFENSE EMPLOYEES PAID THROUGH WORK-
ING-CAPITAL FUNDS. 
Section 2208 of title 10, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(s) FURLOUGH OF EMPLOYEES.—(1) Except as pro-
vided under paragraph (2), the Secretary of Defense or 
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the Secretary of a military department may not furlough 
any employee of the Department of Defense whose salary 
is funded by a working-capital fund unless the Secretary 
determines that— 
‘‘(A) the working-capital fund is insolvent; or 
‘‘(B) there are insufficient funds in the work-
ing-capital fund to pay the labor costs of the em-
ployee. 
‘‘(2) The Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of 
a military department may waive the restriction under 
paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines such a waiver 
is in the interest of the national security of the United 
States. 
‘‘(3) In this subsection, the term ‘furlough’ means the 
placement, for nondisciplinary reasons, of an employee in 
a temporary status in which the employee has no duties 
and is not paid, but does not include administrative leave 
or an excused absence.’’. 
SEC. 4. PRIORITIZE OBLIGATIONS ON THE DEBT HELD BY 
THE PUBLIC AND MILITARY PAY. 
In the event that the debt of the United States Gov-
ernment reaches the statutory limit as defined in section 
3101 of title 31, United States Code, the following shall 
take equal priority over all other obligations incurred by 
the Government of the United States: 
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(1) The authority of the Department of the 
Treasury contained in section 3123 of title 31, 
United States Code, to pay with legal tender the 
principal and interest on debt held by the public. 
(2) The payment of pay and allowances for 
members of the Armed Forces on active duty. 
(3) The payment of salaries for Department of 
Defense civilian employees. 
(4) The payment of salaries for employees of 
contractors of the Department of Defense. 
SEC. 5. TERMINATION. 
Appropriations and funds made available and author-
ity granted pursuant to this Act shall be available until 
the earlier of the following dates: 
(1) The date of the enactment into law of an 
appropriation (including a continuing appropriation) 
for any purpose for which amounts are made avail-
able in section 2. 
(2) The date of the enactment into law of the 
applicable regular or continuing appropriations reso-
lution or other Act without any appropriation for 
such purpose. 
(3) January 1, 2016. 
Æ 
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