--- title: Here’s the Note Coast Guard Members Got On Their First Day Without Pay description: Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Karl L. Schultz acknowledged the strain the gap in pay places on servicemen and women amid the shutdown. canonical: https://time.com/5503625/coast-guard-shutdown-missed-paycheck/ author: Tara Law article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-01-15T22:04:31.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T22:30:35.612Z article:section: Politics og:title: Here’s the Note Coast Guard Members Got on Their First-Ever Day Without Pay og:description: It's the first time in history that American military service members have not been paid during a shutdown og:url: https://time.com/5503625/coast-guard-shutdown-missed-paycheck/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt505421243d70f852/69894355db2987079d261a55/coast-guard.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: (Photo by DON EMMERT / AFP) og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Here’s the Note Coast Guard Members Got on Their First-Ever Day Without Pay twitter:description: It's the first time in history that American military service members have not been paid during a shutdown twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt505421243d70f852/69894355db2987079d261a55/coast-guard.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Here’s the Note Coast Guard Members Got on Their First-Ever Day Without Pay > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Jan 15, 2019 10:04 PM UTC  A U.S. Coast Guard vessel patrols New York Harbor waters off Battery Park on January 5, 2019, in New York, during the U.S. government shutdown. A U.S. Coast Guard vessel patrols New York Harbor waters off Battery Park on January 5, 2019, in New York, during the U.S. government shutdown. A US Coast Guard vessel patrols New York Harbor waters off Battery Park on January 5, 2019, in New York, as the US government shutdown enters its third week. - While most of the US military is unaffected, about 42,000 Coast Guard members are working without pay. That branch falls under the Department of Homeland Security, not the Pentagon.  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Jan 15, 2019 10:04 PM UTC The [partial government shutdown](http://time.com/5502014/partial-government-shutdown-solutions/) reached another uncomfortable milestone Tuesday when members of the U.S. Coast Guard missed a paycheck – the first time American military service members have ever not been paid during a shutdown. [In a letter](https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Portals/10/2019%5Fbudget/CCG%5FFundingLapseEmail%5F20190108%5Fv1.pdf?ver=2019-01-15-132940-603) addressed to more than 40,000 active duty guardsmen and guardswomen on the day of their first missed paycheck, Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Karl L. Schultz acknowledged the strain the gap in pay places on them. “I recognize the anxiety and uncertainty this situation places on you and your family, and we are working closely with service organizations on your behalf,” Schultz wrote. He also wrote that “to the best of my knowledge, this marks the first time in our Nation’s history that servicemembers in a U.S. Armed Force have not been paid during a lapse in government appropriations.” The Coast Guard is the only military branch directly impacted by the shutdown. While the other branches of the military are funded by the Department of Defense – which is fully funded – the Coast Guard is funded by the Department of Homeland Security. Guard members were paid through Dec. 31 via a “one-time action,” per the [Coast Guard’s official blog.](http://allhands.coastguard.dodlive.mil/2018/12/28/government-shutdown-faqs-cgma-loan-information/) About6,400 civilian workers were also furloughed, and 2,100 are working without pay, Coast Guard spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Scott McBride[ told the Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2019/01/09/coast-guard-families-told-they-can-have-garage-sales-cope-with-government-shutdown/?utm%5Fterm=.58194d9394e1)_._ In his letter, Schultz promised to keep Coast Guard service members updated about the shutdown. He noted that the civilian workforce had already missed one paycheck, adding “we are confronting this challenge together.” “The strength of our Service has, and always be, our people. You have proven time and again the ability to rise above adversity. Stay the course, stand the watch, and serve with pride. You are not, and will not, be forgotten.” Schultz also said that the United Services Automobile Association (USAA) has donated $15 million “to support our people in need.” The American Red Cross will distribute the funds to those who need it. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Read the full letter here: > [](https://twitter.com/DavidBegnaud/status/1085261266543882241) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5503625/coast-guard-shutdown-missed-paycheck/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5503625/coast-guard-shutdown-missed-paycheck/"},"headline":"Here’s the Note Coast Guard Members Got on Their First-Ever Day Without Pay","datePublished":"2019-01-15T22:04:31.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T22:30:35.612Z","description":"It's the first time in history that American military service members have not been paid during a shutdown","url":"https://time.com/5503625/coast-guard-shutdown-missed-paycheck/","keywords":["Military","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt505421243d70f852/69894355db2987079d261a55/coast-guard.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tara Law","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tara-law/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt505421243d70f852/69894355db2987079d261a55/coast-guard.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"(Photo by DON EMMERT / AFP)","caption":"US-POLITICS-CONGRESS","creditText":"A US Coast Guard vessel patrols New York Harbor waters off Battery Park on January 5, 2019, in New York, as the US government shutdown enters its third week. - While most of the US military is unaffected, about 42,000 Coast Guard members are working without pay. 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