National Guard Bureau officials have rolled out a statement highlighting the rise in Army Guard recruiting for the last three months of 2005, saying the Guard is working toward the Congressionally authorized end strength of 350,000—despite Pentagon plans to cut the Army Guard. The Pentagon wants to limit the ARNG to its present level of 333,000. The NGB did not comment on the state of Air Guard recruiting, which as we reported earlier, ended the year on a dismal note. Still, high retention has kept the ANG at 99 percent of its end strength. However, the Air Force has included Guardsmen in its plan to cut up to 50,000 personnel over the next five years.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.