U.S. Army Ends Free Storage of Vehicles, Belongings for Deployed Soldiers

Deployed U.S. Army soldiers will no longer be able to store their belongings free of charge while they are away from home, the Army Sustainment Command announced Wednesday.

A spokesman for the command, which is the primary provider of logistics support to Army units, told Military.com that it was discontinuing the use of funds to store soldiers’ vehicles and other goods while they are away for prolonged periods of time.

It was not specified whether the announcement applies to all deployment types or just to soldiers on temporary duty. 

The storage policy ended in October, but the order was not “widely distributed” to soldiers or the press, the outlet reported.

“We understand the burden this could potentially place on soldiers, and HQDA G-1 [The Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Department of the Army] is drafting policy that would enable such storage,” service spokesman Sgt. Pablo Saez said.

That new “policy” was only mentioned after Military.com first reached out to the Army about the issue in early December, the outlet noted.

It is unclear when or in what manner that future policy will take form.

An internal memo from Col. Heather Carlisle, director for support operations at the Army Sustainment Command, said that the Army is not required to provide storage for its soldiers:

HQDA G1, the proponent for [storage] entitlements, recently determined that the Army would no longer support [storage] entitlements because there is no Army policy explicitly authorizing storage in support of soldiers deployed for contingency operations.

Following the discontinuation of the storage program, members of the Army have been authorized to store their vehicles in motor pools, which are typically used to house tactical vehicles and “frequently are uncovered or not climate controlled,” according to the outlet.