Military families could see far fewer moves over the next five years under a Pentagon directive that cuts permanent change of station spending in half by 2030.
The Department of Defense spends roughly $5 billion each year moving service members and their families between duty stations. Defense officials want to cut that budget by 50% through a series of annual reductions that begin in fiscal 2027.
The May 22, 2025 memo from acting under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness Jay Hurst sets hard targets: 10% cuts in 2027, then 30% in 2028, 40% in 2029, and the full 50% reduction by 2030. Each calculation runs against the 2026 budget baseline, adjusted for inflation.
Services submitted their implementation plans in late September 2025. How those plans actually work remains unclear.
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The $5 Billion Question
Most military families know the drill. Pack up every 18 to 36 months. Find new housing. Hunt for jobs. Switch schools. Rebuild social networks. Repeat.
The Defense Department’s own data shows the cost. Its 2024 active duty spouse survey found one in three spouses want their family to leave the military. Frequent moves topped the list of reasons why. Spouses who moved within the previous year and had young children were more likely to be unemployed.
Blue Star Families reported similar findings. A third of active duty personnel and spouses called PCS moves their biggest challenge with military life.
Tim Dill, who was serving as acting deputy undersecretary for personnel and readiness when the policy launched, framed the cuts around both money and quality of life during a May 28, 2025 briefing with reporters.
“The most important thing in this policy is that we’re taking care of service members and their families,” Dill said.
Discretionary vs. Mandatory
The Pentagon estimates 80% of current moves fall into the discretionary category. The other 20% stay classified as mandatory for mission requirements.
Discretionary moves include professional military education assignments, operational travel within the continental United States, rotational overseas postings, and individual training. Dill pointed to programs like the Army’s Captains Career Course as examples of moves that might get reconsidered.
The question services must answer: which moves actually matter for career development and which just check boxes?
Military officials have long argued that frequent rotations fill critical jobs and give personnel broad experience across their career fields. The new policy pushes back on that assumption.
Implementation Gets Messy
Theory met reality fast. By August 2025, the Air Force had already run into budget problems and paused some permanent change of station moves. Airmen scheduled to relocate between October 1 and December 31 without authenticated orders saw delays pushed to January 2026 or later.
Then came the October government shutdown. The Army suspended in-progress moves, stranding families between duty stations. Some had already packed household goods and cleared quarters when they learned they were stuck.
Colonel Rachel Sullivan, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii, confirmed the halt in an October video message. Military family advocate Megan Harless described families living in temporary lodging with no clear end date and uncertain about their next paycheck.
The government reopened after 43 days in late November 2025, but the disruption highlighted how budget constraints translate to real consequences.
Career Paths Need Redesigning
The memo demands more than spending cuts. Services must propose changes to how officers and enlisted personnel build careers.
Current promotion systems reward generalists who rotate through multiple assignments and locations. The new approach pushes services to create paths for specialists who stay put longer.
Hurst’s memo calls for “promotion authorities necessary to retain uniquely skilled individuals in positions for longer periods.” It suggests letting some officers and noncommissioned officers specialize instead of gaining broad experience across various functions.
That represents a fundamental shift in military personnel management. Whether the services can redesign decades of promotion policy while meeting budget targets in less than two years remains an open question.
Part of a Bigger Budget Fight
The PCS reductions sit within a larger financial restructuring at the Pentagon. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered reviews to identify roughly $50 billion in potential reallocations from the fiscal 2026 budget.
Acting Deputy Secretary Robert Salesses said in a February 2025 statement that the department would target what he called “unnecessary spending” to redirect funds toward readiness priorities.
Congress added its own pressure. Representative Jen Kiggans introduced the STAY Act in December 2025, legislation requiring the Defense Department to evaluate whether all current moves are necessary and whether some positions could support longer tours.
What Comes Next
The first 10% reduction hits in fiscal 2027, just months away. Services have their plans submitted. Military families wait to see how theory becomes practice.
Joyce Raezer, executive director of the National Military Family Association, offered cautious support when the policy was announced but stressed the need for careful implementation.
The stakes are clear. Get it right, and military families gain stability without sacrificing readiness or careers. Get it wrong, and the Pentagon saves money while breaking the personnel system that keeps qualified people in uniform.
For service members who have moved a dozen times or more, the promise of staying put carries weight. Whether the Pentagon can deliver on that promise while cutting billions from the moving budget will define military life for the next generation.
