The State Guard & Defense Force Council (Also Known As StateDefenseForce.com) is moving forward with a legislative effort to secure State Active Duty pay for Georgia State Defense Force troops after discussions senior Georgia Department of Defense leadership failed to produce an administrative solution.
If you are a Corporal Tier member of our Patreon Program we go into in-depth detail, with pictures, email correspondence regarding this legislative article – Click Here To Read
It has been approximately four weeks since our last update regarding our initiative to ensure that members of the Georgia State Defense Force (GSDF) who are placed on State Active Duty are compensated for the time they serve.
Earlier this year, we began discussions with Georgia State Senator Kay Kirkpatrick concerning possible legislation that would provide State Active Duty pay for GSDF troops. Those discussions included multiple phone calls and a video conference in which we outlined several possible legislative reforms.
One of our original proposals involved establishing a separately identifiable budget for the Georgia State Defense Force rather than continuing to fund the organization entirely within the broader Georgia Department of Defense structure. Such a reform could provide lawmakers with greater visibility over funding specifically intended for GSDF uniforms, equipment, meals, training, travel, and State Active Duty expenses.
Because those discussions occurred during the 2026 Legislative Session, we were asked to reconnect after the session concluded.
Legislative Discussions Continue
Beginning in August, The State Guard & Defense Force Council contacted members and staff associated with the Georgia Senate Committee on Veterans, Military, and Homeland Security. The current committee includes Senators Kay Kirkpatrick and Josh McLaurin, among other members.
Several of those discussions were productive, and we encountered legislators and staff who were receptive to examining the issue of State Active Duty compensation.
During one of those conversations, a legislative staff member recommended that before pursuing new legislation, we first speak directly with senior leadership within the Georgia Department of Defense to determine whether the matter could be resolved administratively.
That recommendation led us to Joe Ferrero, Deputy Adjutant General of the Georgia Department of Defense. Georgia’s official state directory currently identifies Ferrero in that position.
Discussion With Georgia’s Deputy Adjutant General
After contacting his office, we received a return call directly from Mr. Ferrero approximately 10 to 15 minutes later.
During that conversation, we explained our effort to secure compensation for Georgia State Defense Force personnel placed on State Active Duty. According to our notes from the call, Mr. Ferrero explained that it has been longstanding Georgia policy not to pay GSDF personnel for this service.
When discussing the financial burden this can impose on soldiers, particularly when a member could potentially serve for days or weeks away from their job, we stressed that soldier who serve unpaid can create serious financial consequences for service members and their families.
Mr. Ferrero also discussed certain expenses associated with GSDF service. During the conversation, he initially stated that travel expenses were covered before clarifying that such expenses are covered in some circumstances. He further acknowledged that GSDF members purchase their own uniforms.
Mr. Ferrero also told us that the unpaid policy has existed for decades and characterized it as dating back to World War II. We want to make an important distinction here: that statement represents what was communicated to us during the call. Our continuing historical research has identified earlier periods in which Georgia State Guard personnel were compensated in some capacities, so we do not interpret his statement to mean that no Georgia State Guard member has ever received compensation at any point in the state’s history.
What is clear is that the modern Georgia State Defense Force has operated for decades primarily as an unpaid volunteer military force.
How Georgia Law Creates the Pay Difference
The Georgia State Defense Force is not outside Georgia’s military structure.
Under O.C.G.A. §38-2-3, Georgia’s organized militia includes the Army National Guard, Air National Guard, and the State Defense Force.
The important distinction appears to be which State Active Duty authority is used.
Under §38-2-25(c), members and units of the organized militia may be ordered to State Active Duty when there is the possibility of imminent danger from disaster, riot, insurrection, or gross breach of the peace.
Georgia’s pay statute, §38-2-250(b), expressly provides pay and allowances for State Active Duty performed under §38-2-25(c), based on the corresponding grade, rating, and length of service in the U.S. Armed Forces.
Georgia law also permits the Governor under §38-2-6 to order all or part of the organized militia into active state service during disasters and other grave emergencies. Personnel serving pursuant to that authority are compensated under §38-2-250.
But there is another provision.
§38-2-25(d) allows members of the organized militia, with their consent, to be ordered to State Active Duty for any lawful purpose:
“…without pay and allowances or other compensation, except as specifically set forth in such orders…”
This provision appears to be central to the GSDF pay issue.
The pay structure exists as:
Georgia National Guard
§38-2-25(c)
Emergency State Active Duty
↓
§38-2-250(b)
Paid
Georgia State Defense Force
§38-2-25(d)
Consensual State Active Duty for any lawful purpose
↓
Compensation is not automatic
↓
May be unpaid unless compensation is expressly provided in the orders
Importantly, Georgia law does not prohibit GSDF soldiers from being paid. Because the State Defense Force is part of the organized militia, the statutory framework appears to allow GSDF personnel to serve under paid authorities as well. The central issue is how Georgia Military Leadership chooses to order those personnel to duty.
The Legislative Path Forward
After determining that an administrative policy change was unlikely, we returned to the legislative process.
The State Guard & Defense Force Council has since begun discussions with another Georgia State Senator who has expressed significant interest in developing legislation to address the issue. For the time being, we are withholding the Senator’s identity while preliminary discussions and legislative drafting are underway.
We have also been invited to travel to the Georgia State Capitol to participate in discussions concerning the proposed legislation.
Our current legislative concept includes several potential reforms.
First, we are examining the creation of a separately identifiable GSDF appropriation that would provide dedicated funding for equipment, uniforms, meals, training, travel, and State Active Duty expenses.
Second, we are exploring legislation that would require GSDF personnel activated for qualifying disasters and emergencies to receive compensation under the paid State Active Duty provisions of Georgia law.
Finally, we are examining language that would prevent unpaid §38-2-25(d) orders from being used as a substitute when GSDF personnel are performing emergency missions that otherwise qualify for paid State Active Duty.
The objective is simple:
When Georgia asks its State Defense Force soldiers to leave their jobs, their families, and their homes to serve the people of Georgia during an emergency, they should not have to choose between answering that call and paying their bills.
We Need Your Help
Legislative advocacy is not free.
Researching state law, developing proposed legislation, paying staff members, traveling to Atlanta, meeting with legislators, and conducting the sustained advocacy necessary to move a bill through the General Assembly all require funding.
We are asking members of the State Defense Force community to contribute just $3 to The State Guard & Defense Force Council’s Legislative Advocacy Program.
With more than 5,000 members throughout our community, even a small contribution from a portion of those supporters could cover a substantial amount of the expenses necessary to carry this fight forward.
Our objective is not complicated.
Georgia State Defense Force soldiers who are ordered away from their civilian lives to serve their state during emergencies deserve to be compensated for that service.
We intend to continue this effort until that issue is addressed.
