Army Reserve Soldiers flex their skills on federal engineering projects to serve communities thanks to new legal authority
U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers from the 377th Engineer Company (Vertical Construction), shovel out dirt for post holes during a playground construction project at Crooked Creek Lake in Ford City, Pennsylvania, as part of their annual training June 12, 2024. A new authorization in the Water Resources Development Act of 2022 grants permission to U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers to work on projects for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of their official training plans. Soldiers can perform projects that alight with their military occupational specialty or unit mission tasks to fulfill their military training requirements. The Soldiers must perform work that benefits water resources development projects or programs. The Army Reserve Soldiers benefit from this new authority by putting their skills to work on real-world projects that serve their community. In return, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers benefits by receiving project support without having to pay for labor. The Soldier’s salary is covered by the Army Reserve as part of its annual budget to meet training requirements. For years, state agencies and organizations benefitted from similar partnerships with the U.S. Army National Guard, which is state-funded, but this is the first time congress passed law authorizing a partnership with the U.S. Army Reserve for federal projects. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District photo by Michel Sauret)