News 6 Mashup: April 6, 2020
Here are the top stories for the week of April 6, 2020, straight from AWN News 6 Correspondent, Jolene McNutt:
Federal Tax Deadline Extended to July 15, 2020
The Federal Tax deadline has been extended from April 15 to July 15, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, not all states are following suit and extending their deadlines. USAToday.com shared what each state is requiring. If you are still working on filing your taxes, remember that you can use free tax software from MilitaryOneSource.mil.
Some Soldiers Can Apply for Hardship, Isolation Pay
ArmyTimes.com reported that “Army personnel can apply for hardship pay and isolation allowances if they’ve been impacted by the Pentagon’s halt on permanent change of station moves.” Earlier this year, the Pentagon placed a temporary stop-order on all military moves which has stalled PCS season. The hardship allowance will grant soldiers $100 per day for up to $1,500. This allowance is designed to help defray the costs of additional expenses due to the stop movement order.
More than One-Third of Military Families Have No One to Ask For a Favor
Blue Star Families’ recently released findings from their annual Military Family Lifestyle Survey. CNN shared that “More than a third of military families who participated in the survey said that they have no one to ask for a favor.” Top stressors included financial issues and relocation stress.
“Isolation from family and friends has grown as a key stressor, ranked even higher by military families than deployments,” reported CNN.
In response, Blue Star Families is, “working to enlist civilian members of the community . . . piloting a ‘deployment circle’ program to build a network of support for spouses of deployed service members. A spouse signs up and identifies people they would like to be in their support circle during deployments.”
Space Force Announces 16 New Job Categories
Space Force, the newest branch of the United States military, has announced sixteen job categories. Military.com said that there will be “five key areas of operation that will include, space operations, space engineering, space intelligence, space acquisition and science, and space cyber.” In total, Space Force strength will be about 15,000 strong. Maj. Gen. Clinton Crosier anticipates that about 80% of the support will come from the Air Force. The specialty positions will be drawn from all service branches. Those interested in positions will eventually be able to enlist directly with Space Force.
SGN: Some Good News with John Krasinski
And to wrap up this News 6 segment, I thought we all might be in need of a little fun amid our COVID-19 self-isolation. John Krasinski, best known for his role as Jim Halpert on the hit series, The Office, has started a brand new news channel. You can find SGN on YouTube where Krasinski shares stories dedicated entirely to good news. During his first show, he featured gratitude to healthcare workers, shared stories of people spreading kindness which included sharing hand sanitizer and toilet paper, and featured a 15-year-old girl, Coco, whose neighbors lined the streets to cheer her home from her last chemotherapy treatment. He also has a surprise special guest. I may have cried watching the first episode. Find Some Good News with John Krasinski on YouTube.
