AGO Opinion Topics: MILITARY

Whenever a public employee is required to perform active military service and misses his or her work on a particular calendar day due to such military service, the employee is excused from work on that day and uses one of the 15 days of military leave granted per year by RCW 38.40.060.

RCW 38.40.060, which provides fifteen days of military leave for state officers and employees who are subject to military duty, does not apply to elected officials, who are entitled to extended leave for military duty under RCW 73.16.041.

A person is not eligible for a veteran's preference in a competitive examination for public employment under RCW 41.04.010(1) solely on the basis of a six year enlistment in the Washington National Guard under 10 U.S.C.§ 511(d) with respect to which his only period of active duty (aside from drills and annual training exercises) was for a four month training period as required by that federal statute.

RCW 9.41.190 prohibits the ownership or possession of a machine gun.  This prohibition does not apply to any officer or member of the armed forces.  The exception to the machine gun prohibition for officers or members of the armed forces is not related to the discharge of the officer's or member's official duties.

Article X, § 3 of the Washington State Constitution requires the legislature to provide for the maintenance of a "soldier's home" only for disabled veterans of the Civil War who fought on the Union side and for members of the state militia disabled while in line of duty and who are bona fide residents of the state.

(1)  A National Guardsman or other reserve member who attends a 15-day training period which begins and ends on a Saturday should be charged with 12 days military leave of absence. (2)  The remaining 3 days of military leave can be applied to various active training periods throughout the year rather than the annual active duty for training period. (3)  Military leave of absence may be granted to public employees for active training duty regardless of what the nature of the training might be.