Pricey Christmas gift about to arrive for 115,000 sailors and Marines in San Diego County

Gary Robbins, The San Diego Union-Tribune on Dec 20, 2025

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SAN DIEGO — The $1,776 bonus checks the Trump administration is giving to active-duty service members will go to an estimated 115,000 sailors, Marines and Coast Guard personnel in San Diego County, where many are struggling to pay for food and housing.

The one-time gifts, which are expected to be delivered by Christmas, collectively add up to roughly $202 million, much of which will be spent locally, in one of the nation’s largest military communities.

The windfall was announced on Wednesday when President Donald Trump said in a nationally televised address that he is giving these “warrior dividends” to nearly 1.5 million service members, and some reserves, throughout the military. This will cost the government $2.6 billion, which is being subsidized by a boost in the Pentagon’s budget.

For some, the checks can’t arrive soon enough. Studies by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and RAND, a think tank, say that about one-quarter of service members have trouble finding enough food, mostly because salaries are low. They also struggle to find affordable housing in many military cities, including San Diego, which has some of the highest rental fees in the country.

The problem gave rise to San Diego’s Support the Enlisted Project, which helps service members to deal with a variety of serious financial problems.

The Trump bonus “will go a long way in helping people to achieve the financial future they want to see,” said Tony Teravanien, who runs the project.

“But it is a one-time windfall that can last longer if you use it properly.”

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