The
Florida National Guard is the National Guard force of the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
of
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
. It comprises the
Florida Army National GuardThe Florida Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization...
and the
Florida Air National GuardThe Florida Air National Guard is part of the Air Reserve Component of the
United States Air Force and consists of multiple operational and support units located across the state of Florida....
.
The
United States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the federal government of the United States...
charges the National Guard with dual
federalThe federal government of the United States is the central government entity established by the United States Constitution, which shares sovereignty over the United States with the governments of the individual U.S. states. The federal government has three branches: the legislative, executive, and...
and
stateA state government is the government of a subnational entity in a federal forms of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or be subject to the direct control of the federal government...
missions. Ordinarily under the control of the state government (in which the
governorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
is the
commander-in-chiefA commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the...
) National Guard troops may called to federal service (in which the
presidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
serves as commander-in-chief).
The Florida National Guard, like those of other states, provides trained and equipped units for prompt
mobilizationMobilization is the act of assembling and making both troops and supplies ready for war. The word mobilization was first used, in a military context, in order to describe the preparation of the Prussian army during the 1850s and 1860s. Mobilization theories and techniques have continuously changed...
in case of
warWar is a reciprocated, armed conflict, between two or more non-congruous entities, aimed at reorganising a subjectively designed, geo-politically desired result...
or national emergency.
The
Florida National Guard is the National Guard force of the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
of
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
. It comprises the
Florida Army National GuardThe Florida Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization...
and the
Florida Air National GuardThe Florida Air National Guard is part of the Air Reserve Component of the
United States Air Force and consists of multiple operational and support units located across the state of Florida....
.
The
United States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the federal government of the United States...
charges the National Guard with dual
federalThe federal government of the United States is the central government entity established by the United States Constitution, which shares sovereignty over the United States with the governments of the individual U.S. states. The federal government has three branches: the legislative, executive, and...
and
stateA state government is the government of a subnational entity in a federal forms of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or be subject to the direct control of the federal government...
missions. Ordinarily under the control of the state government (in which the
governorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
is the
commander-in-chiefA commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the...
) National Guard troops may called to federal service (in which the
presidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
serves as commander-in-chief).
The Florida National Guard, like those of other states, provides trained and equipped units for prompt
mobilizationMobilization is the act of assembling and making both troops and supplies ready for war. The word mobilization was first used, in a military context, in order to describe the preparation of the Prussian army during the 1850s and 1860s. Mobilization theories and techniques have continuously changed...
in case of
warWar is a reciprocated, armed conflict, between two or more non-congruous entities, aimed at reorganising a subjectively designed, geo-politically desired result...
or national emergency. Guardsmen may take part in functions ranging from limited actions in non-emergency situations to full-scale law enforcement (
martial lawMartial law is the system of rules that takes effect when the military takes control of the normal administration of justice.Martial law is sometimes imposed during wars or occupations in the absence of any other civil government. Examples of this form of military rule include Germany and Japan...
) in cases when the governor determines that ordinary law enforcement officials can no longer maintain civil control. The state mission assigned to the National Guard is "to provide trained and disciplined forces for domestic emergencies or as otherwise provided by
state lawFlorida law is based on the Florida Constitution , which defines how the statutes must be passed into law, and defines the limits of authority and basic law that the Florida Statutes must be comply with...
."
The Florida National Guard serves as the state's "defense force."
Florida currently has no State Defense Force (SDF). The State Defense Force is a military entity described by the Florida Statutes as a state-authorized
militiaThe term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
prepared to assume the state mission of the Florida National Guard in the event that all of Florida's National Guard units are federally-mobilized and authorized by
executive orderAn executive order in the United States is an order issued by the President, the head of the executive branch of the federal government. In other countries, similar edicts may be known as decrees, or orders-in-council. Executive orders may also be issued at the state level by a state's Governor. U.S...
when the situation requires. If needed, the SDF would be recruited, trained, organized, equipped and deployed, under direction of the Adjutant General of Florida and the cadre of full-time state military officers within the Florida Department of Military Affairs at the department's joint training center at Camp Blanding, Florida. It is unlikely that a SDF would be created in the near future.
National coordination of various state National Guard units are maintained through the National Guard Bureau.
Army Units
- 83rd Troop Command (Tallahassee)
- 3/20th Special Forces Group (Camp Blanding Joint Training Center
Camp Blanding Joint Training Center is the primary military reservation and training base for the Florida National Guard, both the Florida Army National Guard and Florida Air National Guard, located in Clay County, Florida near the city of Starke. The site measures approximately 73,000 acres and...
)
- HHC, 3/20th SFG
- Support Company
- 153rd Finance Battalion (St. Augustine)
- 1153rd Finance Det
- 2153rd Finance Detachment -- returned from one year Operation Iraqi Freedom deployment in November 2006.
- 3153rd Finanve Det
- 111st Aviation Regiment
- 1-111th AVN REGT -- Currently Supporting in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Deployed Since Sept 2006.
- 2-111th Aviation Regiment (AOB)
- 171st Aviation Regiment (provide the helicopter support, UH-60)
- 417th Signal Battalion (Composite)
- HHD
- 144th Transportation Company (Marianna)
- 708th General Support Maintenance (Quincy)
- 653rd Range Extension Company (Crestview)
- 53rd Brigade Combat Team
- 1-124th Infantry
- 2-124th Infantry
- 3-124th Infantry (Air Assault), now redesignated, though elements still remain.
- 1/153rd Cavalry (RSTA)
- 2-116th Field Artillery
- 164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade
- 1/265th ADA (SHORAD)
- 3/265th ADA (SHORAD)
- 254th Transportation Battalion
- HHD 254th
- 1218th Transportation Company
- 806th Military Police Company (I/R)
- 715th Military Police Company (CS)
- 3/116th Field Artillery
- 50th Area Support Group
- 927th Combat Service Support Battalion
The 927th Combat Service Support Battalion is a component of the 50th Area Support Group in the Army National Guard of the United States. Its headquarters are located at Camp Blanding in Florida. , the battalion is commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Paul B. "Trey" Chauncey, III and Command Sergeant...
- 32d Army Air & Missile Defense - Det 1
- 211th Infantry Regiment (Regional Training Institute, that offers the State OCS program)
- 260th Military Intelligence Battalion
- 13th Army Band
Air Force Units
- 125th Fighter Wing
The United States Air Force's 125th Fighter Wing is an Air National Guard unit operationally-gained by the Air Combat Command , located at Jacksonville Air National Guard Base at Jacksonville International Airport, Florida...
- 557th Expeditionary Red Horse Group (ERHG) -- currently deploying to Iraq
Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , also known as Mesopotamia, is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert.Iraq shares borders with Jordan to the west, Syria...
, AfghanistanThe Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a landlocked country in south central Asia. It is variously described as being located within Central Asia, South Asia, or the Middle East...
and QatarQatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally ', is an Arab emirate in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the larger Arabian Peninsula...
for multiple engineering assignments in the Middle East through approximately May 2007.
- 601st Air Operations Center
- 202d RED HORSE Squadron
- 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron
- 114th Range Operations Squadron
Duties
National Guard units can be mobilized at any time by
presidential orderThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
to supplement regular armed forces, and upon declaration of a
state of emergencyA state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend certain normal functions of government, alert citizens to alter their normal behaviors, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale for suspending civil liberties...
by the
governorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of the state in which they serve. Unlike
Army ReserveThe United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....
members, National Guard members cannot be mobilized individually (except through voluntary transfers and Temporary DutY Assignments
TDY), but only as part of their respective units. However, there has been a significant amount of individual activations to support military operations (2001-?); the legality of this policy is a major issue within the National Guard.
Active Duty Callups
For much of the final decades of the twentieth century, National Guard personnel typically served "
One weekend a month, two weeks a year"One weekend a month, two weeks a year" is a former recruiting slogan used by the U.S. Army National Guard. It indicated the amount of time an individual would need to spend actively in the Guard to be a Guardsman with benefits...
", with a portion working for the Guard in a full-time capacity. The current forces formation plans of the US Army call for the typical National Guard unit (or National Guardsman) to serve one year of active duty for every three years of service. More specifically, current
Department of DefenseThe United States Department of Defense is the federal department charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government relating directly to national security and the military...
policy is that no Guardsman will be involuntarily activated for a total of more than 24 months (cumulative) in one six year enlistment period (this policy is due to change 1 August 2007, the new policy states that soldiers will be given 24 months between deployments of no more than 24 months, individual states have differing policies). The Florida Army National Guard is composed of approximately 9600 soldiers and airmen (as of July 2007).
See also
- Florida Army National Guard
The Florida Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization...
- Home Guard
-Military:*British Home Guard*Combat Groups of the Working Class *Confederate Home Guard, during the American Civil War*Croatian Home Guard and Imperial Croatian Home Guard*Danish Home Guard...
- Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
- State Defense Forces
State Defense Forces in the United States are military units that operate under the sole authority of a state government, although they are regulated by the National Guard Bureau through the Army National Guard of the United States...
External links