WASHINGTON (Army News Service) -- Soldiers were in debt to the tune of nearly $37 million during 1999, according to records of Army financial assistance counselors.

The Army’s Consumer Affairs and Financial Assistance Program helped reduce this debt by more than $11 million.

Buying on credit and not planning ahead for the future is how soldiers often end up in trouble, according to financial assistance counselors.

"We have to stop thinking about what we want today and start thinking about what we want for tomorrow," said Mildred S. Quinones, manager of the Consumer Affairs and Financial Assistance Program at the Soldiers and Family Support Center at Fort Belvoir, Va.

Among newly enlisted soldiers, 26 percent are married. Some of them enter military service with past debt, and others acquire it in the course of their careers.

"Commanders know how much money young families make, and they know how much rent costs in that particular area," Quinones said. "The first duty station is usually the first time new soldiers have ever received a paycheck, and they have the financial responsibility of taking care of themselves and their families. If you look at how much young soldiers make and how much the necessities add up to, you’ll see that there’s not very much money left over."

With that in mind, the Army has developed a new yardstick to measure soldier well-being. This framework encompasses the idea that the needs of the Army cannot be met without also fulfilling soldiers’ personal, physical and mental needs.

Lt. Col. Steven Shively, chief of personnel readiness for the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, said the new Army Well-Being Program is the basis upon which leaders will ask Congress for higher pay and benefits. Goals include a closure of the pay gap between enlisted and officers, a dislocation allowance for soldiers reporting to their first duty stations, better housing and an increase in the basic housing allowance to eliminate out-of-pocket costs.

In light of these goals and the advice available from financial counselors at worldwide installations, Shively said, soldiers should always keep the end of their military careers in mind.