# Q about non-drill reserve status

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 10, 2001, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684 "2001-10-10T23:27:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![upperdeckfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/65b543/32.png) [@upperdeckfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/upperdeckfan)\
**Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684/1 "2001-10-10T23:27:31Z")

</div>

I’m curious. I was reading about a congressman who is still a reservist in the US Army. According to the article I read, his status changed to non-drill reserve status after he took office. What does this mean? Does this apply to all reservists who are in office?

Or, are US lawmakers who are in the reserves ever required to leave their post to serve in active duty if their reserve unit is called up?

If so, what happens to the reservist/US lawmaker’s post while they are serving active duty?

Thanks in advance.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2001, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684/2 "2001-10-11T02:25:39Z")

</div>

This could mean the Congressman has become IRR.

There are three types of reservists, and forgive me that I forget the exact terminology.

1. Full-time reservists. These are people whose full-time jobs are the reserves. This is much like “regular,” active duty military, except these full-timers are strictly speaking “reservists.”
2. Normal reservists. A weekend per month, and two weeks during the year.
3. IRR, the individual ready reserve. When you join a service, your entire obligation to the government is eight years. If you do a two-year hitch, for example, you still owe six more years to the government. These six years are called the IRR, and are meaningless. You don’t carry military ID, you don’t have base privliges, etc. You’re assigned to an IRR unit, but you don’t actually report for anything, and you live life normally. You just have to understand that it’s the government’s right to recall you if they deem necessary.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2001, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684/3 "2001-10-11T02:42:00Z")

</div>

You forgot IMA’s - Individual Mobilization Augmentee. They are much like IRR’s, but they are not attached, even nominally, to a unit.

- Rick

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2001, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-about-non-drill-reserve-status/86684/4 "2001-10-11T03:03:36Z")

</div>

My brother is an IRR US Army Ranger. They can come for him any time they want to, but probably won’t unless something decimates the regiment.