Under Title 10, United States Code, and Executive Order 13223 of September 14, 2001, the President has authorized the Department of Defense and the Department of Transportation to respond to the continuing and immediate threat of further attacks on the United States by ordering any unit and any member of the Ready Reserve to active duty for not more than 24 consecutive months.

Federal law provides many important rights and benefits for Federal employees who perform active military duty. An overview of these rights and benefits can be found on the Office of Personnel Management's website. The site addresses are:   www.opm.gov/oca/compmemo/2001/2001-09A.asp and www.opm.gov/oca/compmemo/2001/2001-09B.asp.