"...The Defense Department has released final numbers on military folks, by branch of service, who switched into the new Blended Retirement System (BRS) during a year-long opt-in period that ran through Dec. 31.
The lower-than-expected results defied forecasting tools relied on by the department, and earlier by the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission, to project budget savings from the new plan.
Also, opt-in rate comparisons across service branches show the singular effectiveness of the Marine Corps' approach to deepening member interest in the BRS, given that it relies more on youth and vigor, and therefore has fewer careerists.
A total of 84,324 active-duty Marines, 59.4 percent of its eligible population, opted into the BRS. That was double the rate of nearly every other service. ..."