SENATE TO HOUSE: BACK OVER TO YOU!

On Thursday, the Senate rejected the House version of the fiscal 2010 war supplemental spending bill in a procedural vote, 46-51.  It then sent their original bill, passed in May, back to the House for action. 

The House bill included an amendment that would add approximately $21 billion in spending for domestic programs such as aid to states to help avoid teacher layoffs, collegiate Pell Grants as well as funding that would assist youths with finding summer work.  Senate Republicans strongly objected to the added domestic spending while some of their counterparts on the other side objected to the $800 million cut in other education initiatives that would have paid for it.

The Senate’s action puts the pressure back on the House leadership.  House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said last week that the House had to address the war-funding bill before leaving town at the end of the week.

At a hearing on July 22, Joseph Westphal, the Under Secretary of the Army told the House Armed Services Committee unless the supplemental defense spending bill is passed soon, “We will run out of money about the middle of August” for some of the service’s basic functions paid for in its operations and maintenance account.

“In the Army we have moved moneys from our base into some of our operations to support those missions to keep them moving.  If there are furloughs, there are rules about advance notice to employees and things of that nature that we have to take into account, and we are either past or dangerously close to those deadlines.”

When asked whether soldiers would be paid even if the supplemental is not passed, Westphal said they would. “What we are concerned about are our civilians, many in our civilian workforce” would be furloughed because their pay comes from the Operations and Maintenance accounts.  “That's our chief concern.”

In addition to civilian pay, money budgeted for Operations and Maintenance is used to prepare for and conduct combat operations, as well as to buy fuel and spare parts for training operations and to buy supplies, equipment, and service contracts for the repair of weapons and facilities.

Even before the hearing, Committee Chairman Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., released a statement that said, “We are fighting two wars, and our forces in Afghanistan and Iraq need this additional funding to continue our efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and eventually defeat the terrorists who threaten America.

“The quickest way to get a bill to the President that supports our troops in the field is for the House to vote on the Senate bill.  Our troops need this support, and we must send a bill to the President without delay.”

The Committee’s top Republican, Rep. Howard McKeon, R-Calif., said he hoped the bill would pass before the recess.  "I know we're not going to leave the troops in harm's way without ammunition, without food, without the things that they need.  But I'm concerned about the training and some of the other ongoing activities for the troops that are going over there next."

NO PROGRESS YET ON CONCURRENT RECIEPT FOR CHAPTER 61 RETIREES

AUSA has championed full concurrent receipt, the simultaneous receipt of military retired pay and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation, for many years.  While we have made much progress in obtaining full concurrent receipt, there is still a long way ahead in winning fair treatment for all disabled retirees.

We were encouraged when an unemployment benefits extender bill included a provision offered by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., that would phase-out the disability offset for Chapter 61 (medical) retirees.  However, last-minute negotiations in the Senate to muster up the necessary votes for passage of the bill stripped all provisions, including the concurrent receipt fix.

Needless to say, we are disappointed.  AUSA and its partners in The Military Coalition will to work with Senator Reid to introduce the same provision as an amendment to the fiscal 2011 defense authorization bill, which the Senate is expected to take up in September.

TRICARE RETIRED RESERVE COMING SOON

The fiscal 2010 National Defense Authorization Act for 2010 provided retired National Guard and Reserve personnel with new TRICARE health coverage options before they reached age 60

TRICARE Retired Reserve, a new program being launched in the fall, will allow certain “gray area” retired National Guard and Reserve personnel, who are not yet age 60, the opportunity to purchase TRICARE health coverage.  Details involving specific eligibility rules, coverage and costs are still being coordinated and finalized. 

The TRICARE Management Activity is encouraging potential beneficiaries who would like to be among the first to know about final details for TRICARE Retired Reserve to sign up for e-mail updates from TRICARE.