We have 2 Action Items today at Issue 2 & 3 below

 

 

Summary of Issues

 

At Issue 1. we see REJECT MILITARY PAY AND BENEFITS CUTS. You have a lot to lose as House and Senate leaders begin to reconcile the two versions of the defense bill.. See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

 

At Issue 2. we see CONGRESS DIVIDED ON TRICARE, PAY, HOUSING. House and Senate at odds on key personnel and compensation provisions. Negotiations to resolve the differences are starting now. (See Issue 2 below for the details and send messages to our Legislators. GF)

At Issue 3. we see CONGRESS OFFERS LIMITED RELIEF FOR MILITARY SURVIVORS. House and Senate defense bills only avoid another benefit cut. Join MOAA’s campaign to take positive steps for survivors.(See Issue 3 below for the details and send messages to our Legislators. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

 

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

 

ISSUES

Issue 1.   REJECT MILITARY PAY AND BENEFITS CUTS

You have a lot to lose as House and Senate leaders begin to reconcile the two versions of the defense bill.

What’s at stake:

• dramatic retiree health care fee increases;
• huge erosions to housing allowances (up to $10,000-$20,000 or more per year);
• a fourth consecutive pay raise cutback; and
• more cuts to already-overstressed forces.

Please send your elected officials a MOAA-suggested message today. Do it at the end of Issue 2. Below. GF)

Issue 2. CONGRESS DIVIDED ON TRICARE, PAY, HOUSING

The House and Senate have both passed their versions of the FY17 Defense Authorization Bill, and they disagree on many important issues, including TRICARE fee hikes, housing allowance cuts, the military pay raise, and force levels.

Health Care

In the wake of last year’s retirement reform, Armed Services Committee leaders are now focused on overhauling the military health care system.

The Senate would apply new and higher fees to current beneficiaries.

The House would grandfather currently serving and retired members and families against the large fee hikes.

Housing Allowances

The Senate bill would cap housing allowances at current BAH rates or the servicemember’s actual housing cost, whichever is less, beginning with the first PCS after Jan. 1, 2018. That could have a big effect on many military homeowners. The Senate bill also would dramatically cut housing allowances for dual-military couples and other military sharers of housing by many thousands of dollars a year.

The House bill does not make any changes to housing allowances.

Pay Raise

The House bill provides servicemembers the full pay raise allowed by law – the same 2.1 percent pay raise experienced by the average American (as measured by the Employment Cost Index).

The Senate bill accepted the administration’s proposal to cap the 2017 pay raise at 1.6 percent – which would be the fourth consecutive pay raise cutback.

Force Levels

The House bill increases force levels above the DoD budget request by 20,000 for the Army; 15,000 for Army National Guard; 10,000 for Army Reserve; 4,000 for the Air Force; and 3,000 for the Marine Corps, but reduces Navy forces by 4,500.

The Senate bill accepted all of the administration’s proposals to cut force levels, including reducing the Army to 450,000, down from a wartime peak of 570,000.

See MOAA’s side-by-side comparison of key House and Senate differences on these issues and more.

(Click on MOAA’s side-by-side comparison here or above to see the comparison. GF) 

 

What’s Next

Lawmakers and their staffs already have had initial meetings to start resolving differences between the two bills.

Senate Armed Services Committee chair John McCain (R-Ariz.) has said he wants to complete action on the defense bill as quickly as possible.

Your grassroots input is needed to help influence the process.

Please send your elected officials a MOAA-suggested message urging them to protect the military community against disproportional cuts to “people programs.”

Act Now!

 

(Click on MOAA-suggested message or on Act Now! here or above, or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send messages to our Legislators. GF) 

Issue 3. CONGRESS OFFERS LIMITED RELIEF FOR MILITARY SURVIVORS

 

June 24, 2016

 

The unfair deduction of VA Dependency Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities affects around 63,000 survivors.

 

Congress recognized the unfairness of the SBP-DIC offset and created the Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) in 2007 to begin phasing out the offset. The law authorizing SSIA (currently $270 monthly, rising to $310 for FY17) is set to expire in October 2017.

 

Both the Senate and House versions of the FY 2017 defense bill contain provisions extending SSIA, however, they come up short in addressing the repeal of the offset in a comprehensive way.

 

The House defense bill would extend SSIA for one year at $310 per month. The Senate bill would make SSIA permanent at $310 per month.

 

MOAA is grateful to both chambers for not letting SSIA expire. But we’re very disappointed neither bill would continue the incremental increases intended to phase out the SBP-DIC offset over time.

 

MOAA is not giving up on making more progress this year.

 

We’re working with Military Coalition partners to lobby top congressional leaders to identify additional mandatory spending offsets to help the Armed Services Committees make the SSIA upgrades we know they would like to do.

 

Please send your legislators a MOAA-suggested message to push senior Republican and Democratic leaders in both chambers to find the necessary funding for a multi-year schedule of SSIA increases for long-suffering SBP-DIC widows.

 

(Click on CONGRESS OFFERS LIMITED RELIEF FOR MILITARY SURVIVORS here  or above and then at the last sentence click on MOAA-suggested message or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send messages to our Legislators. GF) 

Here is the Process:  I recommend that you review all of the steps below and then you might want to copy this process by high lighting all of the steps below.  Then click on “File” at the top of your screen, select “Print“, then click on “Selection” at the next display and then hit “Print“; or print the selected portion as you usually do this kind of task.

 

1. Click here on http://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/or copy and paste it in your browser to put you at the  “Legislative Action Center” screen.
2. Scroll downunder “Current Action Alerts” and below “Congress” click on: Stop Defense Bill Personnel/Compensation Cuts the first time through this process, and click on Raise SSIA for Military Widows the second time through the process
3. 3.If applicable, at the next screen scroll down to the TAKE ACTION NOW! lineand enter or confirm your Zip code and /or hit “Go!”
4. 4. Orat that next screen under“COMPOSE MESSAGE” leave the “Message Recipients Delivery Method” as “Email” at your discretion, and then scroll down to “Issue Area” and select an appropriate issue; e.g. ‘Veteran affairs’
5. Scroll down to the  “Editable text” areaand edit/modify the text of the message if desired,
6. Insert “Your Closing” (I show ‘Respectfully), and “Your Name” and fill in the rest of the mandatory {asterisked} SENDER INFORMATION.
7. Fill in the “Guest Type“, “Service“, “Rank“, “Component“, and “Status” if you want that information to show in your message (recommended).  You may be prompted to include a phone numberif you try to send the message without entering your phone number. Don’t be concerned about entering a phone number. I haven’t  received return calls except on rare occasions to thank me for my interest in a particular piece of Legislation, at which time you can comment (pro or con) to the staff member on how the Senator stands on the issue.
8. Check “Remember Me” (recommended) if you don’t want to have to re-enter all of your Sender Information the next time you send a message. You can always change your information or uncheck ‘Remember Me’ anytime in the future.
9. Hit “Send Message”
10. If Printed Letter was selected at Step 4 above, at the screen after hitting “Send Message” leave “Plain Paper Style” and “Word Processor (RTF)” checked unless you have another preference. Then left click on “Print Letter(s)” at the end of the “PRINT LETTER” screen. At the File Download” alert that appears next, click on “Open”. You can then edit and print or save the letter for editing, printing, signing and mailing.
11. After hitting “Send Message”above the first time through this process, return to Step 2 above and click on Raise SSIA for Military Widows the second time through the process.

 

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That’s it for today- Thanks for your continuing help!

 

 

 

 

 

We have 1 Action Item today at Issue 3 below

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see DEFENSE BILL PASSES SENATE, FACES VETO THREAT White House has many objections to the defense bill. Despite a veto threat, Congress moves forward. See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

 

At Issue 2. we see COLA CLIMBS OUT OF THE HOLE  (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see WHY WHACK MILITARY HOUSING ALLOWANCES?. Servicemembers living together could see very significant cuts. In his June As I See It column, MOAA Director of Government Relations Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret), explains how the Senate’s controversial housing allowance plan could cost many servicemembers thousands of dollars a year. (See Issue 3 below for the details and send a message to our Legislators. GF)

At Issue 4. we see THE FUTURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY Chained-CPI COLA cut rears its head again. Commission proposes 50 recommendations to curb social security spending. (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

 

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

 

ISSUES

Issue 1.   DEFENSE BILL PASSES SENATE, FACES VETO THREAT

June 17, 2016

The Senate passed the FY17 Defense Authorization Bill (S. 2943) on Tuesday after hundreds of amendments fell victim to a Senate rule that lets one senator hold up all amendment action.

When Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) found his amendment (to prevent unlimited detention of US citizens with links to terrorism suspects) blocked, he raised objections to every other amendment, effectively stymying any further amendment action. That killed the chances for MOAA-supported amendments to upgrade force levels and the 2017 pay raise, delete proposed housing allowance cuts, expand concurrent receipt eligibility and more.

Armed Services Committee Chair Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) fumed on the Senate floor that one senator could kill much-needed amendments – including some he said were literally a matter of life and death – and called it a “shameful chapter” in Senate history.

Compounding the defense bill’s rocky road to enactment, the White House issued a statement last week citing a litany of objections it has to the Senate-passed bill, including provisions on pay and benefits.

TFL fees. In calling for changes to TRICARE, the statement said, “The Administration is disappointed that the legislation does not include a modest enrollment fee for TRICARE for Life.” In its budget request earlier in the year, the administration wanted to impose a fee up to 2 percent of retired pay for TFL beneficiaries.

Housing Allowances. The administration also objected to controversial changes to the basic allowance for housing (BAH) system, saying the changes would “return the allowance to its distorted state from the mid-1990s, and reinstitute a burdensome and inefficient administrative-authorization process.” The administration rightly noted changes to the structure of BAH “would disproportionately affect female service members and those military families in which both military members have chosen to serve their country.” (See MOAA’s views on this topic in this month’s “ As I See It” column.)

Military Health System Reform. The statement objected to plans in both the House and Senate bills that would place responsibility for military health care under the Defense Health Agency rather than leaving the services to manage their separate systems.

Commissary Privatization. The administration took issue with a proposal by the Senate Armed Services Committee to conduct a test of privatizing commissaries at up to five locations. That provision has since been dropped from the bill.

This is the eighth time the administration has threatened to veto the annual defense bill. But President Obama actually followed through on the threat only once.

So what comes next? Senate lawmakers now must work with their House counterparts to iron out hundreds of differences in their respective bills, including dramatically different provisions on TRICARE fee changes and housing allowance rates.

The timeline for completion of that considerable task could be anywhere from the end of July to the end of October…or later.

Issue 2. COLA CLIMBS OUT OF THE HOLE

 

June 17, 2016

The May CPI is 234.444, and .1 percent above the FY 2014 COLA baseline. Because there was not a positive COLA in FY 2015, the FY 2014 baseline is used.

The CPI for June 2016 is scheduled to be released on July 15, 2016.

Note: Military retiree COLA is calculated based on the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), not the overall CPI. Monthly changes in the index may differ from national figures reported elsewhere.

Related content: Retired Pay vs Active Duty Pay Adjustments

(Click on Retired Pay vs Active Duty Pay Adjustments here or above to see the details. GF)

Issue 3. WHY WHACK MILITARY HOUSING ALLOWANCES?

June 17, 2016

One of the most underreported but most significant changes in the Senate-passed version of the FY 2017 Defense Authorization Act (S. 2943) is the proposal to reform military housing allowances.

In justifying the proposal, Senate Armed Services Committee leaders called the current basic allowance for housing (BAH) system “bloated and ripe for abuse.”

This took MOAA by surprise, as the BAH system is the result of years of review, and the recent Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission recommended keeping it as is.

It seems the committee’s perspective on abuse focuses on situations where multiple servicemembers share housing costs, including married dual-military couples and other cohabitation or roommate arrangements.

The committee’s view is the BAH amount shouldn’t exceed the amount each individual servicemember actually spends on housing (mainly rent and utilities), and sharing housing while drawing the full BAH is abusing the system.

The committee’s solution is to require dividing each servicemember’s BAH rate by the number of servicemembers occupying the housing. For a married couple, both allowances would be halved. For four roommates of different grades, each would receive one-fourth of the grade-applicable BAH rate.

MOAA doesn’t agree with defining cohabitation as allowance abuse, and neither does DoD.

DoD’s March 2016 report to Congress on this topic reiterated the long-held Pentagon stance that BAH is an essential element of Regular Military Compensation (RMC), which is the military equivalent of a civilian salary.

“While some service members qualify for bonuses and special programs and some don’t, members’ RMC is standardized based on pay grade, length of service, and dependency status,” the report stated. “The Department believes it would be inappropriate to limit a member’s compensation by tying that compensation to actual expenses incurred for members stationed in the United States.”

When locality-based housing allowances first began in the 1980s, servicemembers did have to provide proof of their housing costs, and allowances were adjusted accordingly.

But DoD stopped that practice, in part because of the paperwork nightmare and in part because the reported costs couldn’t be independently validated but mostly in recognition of the above-stated belief it’s the servicemember’s business how he or she spends the allowance set for that location.

The Senate proposal to change that raises a number of important issues and would cut some servicemembers’ compensation so dramatically as to make all other pay changes pale in comparison.

For two majors married to each other stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, the proposal would cut the couple’s combined housing allowance by more than $17,000 a year. If they have one or more children, the loss would increase to almost $19,000. For higher-cost locations, the loss would be proportionally greater.

As Maj. (and MOAA member) Jessica Grassetti, USA, wrote us, “The insinuation that [she and her military spouse] are somehow a ‘two for one’ deal for the nation and that this should allow the government to discount our individually earned compensation is ridiculous. The proposed legislation’s message is, in effect, that my service is worth less than my unmarried counterpart’s of the same rank, simply because I happen to be married to another servicemember.”

If the servicemembers are of different grades, a new issue arises. An E-8 married to an E-5 with one child at Fort Bliss would lose a combined $15,000 a year. Further, their combined monthly BAH under this system would be $2,400 a year less than the rate payable to an E-8 with a civilian spouse.

The system would particularly penalize junior servicemembers who often room together to save money. Do we really want to penalize efforts to become more financially independent?

Let’s keep in mind, Congress just changed the military retirement system for new service entrants in a way that will depend far more on servicemembers’ own savings. Young troops don’t make that much, and one way they can save for retirement is to share housing.

The combination of the new retirement system and the Senate-proposed BAH system would require young troops to save more — and then penalize them for trying to do that.

Now let’s consider homeowners. The BAH system is based on locality rental costs and doesn’t account for homeownership. But homeowners still would have to report their actual housing costs.

Servicemembers who made large down payments or who kept a home from a previous assignment at the same locality would be penalized for having lower mortgage payments.

If a senior servicemember has managed to pay off a 15-year mortgage on a home, the new plan apparently would cut his or her BAH to a utilities-only amount. Is paying off a home really the kind of behavior we want to discourage? MOAA thinks not. And neither do DoD and service leaders.

It’s bad enough DoD and Congress already are three years into a five-year plan to cut all BAH rates by 5 percent, on top of a fourth consecutive year of capping the military pay raise below private-sector pay growth.

Adding a new proposal that would penalize large numbers of servicemembers an additional $10,000 a year or more is going several steps too far.

If you agree, please send your legislators a MOAA-suggested message  urging them to drop the Senate BAH reform proposal from the final FY 2017 Defense Authorization Act.

 

(Click on MOAA-suggested message here  or above, or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send messages to our Legislators. GF) 

 

Issue 4. THE FUTURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY

June 17, 2016

On June 9, the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC), a Washington think tank, released the recommendations of its chartered Commission on Retirement and Personal Savings, which examined whether Americans are meeting the financial retirement goals.

Former Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), a member of the 2010 Bowles-Simpson Commission that proposed a variety of dramatic cuts, and Mr. James Lockhart III, a former Director of the Federal Housing Agency, co-chaired the commission composed of 17 former public officials and experts in savings and retirement policy.

The commission was tasked to make recommendations on how to increase national savings, improve income security during retirement (including Social Security reforms), and guard against the potential costs of long-term care and the loss of income due to disability.

Fifty recommendations came out of the commission, including regulations harmonizing early-withdrawal rules for IRAs and 401(k)-type plans, ending subsidies that encourage the use of home equity for pre-retirement consumption, increasing the Social Security retirement age to reflect increases in life expectancy, and increasing the amount of income subject to Social Security taxes.

The commission also recommended linking Social Security cost of living adjustments to the chained Consumer Price Index (CPI) beginning in 2017.Many of the proposals make sense, but MOAA and virtually all other associations representing retirees have long opposed the chained CPI, which would depress annual COLAs to retired pay, Social Security, VA disability compensation, and other federal annuities by about 0.3 percent per year – which would compound to impose significant payment cuts over time.

Click here to see the commission’s full public report.

 

(Click on Click here here or above to see the report. GF) 

Here is the Process:  I recommend that you review all of the steps below and then you might want to copy this process by high lighting all of the steps below.  Then click on “File” at the top of your screen, select “Print“, then click on “Selection” at the next display and then hit “Print“; or print the selected portion as you usually do this kind of task.

 

1. Click here onhttp://www.capwiz.com/moaa/issues/ or copy and paste it in your browser to put you at the  “Legislative Action Center” screen.
2. Scroll downunder “Current Action Alerts” and below “Congress” click on: Prevent Steep Cuts in Military Housing Allowances
3. 3.If applicable, at the next screen scroll down to the TAKE ACTION NOW! lineand enter or confirm your Zip code and /or hit “Go!”
4. 4. Orat that next screen under“COMPOSE MESSAGE” leave the “Message Recipients Delivery Method” as “Email” at your discretion, and then scroll down to “Issue Area” and select an appropriate issue; e.g. ‘Veteran affairs’
5. Scroll down to the  “Editable text” areaand edit/modify the text of the message if desired,
6. Insert “Your Closing” (I show ‘Respectfully), and “Your Name” and fill in the rest of the mandatory {asterisked} SENDER INFORMATION.
7. Fill in the “Guest Type“, “Service“, “Rank“, “Component“, and “Status” if you want that information to show in your message (recommended).  You may be prompted to include a phone numberif you try to send the message without entering your phone number. Don’t be concerned about entering a phone number. I haven’t  received return calls except on rare occasions to thank me for my interest in a particular piece of Legislation, at which time you can comment (pro or con) to the staff member on how the Senator stands on the issue.
8. Check “Remember Me” (recommended) if you don’t want to have to re-enter all of your Sender Information the next time you send a message. You can always change your information or uncheck ‘Remember Me’ anytime in the future.
9. Hit “Send Message”
10. If Printed Letter was selected at Step 4 above, at the screen after hitting “Send Message” leave “Plain Paper Style” and “Word Processor (RTF)” checked unless you have another preference. Then left click on “Print Letter(s)” at the end of the “PRINT LETTER” screen. At the File Download” alert that appears next, click on “Open”. You can then edit and print or save the letter for editing, printing, signing and mailing.

—————————————————————————————————————————————

That’s it for today- Thanks for your continuing help!

We have 1 Action Item today at Issues 1 below

 

Summary of Issues

 

At Issue 1. we see LAST CHANCE TO SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS Several defense bill amendments stop the erosion of active duty pay and benefits. See Issue 1 below for the details and to send a message to our Senators. GF)

 

At Issue 2. we see PAY, BENEFITS, BUDGET AMENDMENTS HANG UP DEFENSE BILL.  Pay raise in doubt. Sequestration rears its ugly head and stymies progress on the defense bill, jeopardizing chances for a full military pay raise. (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see SENATE SCUTTLES COMMISSARY PRIVATIZATION. Senate leaders fend off privatizing commissary. According to a new DoD report, privatizing commissaries could “price them out of existence.” (See Issue 3 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 4. we see KEEP THE HOUSING ALLOWANCE INTACT. “Game-changing” provision would hurt military families. Two senators are waging a passionate fight against a controversial proposal to cut military housing allowances. (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 5. we see AMENDMENTS OF INTEREST. Defense bill talks drag out in the Senate. Hundreds of amendments continue to be introduced as lawmakers work on the defense bill. (See Issue 5 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

 

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

 

ISSUES

Issue 1.   LAST CHANCE TO SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS 

 

 

June 10, 2016

 

Several defense bill amendments stop the erosion of active duty pay and benefits. This is your LAST chance to send a MOAA-suggested message urging your senators to support these critical amendments.

 

(Click on LAST CHANCE TO SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS here  or above, or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send messages to our Senators. GF)

 

Issue 2. PAY, BENEFITS, BUDGET AMENDMENTS HANG UP DEFENSE BILL

June 10, 2016

Every year, Senate leaders want to get the annual defense bill finished early, but their success rate in recent years hasn’t been good.

This year, the Armed Services Committee finished drafting the bill and got it before the full Senate in record time.

But this “must pass” bill has attracted over 500 amendments on everything from Guantanamo detainees to the titles of Pentagon officials.

Two major amendments posed immediate challenges.

One offered by Committee chair Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) would add $18 billion to the overseas contingency operations (OCO), commonly referred to as the war-time account, to pay for a higher military pay raise and larger force levels, among other things. But some see this as a violation of last year’s budget agreement, and others have problems using the OCO account (which isn’t subject to budget limits) to get around spending caps.

Another amendment offered by Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member of the committee, would add another $18 billion to non-defense accounts. The rationale is sequestration required equal cuts in defense and non-defense spending, so any exception should apply equally to both.

These are contentious enough that leadership filed for cloture on both amendments, and neither amendment received the 60 votes needed to cut off debate, meaning that debate can continue indefinitely.

Because of this standoff, it appears the additional funds won’t be approved for either, mainly because of the general refusal of each party to allow a vote on the other party’s amendment.

In addition to these two amendments, senators had hundreds more to sort through. As a result, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) filed a cloture motion on the entire defense bill. The Friday morning vote succeeded 68-23.

Cloture usually limits not only debate time, but also puts restrictions on what kinds of amendments can be considered. In the past, this has meant limiting amendments to issues already covered in the bill, which could be used to block Sen. Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) concurrent receipt amendments, for example. In other cases, leaders have agreed to limit amendments to a specific number for each party.

It’s not an easy issue. MOAA wants a defense bill passed without having to wait until late in the year. But we also hope to get votes on important amendments on concurrent receipt, the military pay raise, and housing allowance changes, among others.

We’ll keep you posted.

Issue 3. SENATE SCUTTLES COMMISSARY PRIVATIZATION

 

June 10, 2016

The Senate Armed Services Committee’s version of the FY17 defense authorization act included a provision to test privatization of up to five commissaries, an effort repeatedly studied – and repeatedly discredited.

When the bill was brought to the full Senate floor, Sens. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) offered an amendment to remove the privatization plan. Thirty seven Senators cosponsored the amendment, and dozens of organizations – including MOAA – provided their support.

The amendment passed by a vote of 70-28.

The news comes as DoD released a report outlining a plan to reduce the reliance on tax dollars for the commissary and the exchange system.

Commissaries would need to increase prices by up to 27 percent to become viable options for private companies to take over. The increase would lead to a projected loss of over $2 billion in sales as patrons shop elsewhere.

The loss of revenue would mean commissaries would need to further increase prices, continuing until “the commissary system prices itself out of existence,” according to the report.

The report addressed past efforts to privatize the commissary system, along with the privatization of existing portions of the system like bakeries, delis, and sushi counters.

Previous attempts at privatization have been unsuccessful. According to DoD, “more than two-thirds of the commissaries serve military populations living in locations that are not profitable for private sector grocers.”

This reinforces a concern brought up by Mikulski, that under a pilot program, private grocers might cherry-pick the locations most likely to be profitable, which would prove the pilot to be successful, when it is not reflective of privatization of the entire system.

The report also reflects the intricacy of benefits tied to the defense resale system, including its relationship with MWR activities, employment for military family members, and scholarships for military children.

The report covered details on the variable pricing models that will be tested, and likely made permanent under the shared language in both the House and Senate versions of the FY17 defense bill.

DoD said it needs more time to discover if there are additional operations that can be privatized that would decrease cost and improve overall efficiency in delivering the benefit. DoD maintains that its first priority remains preserving the benefit for patrons, and closures and reduced savings do not meet that criteria.

MOAA members sent in thousands of messages to their senators opposing commissary privatization. We are grateful DoD and Congress recognized how important the commissary benefit is to the military community, and action to privatize the system is no longer an option in the defense bill.

Issue 4. KEEP THE HOUSING ALLOWANCE INTACT.

June 10, 2016

 

As reported in last week’s update, the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) surprised many when it proposed reducing housing benefits to troops in the FY17 defense bill. The SASC provision would allow servicemembers to receive only the actual cost for housing, rather than the housing stipend, which is based currently on rank, geographic location, and dependency status.  (Click on As reported in last week’s update here or above for the details. GF)

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) introduced an amendment striking the provision from the defense bill. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) joined with Murkowski on the senate floor on Thursday, supporting the effort to stop the cut to the housing benefit.

“The current allowance system strikes an appropriate balance in providing compensation to military members and assistance for their living expenses,” said Collins.

The SASC provision would also reduce the combined value of the housing allowances received by dual military couples and roommates. Servicemembers would receive the applicable housing allowance amount for his or her grade, divided by the number of servicemember occupants.

In her statement to Senate colleagues, Collins said, “women are five times more likely to be affected by this reduction in housing allowances than their male counterparts, this provision could have a profound implication for both recruitment and retention of our all-volunteer force and discourage our best and our brightest from staying in the service.”

Collins has been a consistent supporter of maintaining the military housing allowance, and fought to prevent a housing allowance cut in last year’s defense bill.

“Last year I spearheaded a successful movement to remove a similar provision from the fiscal year 2016 NDAA. I am disappointed to see that this proposal has resurfaced again this year. I am pleased to work with my colleague from Alaska [Murkowski] to remove a provision that I believe is both unfair and harmful,” Collins said.

“It is not like our military families don’t have enough to worry about. And that is over and above the anxiety that goes along with deployment,” said Murkowski. “These days they must worry about force structure reductions, frequent PCS moves, needing to understand the latest and greatest TRICARE complexities, and figuring out whether the old retirement paradigm or the new retirement paradigm is better…that just adds to the stress, adds to the anxiety.”

MOAA applauds Murkowski and Collins in their fight to remove this unfair and harmful provision.

 

Issue 5. AMENDMENTS OF INTEREST

June 10, 2016

 

There have been over 530 amendments introduced in the Senate, and although it is unlikely all of the amendments will come to a vote, there are several MOAA would like to see incorporated into the defense bill:

 

VA Benefits

 

Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY) submitted an amendment to authorize potential veterans’ benefits to Navy veterans who served onboard ships in the territorial waters of Vietnam during the conflict. Many of these veterans have contracted diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange, but they are denied service-related benefits from the VA due to an arbitrary and unfair limitation to veterans who served “boots on the ground” in Vietnam.

 

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) offered an amendment that would include reserve active duty for preplanned missions as qualifying service for GI Bill eligibility.

 

Survivor Benefit Plan 

 

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) introduced an amendment that would provide equal benefits under the Survivor Benefit Plan for families of Reserve Component members who die in the line of duty while performing inactive-duty training.

 

Veteran Status

 

Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) submitted an amendment that would grant veteran status to members of the Reserve Components who served a career of 20 years or more and are military retirees, but who through no fault of their own are not recognized by our government as “veterans.”

 

Spouse Employment

 

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) championed an amendment making DoD positions noncompetitive for military spouses after a permanent change of duty station.

 

Although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) limited defense bill debate by successfully filing a motion for cloture, MOAA urges the Senate to consider these important amendments.

Here is the Process:  I recommend that you review all of the steps below and then you might want to copy this process by high lighting all of the steps below.  Then click on “File” at the top of your screen, select “Print“, then click on “Selection” at the next display and then hit “Print“; or print the selected portion as you usually do this kind of task.

 

1. Click here onhttp://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/or copy and paste it in your browser to put you at the  “Legislative Action Center” screen.
2. Scroll downunder “Current Action Alerts” and below “Congress” click on: Support Key Defense Bill Amendments.
3. 3.If applicable, at the next screen scroll down to the TAKE ACTION NOW! lineand enter or confirm your Zip code and /or hit “Go!”
4. 4. Orat that next screen under“COMPOSE MESSAGE” leave the “Message Recipients Delivery Method” as “Email” at your discretion, and then scroll down to “Issue Area” and select an appropriate issue; e.g. ‘Veteran affairs’
5. Scroll down to the  “Editable text” areaand edit/modify the text of the message if desired,
6. Insert “Your Closing” (I show ‘Respectfully), and “Your Name” and fill in the rest of the mandatory {asterisked} SENDER INFORMATION.
7. Fill in the “Guest Type“, “Service“, “Rank“, “Component“, and “Status” if you want that information to show in your message (recommended).  You may be prompted to include a phone numberif you try to send the message without entering your phone number. Don’t be concerned about entering a phone number. I haven’t  received return calls except on rare occasions to thank me for my interest in a particular piece of Legislation, at which time you can comment (pro or con) to the staff member on how the Senator stands on the issue.
8. Check “Remember Me” (recommended) if you don’t want to have to re-enter all of your Sender Information the next time you send a message. You can always change your information or uncheck ‘Remember Me’ anytime in the future.
9. Hit “Send Message”
10. If Printed Letter was selected at Step 4 above, at the screen after hitting “Send Message” leave “Plain Paper Style” and “Word Processor (RTF)” checked unless you have another preference. Then left click on “Print Letter(s)” at the end of the “PRINT LETTER” screen. At the File Download” alert that appears next, click on “Open”. You can then edit and print or save the letter for editing, printing, signing and mailing.

—————————————————————————————————————————————

That’s it for today- Thanks for your continuing help!

 

 

 

 

 

We have 2 Action Items today at Issues 1 & 2  below

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS  Defense bill amendments needed to address pay and benefit inequities. (See Issue 1 below for the details and to send a message to our Senators. GF)

 

At Issue 2. we see SENATE PANEL: CURTAIL HOUSING ALLOWANCES. System “ripe for abuse”. Senate lawmakers proposed a significant allowance overhaul in its version of the FY 2017 Defense Authorization Bill. (See Issue 2 below for the details and to send a message to our Senators. GF)

At Issue 3. we see COMMISSARY PRIVATIZATION. Senate defense bill would test privatization.  Two senators want to stop the test. (See Issue 3 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 4. we see HOW DOES YOUR MILITARY HOSPITAL OR CLINIC MEASURE UP? Beneficiaries gain more information on their health care system. See how military medical facilities rank on access, results, and care quality. (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

 

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends – don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

 

ISSUES

Issue 1.  SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS 

Defense bill amendments needed to address pay and benefit inequities

Please send a MOAA-suggested message urging your senators to support them during Senate consideration next week.

(Click on SUPPORT KEY SENATE AMENDMENTS here  or above, or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send messages to our Senators. GF)

 

Issue 2. SENATE PANEL: CURTAIL HOUSING ALLOWANCES

June 3, 2016

Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) said the current military housing allowance system is “bloated and ripe for abuse” and proposed a significant allowance overhaul in its version of the FY 2017 Defense Authorization Bill (S. 2943).

This took MOAA by surprise, as last year’s Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission – whose findings the SASC used to push changes to retirement and health care – found no issues with the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) program.

Under the SASC proposal, members whose housing costs are less than their allowance would have the allowance reduced, beginning with the first relocation after Jan. 1, 2018.

More significantly, the SASC’s proposal would also reduce the combined value of the housing allowances received by dual military couples and roommates. In effect, each member would receive the applicable housing allowance amount for his or her grade, divided by the number of occupants.

Under federal law, BAH is a main component of Regular Military Compensation (RMC), which is earned by each individual servicemember. Congress worked diligently from the late 1990s through 2007 to strengthen the benefit and reduce the out of pocket expenses borne by servicemembers-which had risen above 20 percent in the past. In 2007, Congress achieved the goal of setting BAH at 100 percent of the median housing cost for each grade.

Under the SASC proposal, troops would only receive enough BAH to offset their actual housing costs and would have to provide proof of their rent and utilities costs.

In effect, this would return to a system used decades ago, when a locality-specific housing allowance was first introduced. After years of struggling with paperwork associated with actual housing costs and the natural tendency of servicemembers to adjust their housing decisions to increase their allowances, DoD and Congress abandoned the actual-cost system in favor of basing allowances on independent studies of housing costs by income for each locality.

MOAA disagrees with the SASC proposal, as do DoD leaders, for several reasons. First, it ignores the lessons of past problems with such a system. Second, it effectively penalizes servicemembers who marry other servicemembers rather than civilians. Finally, it raises problems with dealing with military vs. civilian roommates, and military roommates of different grades. Under the SASC proposal, four military roommates of different grades would each receive one-quarter of the BAH rate applicable to their grade.

MOAA and DoD both believe each servicemember should be entitled to the grade-applicable BAH in his or her own right, and it should be the member’s decision how to use that allowance, including election of military or civilian roommates, without requiring any Pentagon intrusion in those decisions.

Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) introduced MOAA-supported amendments to delete the SASC BAH changes when the defense bill comes before the full Senate for action next week.

Please use our special alert to send your senators a MOAA-suggested message.

(Click on SENATE PANEL: CURTAIL HOUSING ALLOWANCES here or above and then click on MOAA-suggested message at the end of the page or go to the “Here is the Process” section at the end of this Email to send a second messages to our Senators. GF)

Issue 3. COMMISSARY PRIVATIZATION

 

By: Brooke Goldberg Deputy Director, Government Relations. Click to read about the author. About the Author –  Commissary reform has been a long-time goal for many leaders. Last year, we evaded privatization and are still waiting for a congressionally mandated report on options for eliminating reliance on appropriated funds to operate the commissary.

This year, the House version of the FY 2017 Defense Authorization Bill (H.R. 4909) allows for a pilot program to change the pricing structure (variable pricing) at the commissary, with authorization to continue the new structure if it meets the right outcomes for patrons. The House also authorizes the Secretary of Defense to convert the commissaries to a non-appropriated fund activity (like the exchange system) if it can meet certain benchmarks for savings, quality and customer satisfaction, subject to Congressional oversight in the process.

The Senate draft of the defense bill (S. 2943) will be coming up for votes starting next week. Here is what you need to know about the Senate’s view of commissary reform:

• Price Structure – the Senate wants a pilot program to change the pricing structure similar to the House version. The Senate calls it alternative pricing.
• Funding– the Senate allows, but doesn’t require, the Secretary of Defense to transfer appropriated funds if benchmarks for savings, quality and customer satisfaction are not met (the House version requires it), nor does it require quarterly reports on meeting those benchmarks (the House version does).
• Oversight– the Senate does not require the Secretary of Defense to prove benchmarks of savings, quality, and customer satisfaction can be met prior to the conversion to a non-appropriated fund system.
• Privatization– the Senate wants a pilot program for privatizing the commissaries (not less than two years long at up to five commissaries) and may include a virtual component involving online orders and home delivery. 180 days after the conclusion of the pilot program, a report on the progress of meeting benchmarks for savings, quality and customer satisfaction would be required.

The following amendments have been offered to prevent erosion of the commissary benefit:

• Sens. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) introduced an amendment to eliminate the draft language allowing for a privatization pilot.
• Sen. Inhofe also introduced a separate amendment requiring a report on modifying the basic allowance for subsistence to offset the impacts of the price structure changes being introduced.

MOAA supports the House version of the bill that provides more Congressional oversight to ensure preservation of the benefit for patrons and flexibility to find the efficiencies that save taxpayers money. MOAA appreciates and supports Sens. Inhofe’s and Mikulski’s tireless commitment to preserving the commissary, which MOAA members consistently rank among the most important non-pay benefits.

Issue 4. HOW DOES YOUR MILITARY HOSPITAL OR CLINIC MEASURE UP?

June 03, 2016

The Military Health System (MHS), which includes the TRICARE program, is setting the course to be more open and visible to beneficiaries.

What does this mean?  Military beneficiaries will have access to more information about how military hospitals and clinics rate on selected measures of:

• patient satisfaction and access to care;
• health outcomes (information on surgical complications, etc.);
• patient safety; and
• quality of care.

This initiative stems from a 2014 review that concluded beneficiaries lacked information regarding system access, quality, and safety. In response, last year’s Defense Authorization Act directed DoD to keep beneficiaries informed about their health system.

The goal is to provide meaningful information for beneficiaries, ensure MHS leaders and staff understand the value and purpose of transparency, and highlight areas that need improvement.

MOAA survey results show variation in care and services has long been an issue in the MHS, and this initial effort is a step in the right direction.

The measures are accessible at www.health.mil/transparency. The site requires some exploring, as there are links to multiple reports.

(Click on www.health.mil/transparency here or above for the details. GF)

 

Here is the Process:  I recommend that you review all of the steps below and then you might want to copy this process by high lighting all of the steps below.  Then click on “File” at the top of your screen, select “Print“, then click on “Selection” at the next display and then hit “Print“; or print the selected portion as you usually do this kind of task.

 

1. Click here onhttp://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/or copy and paste it in your browser to put you at the  “Legislative Action Center” screen.
2. Scroll downunder “Current Action Alerts” and below “Congress” click on: Support Key Defense Bill Amendments the first time through the process, and on Military Spouse Re-licensure Assistance the second time through the process, .
3. 3.If applicable, at the next screen scroll down to the TAKE ACTION NOW! lineand enter or confirm your Zip code and /or hit “Go!”
4. 4. Orat that next screen under“COMPOSE MESSAGE” leave the “Message Recipients Delivery Method” as “Email” at your discretion, and then scroll down to “Issue Area” and select an appropriate issue; e.g. ‘Veteran affairs’
5. Scroll down to the  “Editable text” areaand edit/modify the text of the message if desired,
6. Insert “Your Closing” (I show ‘Respectfully), and “Your Name” and fill in the rest of the mandatory {asterisked} SENDER INFORMATION.
7. Fill in the “Guest Type“, “Service“, “Rank“, “Component“, and “Status” if you want that information to show in your message (recommended).  You may be prompted to include a phone numberif you try to send the message without entering your phone number. Don’t be concerned about entering a phone number. I haven’t  received return calls except on rare occasions to thank me for my interest in a particular piece of Legislation, at which time you can comment (pro or con) to the staff member on how the Senator stands on the issue.
8. Check “Remember Me” (recommended) if you don’t want to have to re-enter all of your Sender Information the next time you send a message. You can always change your information or uncheck ‘Remember Me’ anytime in the future.
9. Hit “Send Message”
10. If Printed Letter was selected at Step 4 above, at the screen after hitting “Send Message” leave “Plain Paper Style” and “Word Processor (RTF)” checked unless you have another preference. Then left click on “Print Letter(s)” at the end of the “PRINT LETTER” screen. At the File Download” alert that appears next, click on “Open”. You can then edit and print or save the letter for editing, printing, signing and mailing.
11. 11. Return to Step 2above and click onMilitary Spouse Re-licensure Assistance the second time through the process.

That’s it for today- Thanks for your continuing help!