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H.R.1779 - The Guardsmen and Reservists Financial Relief Act of 2003
April 21, 2004
I would like to express my strong support for H.R. 1779, the Guardsmen and Reservists Financial Relief Act of 2003. This bill would allow penalty-free withdrawals from retirement plans during the period that a military reservist or national guardsman is called to active duty for an extended period.
It is now more important than ever to work to mitigate the financial hardship we are placing on our reservists. At the outset of Operation Iraqi Freedom, both the White House and Department of Defense spoke of swiftly achieving victory in Iraq and bringing our servicemembers home within a few short months.
Despite the valorous efforts of our military personnel, it is clear that we are facing a very different picture. According to DoD, stabilizing and ultimately winning the peace in Iraq will require the mobilization of at least 100,000 to 150,000 reserve component personnel annually for the next several years! Reserve component personnel comprise nearly 40% of our current force, whereas they only comprised 20% of the initial force used in the invasion.
In light of the tragic upsurge in violence over the last month, 20,000 soldiers recently learned that their year-long deployments to Iraq had been extended for an additional 3 months. Nearly one-fourth are reservists.
It is apparent that our success in Iraq and Afghanistan, and in the broader war on terrorism, is dependent on the continued commitment of our reservists. And I don’t think we are doing enough right now to ensure that they are being adequately compensated for their sacrifice.
According to GAO, nearly 41% of reservists are impacted by a pay discrepancy between his or her military and civilian salary. This IS taking its toll. Not only are families racking up credit card debt, falling behind on bills, and losing businesses, but many are grappling with not re-enlisting when their service is up.
And the fear of financial hardship may be hurting recruiting efforts. In 2003, every active and reserve component achieved its recruiting goals except the Army National Guard, which fell short of its recruiting goal by 7,798 (12.6%).
We must begin to alleviate the financial burden on reservists, and I believe this bill is an important step in the right direction. However, it is not enough. Simply allowing our reservists to raid their retirement is not the answer.
We MUST provide better re-enlistment bonuses, we MUST secure the extension of TRICARE benefits, we MUST secure the continuation of hazardous duty pay and family separation allowance, and we MUST continue to push for pay raises for our military families. In short, we MUST do everything in our power to compensate our Guardsmen and Reservists for their unprecedented sacrifice.
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