The Defense Bill Deal - Compromises Senate - House Bill
ARRA News Service - House and Senate Armed Services Committee leaders broke an impasse and agreed to move forward on a modified, pre-coordinated version of the FY 2015 defense authorization bill. The end result is a mixed bag. Also, The Hill reported, that "Buried deep into the 2015 defense authorization bill is a measure to establish a commission for studying the creation of a national women's history museum. ... The package also includes a public lands bills that add new wilderness designations and create new national parks. The measure to establish the commission requires the group to submit a report within 18 months to Congress and the president on building a women's history museum." How did the compromise address military pay, BAH, and TRICARE pharmacy fees? Read the following analysis by MOAA.
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Military Officers Association of America (MOAA): House and Senate Armed Services Committee leaders broke an impasse and agreed to move forward on a modified, pre-coordinated version of the FY 2015 defense authorization bill.
The compromise bill authorizes $577.1 billion in spending for national defense, including $63.7 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations.
The most divisive issues of the defense bill centered on whether to increase servicemembers out-of-pocket housing expenses and increase TRICARE pharmacy copays. The Senate pushed to include many of the administration’s proposals while the House resisted. In the end, the House and Senate agreed to implement a portion of these cuts.
“With time running out, it would have been easy for the House to just cave to the Senate,” stated Vice Adm. Norb Ryan, USN (Ret), President of the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). “However, House negotiators helped blunt the blow to military families and retired beneficiaries.”
“We’re relieved that Congress was able to put aside political differences and work towards a bipartisan solution to ensure that a defense bill was completed for a 53rd consecutive year,” said Ryan.
The House passed the bill on December 4 by a 300-119 margin. The Senate plans to vote on the measure early next week.
Here’s what we know about key issues in the compromise bill:
Military Pay Raise: the compromise omitted a critical provision that would have guaranteed service members a 1.8 percent pay raise in accordance with private sector wage growth. Without that protection, the President’s executive authority will set the 2015 military pay raise at 1 percent. This is the second consecutive year of capped active duty pay.
Basic Allowance for Housing: instead of a proposed 5 percent decrease in servicemembers’ housing allowance over three years, the final bill includes a 1 percent decrease in FY 2015 with no further decrease in future years.
TRICARE: the bill rejects administration proposals to consolidate TRICARE Prime and Standard and implement a means-tested TRICARE for Life (TFL) enrollment fee. It expands the mandatory mail-order requirement for maintenance medications to all TRICARE beneficiaries. TFL beneficiaries are already required to use the mail-order pharmacy or an MTF to refill maintenance medications. Starting in FY 2016 all TRICARE beneficiaries will enter this pilot program.
TRICARE Rx Fees: pharmacy copays will see a one time, $3 increase for many retail and mail-order prescriptions instead of the Pentagon’s proposal that would have doubled or tripled current rates over 10 years. Negotiators were able to keep the generic mail-order prescriptions at no cost to beneficiaries. [The Pharmacy Rate Fees Charts!]
Military Sexual Assault: Includes more than 15 provisions that further strengthen measures to combat sexual assault in the military.
Special and Incentive Pays: Provides a one year extension to several special and incentive pays.
COLA: Extends full COLA protection to servicemembers entering service through January 1, 2016. New service entrants were not protected when cuts to military retirement COLAs were repealed in March 2014.
SBP Special Needs Trust: In a major win for military families, survivors will now be permitted to designate SBP to a Special Needs Trust for adult dependent children. Previously, SBP payments were prohibited from being paid into a trust. This resulted in disabled dependent children becoming ineligible for needs-based government aid because of SBP income. This became a significant hardship for military families and caregivers.
“Roll over” Reserve Retirement: extends 90 day early Guard/Reserve retirement credit over two fiscal years. Previously, time served on active duty spanning two fiscal years was not fully counted.
BRAC: prohibits the Pentagon from initiating another round of BRAC.
Next year promises to be even more uncertain with sequestration returning and the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission scheduled to report out in February. House and Senate negotiators cited readiness concerns as a reason for cutting BAH and capping military pay. This suggests further attempts to cut pay and benefits could be considered in the FY 2016 budget.
Although sequestration places DoD in a difficult position we should not balance the budget on the backs of the very people who bear the burden of security for this nation and who have given so much over the last 13 years.
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MOAA is the nation's largest and most influential association of military officers. It is an independent, nonprofit, politically nonpartisan organization. Members are active duty, retired, National Guard, Reserve, former commissioned officers, and warrant officers of the uniformed services - Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Tags: Defense Bill deal, House and Senate Armed Services Committee, agreed to move forward, a modified, pre-coordinated version, FY 2015 defense authorization bill, military, pay, benefits, more federal land acquisitions, National Womens Museum To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
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The compromise bill authorizes $577.1 billion in spending for national defense, including $63.7 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations.
The most divisive issues of the defense bill centered on whether to increase servicemembers out-of-pocket housing expenses and increase TRICARE pharmacy copays. The Senate pushed to include many of the administration’s proposals while the House resisted. In the end, the House and Senate agreed to implement a portion of these cuts.
“With time running out, it would have been easy for the House to just cave to the Senate,” stated Vice Adm. Norb Ryan, USN (Ret), President of the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). “However, House negotiators helped blunt the blow to military families and retired beneficiaries.”
“We’re relieved that Congress was able to put aside political differences and work towards a bipartisan solution to ensure that a defense bill was completed for a 53rd consecutive year,” said Ryan.
The House passed the bill on December 4 by a 300-119 margin. The Senate plans to vote on the measure early next week.
Here’s what we know about key issues in the compromise bill:
Military Pay Raise: the compromise omitted a critical provision that would have guaranteed service members a 1.8 percent pay raise in accordance with private sector wage growth. Without that protection, the President’s executive authority will set the 2015 military pay raise at 1 percent. This is the second consecutive year of capped active duty pay.
Basic Allowance for Housing: instead of a proposed 5 percent decrease in servicemembers’ housing allowance over three years, the final bill includes a 1 percent decrease in FY 2015 with no further decrease in future years.
TRICARE: the bill rejects administration proposals to consolidate TRICARE Prime and Standard and implement a means-tested TRICARE for Life (TFL) enrollment fee. It expands the mandatory mail-order requirement for maintenance medications to all TRICARE beneficiaries. TFL beneficiaries are already required to use the mail-order pharmacy or an MTF to refill maintenance medications. Starting in FY 2016 all TRICARE beneficiaries will enter this pilot program.
TRICARE Rx Fees: pharmacy copays will see a one time, $3 increase for many retail and mail-order prescriptions instead of the Pentagon’s proposal that would have doubled or tripled current rates over 10 years. Negotiators were able to keep the generic mail-order prescriptions at no cost to beneficiaries. [The Pharmacy Rate Fees Charts!]
Military Sexual Assault: Includes more than 15 provisions that further strengthen measures to combat sexual assault in the military.
Special and Incentive Pays: Provides a one year extension to several special and incentive pays.
COLA: Extends full COLA protection to servicemembers entering service through January 1, 2016. New service entrants were not protected when cuts to military retirement COLAs were repealed in March 2014.
SBP Special Needs Trust: In a major win for military families, survivors will now be permitted to designate SBP to a Special Needs Trust for adult dependent children. Previously, SBP payments were prohibited from being paid into a trust. This resulted in disabled dependent children becoming ineligible for needs-based government aid because of SBP income. This became a significant hardship for military families and caregivers.
“Roll over” Reserve Retirement: extends 90 day early Guard/Reserve retirement credit over two fiscal years. Previously, time served on active duty spanning two fiscal years was not fully counted.
BRAC: prohibits the Pentagon from initiating another round of BRAC.
Next year promises to be even more uncertain with sequestration returning and the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission scheduled to report out in February. House and Senate negotiators cited readiness concerns as a reason for cutting BAH and capping military pay. This suggests further attempts to cut pay and benefits could be considered in the FY 2016 budget.
Although sequestration places DoD in a difficult position we should not balance the budget on the backs of the very people who bear the burden of security for this nation and who have given so much over the last 13 years.
-------------
MOAA is the nation's largest and most influential association of military officers. It is an independent, nonprofit, politically nonpartisan organization. Members are active duty, retired, National Guard, Reserve, former commissioned officers, and warrant officers of the uniformed services - Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Tags: Defense Bill deal, House and Senate Armed Services Committee, agreed to move forward, a modified, pre-coordinated version, FY 2015 defense authorization bill, military, pay, benefits, more federal land acquisitions, National Womens Museum To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
Posted by Bill Smith at 4:30 PM - Post Link
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