As an active member of AMVETS and a supporter of our armed forces, I am urging your support for all of our national guard and reserve troops by moving S. 491, the Honor America's Guard-Reserve Retirees Act of 2011, out of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and to the floor for a full vote.
This cost neutral bill, which would not bestow any additional benefits,
would authorize veteran status for national guard and reserve members who are entitled to a reserve retirement at age 60, but were never called to active federal service (Title 10) during their careers.
Drill training, annual training, active duty for training and Title 32, including border patrol duty are currently not qualifying service to earn veteran status.
These individuals, currently designated as military retirees, are
already entitled to military retired pay, TRICARE health coverage and many other veterans' benefits and therefore deserve to be recognized as veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States.
While H.R.1025, the House version of this bill, was passed a year ago this week, the SVAC has been unable to move this bill forward. With Veterans Day fast approaching, now is the time to urge your colleagues on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee to expeditiously move this bill forward and to support its passage into law. Our career national guard and reserve members deserve nothing less.
George Bixby
Greenwood
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to viewpoints@capegazette.com. All letters are considered at the discretion of the newsroom and published as space allows. Due to the large volume of submissions, we cannot acknowledge receipt of each submission. Letters must include a phone number and address for verification. Keep letters to 400 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content or length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Letters should focus on local issues, not national topics or personalities. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days regarding a particular topic. Authors may submit a second letter within that time period if it pertains to a different issue. Letters may not be critical of personalities or specific businesses. Criticism of public figures is permissible. Endorsement letters for political candidates are no longer accepted. Letters must be the author’s original work, and may not be generated by artificial intelligence tools. Templates, form letters and letters containing language similar to other submissions will not be published.
