Fairness for the Military Reserve Act of 1999

Summary: Directs the Secretary of Defense to prescribe regulations to allow the following persons to receive transportation on Department of Defense (DOD) aircraft on a space-available basis under the same terms and conditions that apply to members of the armed forces entitled to retired pay: (1) members of the Selected Reserve in good standing; (2) a former reserve member under 60 years of age who would be eligible for retired pay except for being under such age; and (3) dependents of the above. Limits the required identification for such travel.
Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations authorizing a reserve member traveling to inactive duty training at least 50 miles from home to be eligible for billeting (housing) in DOD facilities on the same basis as active-duty personnel traveling under orders away from such member's duty station. Requires proof of the reason for such travel.
Increases the maximum number of reserve retirement points that may be credited in a year for reserve service from 75 to 90 for years during and subsequent to the date of enactment of the Reserve Component Equity Act of 1999.
Authorizes the Secretary of the military department concerned to provide civil legal services to reserve personnel (and their dependents) not otherwise entitled to such services, but only during a period following a release from active duty under a call or order to such duty for more than 29 days under a mobilization authority that is not in excess of twice the length of the duty period served.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fairness for the Military Reserve 
Act of 1999''.

 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) There are approximately 1,382,000 members of the seven 
        reserve components of the Armed Forces (the Army Reserve, the 
        Army National Guard of the United States, the Naval Reserve, 
        the Marine Corps Reserve, the Air Force Reserve, the Air 
        National Guard of the United States, and the Coast Guard 
        Reserve).
            (2) During fiscal year 1998, reserve component members 
        performed 13,000,000 person-days of military duty, roughly 
        double the level performed during 1994 and the equivalent of 
        35,000 active component members.
            (3) Reserve component members are being called upon to 
        serve in a greater number of overseas peacekeeping, 
        humanitarian, and similar missions, and for longer periods of 
        time, than ever before in peacetime, as shown by the following:
                    (A) 8,338 reserve component personnel served in 
                Haiti during the period from September 1994 through 
                September 1999, constituting up to 6 percent of the 
                Armed Forces personnel participating in Operation 
                Support/Uphold Democracy during that period.
                    (B) 32,022 reserve component personnel served in 
                Bosnia during the period from December 1995 through 
                September 1999, constituting up to 33 percent of the 
                Armed Forces personnel participating in Operation Joint 
                Endeavor/Guard/Forge during that period, and in January 
                2000, an Army National Guard brigadier general will 
                assume command of Task Force Eagle in Tuzla, Bosnia-
                Herzegovina.
                    (C) 9,752 reserve component personnel served in 
                Iraq during the period from October 1997 through 
                September 1999, constituting up to 5 percent of the 
                Armed Forces personnel participating in Operation 
                Northern and Southern Watch during that period.
                    (D) 9,576 reserve component personnel served in 
                Kosovo during the period from April 1999 through 
                September 1999, constituting up to 22 percent of the 
                Armed Forces personnel participating in Operation 
                Allied Force during that period.
            (4) Recent reports and studies have noted the importance of 
        the reserve components, as shown by the following:
                    (A) The report of the Department of Defense 
                Quadrennial Defense Review conducted in 1997 stated 
                that ``Reserve components have become an ever larger 
                percentage of the Total Force and are essential 
                participants in the full spectrum of operations, from 
                the smallest of smaller-scale contingency operations to 
                major theater war . . . Reserve forces are part of all 
                war plans. No major operation can be successful without 
                them.''.
                    (B) The National Defense Panel, in its report 
                issued in 1997, called for the ``full integration'' of 
                the reserve components with active duty forces and 
                specifically called on the Army to rely more upon its 
                reserve components to ``reduce pressure on the active 
                Army''.
                    (C) The Reserve Component Employment 20005 Study, 
                issued on August 8, 1999, concludes that ``while much 
                progress has been made in recent years to ensure equity 
                in the benefit packages that are provided to AC [active 
                component] and RC [reserve component] personnel, the 
                study determined that disparities continue to exist for 
                RC personnel.''.
            (5) Secretary of Defense William Cohen has made ``quality 
        of life'' issues for all servicemembers a major priority for 
        the Department of Defense.
            (6) The significant recent increase in overseas active-duty 
        assignments for reserve component members warrants enhancement 
        of military benefits for the Nation's citizen soldiers.
            (7) Those enhancements should include--
                    (A) extending eligibility of reserve component 
                members for space available (``Space-A'') travel on 
                military aircraft to travel outside the continental 
                United States (``OCONUS'');
                    (B) providing for reserve component members 
                traveling away from their homes for inactive-duty 
                training to be eligible for billiting in military 
                quarters on the same basis as members on active duty;
                    (C) raising the annual reserve retirement point 
                maximum from 75 to 90; and
                    (D) extending the legal services provided by the 
                Department of Defense to reserve component members.

SEC. 3. TRAVEL BY RESERVES ON MILITARY AIRCRAFT OUTSIDE CONTINENTAL 
              UNITED STATES.

    (a) Space-Required Travel for Travel to Duty Stations OCONUS.--(1) 
Subsection (a) of section 18505 of title 10, United States Code, as 
added by section 517(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 2000 (Public Law 106-65), is amended--
            (A) by inserting ``annual training duty or'' before 
        ``inactive-duty training'' both places it appears; and
            (B) by inserting ``duty or'' before ``training if''.
    (2) The heading of such section is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 18505. Reserves traveling to annual training duty or inactive-
              duty training OCONUS: authority for space-required 
              travel''.
    (b) Space-Available Travel for Members of Selected Reserve and Gray 
Area Retirees.--Chapter 1805 of such title is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section:
``Sec. 18506. Space-available travel: Selected Reserve and reserve 
              retirees under age 60; dependents
    ``(a) Eligibility for Space-Available Travel.--The Secretary of 
Defense shall prescribe regulations to allow persons described in 
subsection (b) to receive transportation on aircraft of the Department 
of Defense on a space-available basis under the same terms and 
conditions (including terms and conditions applicable to travel outside 
the United States) as apply to members of the armed forces entitled to 
retired pay.
    ``(b) Persons Eligible.--Subsection (a) applies to the following 
persons:
            ``(1) A person who is a member of the Selected Reserve in 
        good standing (as determined by the Secretary concerned).
            ``(2) A person who is a member or former member of a 
        reserve component under age 60 who, but for age, would be 
        eligible for retired pay under chapter 1223 of this title.
    ``(c) Dependents.--A dependent of a person described in subsection 
(b) may be provided transportation under this section on the same basis 
as dependents of members of the armed forces entitled to retired 
pay.''.
    ``(d) Limitation on Required Identification.--Neither the 
``Authentication of Reserve Status for Travel Eligibility'' form (DD 
Form 1853), nor or any other form, other than the presentation of 
military identification and duty orders upon request, or other methods 
of identification required of active duty personnel, shall be required 
of reserve component personnel using space-available transportation 
within or outside the continental United States.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is 
amended by striking the item relating to section 18505 and inserting 
the following new items:

``18505. Reserves traveling to annual training duty or inactive-duty 
                            training OCONUS: authority for space-
                            required travel.
``18506. Space-available travel: Selected Reserve and reserve retirees 
                            under age 60; dependents.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--Regulations under section 18506 of title 10, 
United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall be prescribed not 
later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. BILLETING SERVICES FOR RESERVE MEMBERS TRAVELING FOR INACTIVE 
              DUTY TRAINING.

    (a) In General.--(1) Chapter 1217 of title 10, United States Code, 
is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 12604. Attendance at inactive-duty training assemblies: 
              billeting in Department of Defense facilities
    ``(a) Authority for Billeting on Same Basis as Active Duty Members 
Traveling Under Orders.--The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe 
regulations authorizing a Reserve traveling to inactive duty training 
at a location more than 50 miles from that Reserve's home to be 
eligible for billeting in Department of Defense facilities on the same 
basis as a member of the armed forces on active duty who is traveling 
under orders away from the member's duty station.
    ``(b) Proof of Reason for Travel.--The Secretary shall include in 
regulations under subsection (a) means for establishing that a Reserve 
seeking billeting in Department of Defense facilities under that 
subsection is traveling for attendance at inactive duty training at a 
location more than 50 miles from that Reserve's home.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is 
amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``12604. Attendance at inactive-duty training assemblies: billeting in 
                            Department of Defense facilities.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--Section 12604 of title 10, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall apply with respect to periods of 
inactive duty training beginning more than 180 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. INCREASE IN MAXIMUM NUMBER OF RESERVE RETIREMENT POINTS THAT 
              MAY BE CREDITED IN ANY YEAR.

    Section 12733(3) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``but not more than'' and all that follows and inserting ``but 
not more than--
                    ``(A) 60 days in any one year of service before the 
                year of service that includes September 23, 1996;
                    ``(B) 75 days in the year of service that includes 
                September 23, 1996, and in any subsequent year of 
                service before the year of service that includes the 
                date of the enactment of the Reserve Component Equity 
                Act of 1999; and
                    ``(C) 90 days in the year of service that includes 
                the date of the enactment of the Reserve Component 
                Equity Act of 1999 and in any subsequent year of 
                service.''.

 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY FOR PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES TO RESERVE COMPONENT 
              MEMBERS FOLLOWING RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY.

    (a) Legal Services.--Section 1044(a) of title 10, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (5); and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new 
        paragraph (4):
            ``(4) Members of a reserve component not covered by 
        paragraph (1) or (2), but only during a period, following a 
        release from active duty under a call or order to active duty 
        for more than 29 days under a mobilization authority (as 
        determined by the Secretary of Defense), that is not in excess 
        of twice the length of time served on active duty.''.
    (b) Dependents.--Paragraph (5) of such section, as amended by 
subsection (a), is amended by striking ``and (3)'' and inserting ``, 
and (4)''.
    (c) Implementing Regulations.--Regulations to implement the 
amendments made by subsections (a) and (B) shall be prescribed not 
later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.