II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4044 

To improve the provision of financial literacy training and information relating 

to the Blended Retirement System to members of the Armed Forces, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2020 

Mrs. MURRAY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To improve the provision of financial literacy training and 

information relating to the Blended Retirement System 

to members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Re-open Enrollment 

5 for Servicemembers to Opt-in to Updated Retirement 

6 Choice for Enduring Security Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘RE7 SOURCES Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO FINANCIAL LITERACY TRAIN2 ING. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 992 of 

4 title 10, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ‘‘grade E– 

6 4’’ and inserting ‘‘grade E–6’’; 

7 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(5) In carrying out the program to provide training 

10 under this subsection, the Secretary concerned shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) require the development of a standard cur12 riculum across all military departments for such 

13 training that— 

14 ‘‘(i) focuses on ensuring that members of 

15 the armed forces who receive such training de16 velop proficiency in financial literacy rather 

17 than focusing on completion of training mod18 ules; 

19 ‘‘(ii) is based on best practices in the fi20 nancial services industry, such as the use of a 

21 social learning approach and the incorporation 

22 of elements of behavioral economics or 

23 gamification; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) is designed to address the needs of 

25 members and their families; 

26 ‘‘(B) ensure that such training— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is conducted by a financial services 

2 counselor who is qualified as described in para3 graph (3) of subsection (b) or by other means 

4 as described in paragraph (2)(A)(ii) of that 

5 subsection; 

6 ‘‘(ii) is provided, to the extent prac7 ticable— 

8 ‘‘(I) in a class held in person with 

9 fewer than 50 attendees; or 

10 ‘‘(II) one-on-one between the member 

11 and a financial services counselor or a 

12 qualified representative described in sub13 clause (III) or (IV) of subsection 

14 (b)(2)(A)(ii); and 

15 ‘‘(iii) is provided using computer-based 

16 methods only if methods described in clause (ii) 

17 are impractical or unavailable; 

18 ‘‘(C) ensure that— 

19 ‘‘(i) an in-person class described in sub20 paragraph (B)(i)(I) is available to the spouse of 

21 a member; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) if a spouse of a member is unable to 

23 attend such a class in person— 

24 ‘‘(I) training is available to the spouse 

25 through Military OneSource; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) the member is informed during 

2 the in-person training of the member 

3 under subparagraph (B)(i) with respect to 

4 how the member’s spouse can access the 

5 training; and 

6 ‘‘(D) ensure that such training, and all docu7 ments and materials provided in relation to such 

8 training, are presented or written in manner that 

9 the Secretary determines can be understood by the 

10 average enlisted member.’’. 

11 (b) QUALIFIED REPRESENTATIVES FOR COUNSELING

12 FOR MEMBERS AND SPOUSES.—Subsection (b)(2)(A)(ii) 

13 of such section is amended by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(IV) Through qualified representatives of 

16 banks or credit unions operating on military in17 stallations pursuant to an operating agreement 

18 with the Department of Defense or a military 

19 department.’’. 

20 (c) PROVISION OF RETIREMENT INFORMATION.— 

21 Such section is further amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 

23 subsections (e) and (g), respectively; and 

24 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol25 lowing new subsection (d): 


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1 ‘‘(d) PROVISION OF RETIREMENT INFORMATION.—In 

2 each training under subsection (a) and in each meeting 

3 to provide counseling under subsection (b), a member of 

4 the armed forces shall be provided with— 

5 ‘‘(1) all forms relating to retirement that are 

6 relevant to the member, including with respect to the 

7 Thrift Savings Plan; 

8 ‘‘(2) information with respect to how to find ad9 ditional information; and 

10 ‘‘(3) contact information for— 

11 ‘‘(A) counselors provided through— 

12 ‘‘(i) the Personal Financial Counselor 

13 program, the Personal Financial Manage14 ment program, or Military OneSource; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) nonprofit organizations or agen16 cies that have in effect agreements with 

17 the Department of Defense to provide fi18 nancial services counseling; or 

19 ‘‘(B) qualified representatives of banks or 

20 credit unions operating on military installations 

21 pursuant to an operating agreement with the 

22 Department of Defense or a military depart23 ment.’’. 

24 (d) ADVISORY COUNCIL ON FINANCIAL READI25 NESS.—Such section is further amended by inserting after 


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1 subsection (e), as redesignated by subsection (c)(1), the 

2 following new subsection: 

3 ‘‘(f) ADVISORY COUNCIL ON FINANCIAL READI4 NESS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an 

6 Advisory Council on Financial Readiness (in this 

7 section referred to as the ‘Council’). 

8 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall con10 sist of 12 members appointed by the Secretary 

11 of Defense, as follows: 

12 ‘‘(i) Three shall be representatives of 

13 military support organizations. 

14 ‘‘(ii) Three shall be representatives of 

15 veterans service organizations. 

16 ‘‘(iii) Three shall be representatives of 

17 private, nonprofit organizations with a 

18 vested interest in education and commu19 nication of financial education and finan20 cial services. 

21 ‘‘(iv) Three shall be representatives of 

22 governmental entities with a vested inter23 est in education and communication of fi24 nancial education and financial services. 


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1 ‘‘(B) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Secretary 

2 shall appoint members to the Council from 

3 among individuals qualified to appraise military 

4 compensation, military retirement, and financial 

5 literacy training. 

6 ‘‘(C) TERMS.—Members of the Council 

7 shall serve for terms of three years, except that, 

8 of the members first appointed— 

9 ‘‘(i) five shall be appointed for terms 

10 of one year; 

11 ‘‘(ii) five shall be appointed for terms 

12 of two years; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) five shall be appointed for terms 

14 of three years. 

15 ‘‘(D) REAPPOINTMENT.—A member of the 

16 Council may be reappointed for additional 

17 terms. 

18 ‘‘(E) VACANCIES.—Any member appointed 

19 to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration 

20 of the term of office for which such member’s 

21 predecessor was appointed shall be appointed 

22 only for the remainder of such term. 

23 ‘‘(3) DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS.—The Council 

24 shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) advise the Secretary with respect to 

2 matters relating to the financial literacy and fi3 nancial readiness of members of the armed 

4 forces; and 

5 ‘‘(B) submit to the Secretary recommenda6 tions with respect to those matters. 

7 ‘‘(4) MEETINGS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara9 graph (B), the Council shall meet not less fre10 quently than twice each year and at such other 

11 times as the Secretary requests. 

12 ‘‘(B) DURING ELECTION PERIOD FOR

13 BLENDED RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—During the 

14 period beginning on the date of the enactment 

15 of the Re-open Enrollment for Servicemembers 

16 to Opt-in to Updated Retirement Choice for 

17 Enduring Security Act of 2020 and ending at 

18 the end of the period provided for under section 

19 1409(b)(4) and 12739(f) to elect to be enrolled 

20 in the Blended Retirement System, the Council 

21 shall meet not less frequently than every 90 

22 days. 

23 ‘‘(C) QUORUM.—A majority of members 

24 shall constitute a quorum and action shall be 


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1 taken only by a majority vote of the members 

2 present and voting. 

3 ‘‘(5) SUPPORT SERVICES.—The Secretary— 

4 ‘‘(A) shall provide to the Council an execu5 tive secretary and such secretarial, clerical, and 

6 other support services as the Council considers 

7 necessary to carry out the duties of the Council; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(B) may request that other Federal agen10 cies provide statistical data, reports, and other 

11 information that is reasonably accessible to as12 sist the Council in the performance of the du13 ties of the Council. 

14 ‘‘(6) COMPENSATION.—While away from their 

15 homes or regular places of business in the perform16 ance of services for Council, members of the Council 

17 shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem 

18 in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as per19 sons employed intermittently in the Government 

20 service are allowed expenses under section 5703 of 

21 title 5. 

22 ‘‘(7) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not less frequently 

23 than annually, the Secretary shall submit to Con24 gress a report that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) describes each recommendation re2 ceived from the Council during the preceding 

3 year; and 

4 ‘‘(B) includes a statement, with respect to 

5 each such recommendation, of whether the Sec6 retary has implemented the recommendation 

7 and, if not, a description of why the Secretary 

8 has not implemented the recommendation. 

9 ‘‘(8) TERMINATION.—Section 14(a) of the Fed10 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) (relat11 ing to termination) shall not apply to the Council. 

12 ‘‘(9) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

13 ‘‘(A) MILITARY SUPPORT ORGANIZA14 TION.—The term ‘military support organiza15 tion’ means an organization that provides sup16 port to members of the armed forces and their 

17 families with respect to education, finances, 

18 health care, employment, and overall well-being. 

19 ‘‘(B) VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZA20 TION.—The term ‘veterans service organization’ 

21 means any organization recognized by the Sec22 retary for the representation of veterans under 

23 section 5902 of title 38.’’. 

24 (e) FINANCIAL SERVICES COUNSELING RELATING TO

25 LOANS FROM MILITARY WELFARE SOCIETIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A military welfare society 

2 may not provide to a member of the armed forces 

3 a loan unless the member receives financial services 

4 counseling provided by the society or through coun5 selors provided by the Armed Forces not later than 

6 60 days after receiving the loan. 

7 (2) WAIVER.—The Secretary of Defense may, 

8 under regulations the Secretary shall prescribe, 

9 waive the requirement to receive financial services 

10 counseling under paragraph (1) if extenuating cir11 cumstances make receiving such counseling impos12 sible. 

13 (3) MILITARY WELFARE SOCIETY DEFINED.—In 

14 this paragraph, the term ‘‘military welfare society’’ 

15 has the meaning given that term in section 1033(b) 

16 of title 10, United States Code. 

17 (f) REPORT ON EFFECTIVENESS OF FINANCIAL

18 SERVICES COUNSELING.—Not later than 3 years after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense 

20 shall submit to the congressional defense committees (as 

21 defined in section 101 of title 10, United States Code) 

22 a report on financial literacy training and financial serv23 ices counseling provided under section 992 of title 10, 

24 United States Code, as amended by this section, that as25 sesses— 


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1 (1) the effectiveness of such training and coun2 seling, which shall be determined using actual local3 ized data similar to the Unit Risk Inventory Survey 

4 of the Army; and 

5 (2) whether additional training or counseling is 

6 necessary for enlisted members of the Armed Forces 

7 or for officers. 

8 SEC. 3. MODIFICATIONS TO LUMP SUM PAYMENTS OF CER9 TAIN RETIRED PAY. 

10 (a) SPOUSAL CONSENT TO LUMP SUM PAYMENT.— 

11 Subsection (b) of section 1415 of title 10, United States 

12 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(7) SPOUSAL CONSENT FOR ELECTION OF

14 LUMP SUM PAYMENT.—An eligible person who is 

15 married may not elect to receive a lump sum pay16 ment under this subsection without the concurrence 

17 of the person’s spouse, unless the eligible person es18 tablishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary con19 cerned— 

20 ‘‘(A) that the spouse’s whereabouts cannot 

21 be determined; or 

22 ‘‘(B) that, due to exceptional cir23 cumstances, requiring the person to seek the 

24 spouse’s consent would otherwise be inappro25 priate.’’. 


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1 (b) DISCLOSURES RELATING TO OFFER OF LUMP

2 SUM PAYMENT.—Such section is further amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub4 section (g); and 

5 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol6 lowing new subsections: 

7 ‘‘(e) DISCLOSURES RELATING TO OFFER OF LUMP

8 SUM PAYMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days be10 fore offering an eligible person a partial or full lump 

11 sum payment under this section, the Secretary of 

12 Defense shall provide a notice to the person, and the 

13 person’s spouse, if married, that includes the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(A) A description of the available retire16 ment benefit options, including— 

17 ‘‘(i) the monthly covered retired pay 

18 that the person would receive after the per19 son attains retirement age if the person is 

20 not already receiving such pay; 

21 ‘‘(ii) the monthly covered retired pay 

22 that the person would receive if payments 

23 begin immediately; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) the amount of the lump sum 

25 payment the person would receive if the 


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1 person elects to receive the lump sum pay2 ment. 

3 ‘‘(B) An explanation of how the amount of 

4 the lump sum payment was calculated, includ5 ing the interest rate and mortality assumptions 

6 used in the calculation, and whether any addi7 tional benefits were included in the amount. 

8 ‘‘(C) A description of how the option to 

9 take the lump sum payment compares to the 

10 value of the covered retired pay the person 

11 would receive if the person elected not to take 

12 the lump sum payment. 

13 ‘‘(D) A statement of whether, by pur14 chasing a commercially available annuity using 

15 the lump sum payment, it would be possible to 

16 replicate the stream of payments the person 

17 would receive if the person elected not to take 

18 the lump sum payment. 

19 ‘‘(E) A description of the potential implica20 tions of accepting the lump sum payment, in21 cluding possible benefits and reductions in such 

22 benefits, investment risks, longevity risks, and 

23 loss of protection from creditors. 

24 ‘‘(F) A description of the tax implications 

25 of accepting the lump sum payment, including 


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1 rollover options, early distribution penalties, 

2 and associated tax liabilities. 

3 ‘‘(G) Instructions for how to accept or re4 ject the offer of the lump sum payment and the 

5 date by which the person is required to accept 

6 or reject the offer. 

7 ‘‘(H) Contact information for the person to 

8 obtain more information or ask questions about 

9 the option to accept the lump sum payment, in10 cluding the opportunity for a one-on-one meet11 ing with a counselor provided through the Per12 sonal Financial Counselor program or the Per13 sonal Financial Management program. 

14 ‘‘(I) A statement that— 

15 ‘‘(i) financial advisers (other than fi16 nancial services counselors provided 

17 through the Personal Financial Counselor 

18 program or the Personal Financial Man19 agement program) may not be required to 

20 act in the best interests of the person or 

21 the person’s beneficiaries with respect to 

22 determining whether to take the lump sum 

23 payment; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) if the person or a beneficiary of 

25 the person is seeking financial advice from 


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1 a financial adviser not affiliated with the 

2 armed forces, the person or beneficiary 

3 should obtain written confirmation that the 

4 adviser is acting as a fiduciary to the per5 son or beneficiary. 

6 ‘‘(J) Such other information as the Sec7 retary considers to be necessary or relevant. 

8 ‘‘(2) FORM.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

9 any notice provided to an eligible person under para10 graph (1)— 

11 ‘‘(A) is written in manner that the Sec12 retary determines can be understood by the av13 erage enlisted member of the armed forces; and 

14 ‘‘(B) is presented in a manner that is not 

15 biased for or against acceptance of the offer of 

16 the lump sum payment. 

17 ‘‘(f) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than one year 

18 after the date of the enactment of the Re-open Enrollment 

19 for Servicemembers to Opt-in to Updated Retirement 

20 Choice for Enduring Security Act of 2020, and annually 

21 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional 

22 defense committees report that— 

23 ‘‘(1) sets forth the number of members of the 

24 armed forces who take a partial or full lump sum 

25 payment under this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) describes the details of the arrangements 

2 relating to taking such a payment, including— 

3 ‘‘(A) whether members have taken a par4 tial lump sum payment in exchange for reduced 

5 future benefits; 

6 ‘‘(B) whether members have taken a full 

7 lump sum payment; and 

8 ‘‘(C) information relating to the members 

9 who have taken a partial or full lump sum pay10 ment, such as the age and rank of such mem11 bers.’’. 

12 SEC. 4. ADDITIONAL ELECTION PERIOD FOR BLENDED RE13 TIREMENT SYSTEM. 

14 (a) ADDITIONAL ELECTION PERIOD FOR MEMBERS

15 OF UNIFORMED SERVICES.—Section 1409(b)(4) of title 

16 10, United States Code, is amended— 

17 (1) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting 

18 the following new subparagraph (A): 

19 ‘‘(A) REDUCED MULTIPLIER FOR FULL

20 TSP MEMBERS.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

22 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), in the case of 

23 a member described in clause (ii) (referred 

24 to as a ‘full TSP member’)— 


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1 ‘‘(I) paragraph (1)(A) shall be 

applied by substituting ‘2’ for ‘21 2 ⁄2’; 

3 ‘‘(II) clause (i) of paragraph 

4 (3)(B) shall be applied by substituting 

5 ‘60 percent’ for ‘75 percent’; and 

6 ‘‘(III) clause (ii)(I) of such para7 graph shall be applied by substituting 

‘2’ for ‘21 8 ⁄2’. 

9 ‘‘(ii) FULL TSP MEMBERS.—A mem10 ber described in this clause is— 

11 ‘‘(I) a member who first becomes 

12 a member of the uniformed services 

13 on or after January 1, 2018; 

14 ‘‘(II) a member described in sub15 paragraph (B) who makes the election 

16 described in that subparagraph; or 

17 ‘‘(III) a member who made the 

18 election described in subparagraph 

19 (B), as in effect on the day before the 

20 date of the enactment of the Re-open 

21 Enrollment for Servicemembers to 

22 Opt-in to Updated Retirement Choice 

23 for Enduring Security Act of 2020.’’; 

24 (2) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting 

25 the following new subparagraph (B): 


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1 ‘‘(B) ELECTION TO PARTICIPATE IN MOD2 ERNIZED RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—Pursuant to 

3 subparagraph (C), a member of a uniformed 

4 service serving on December 31, 2017, who has 

5 served in the uniformed services for fewer than 

6 12 years as of the date selected by the Sec7 retary of Defense under subparagraph (C)(i)(I), 

8 may elect, in exchange for the reduced multi9 pliers described in subparagraph (A) for pur10 poses of calculating the retired pay of the mem11 ber, to receive Thrift Savings Plan contribu12 tions pursuant to section 8440e(e) of title 5.’’; 

13 (3) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking ‘‘the pe14 riod’’ and all that follows and inserting that fol15 lowing: ‘‘the period that— 

16 ‘‘(I) begins on a date selected by 

17 the Secretary of Defense, which— 

18 ‘‘(aa) may be not earlier 

19 than the date that is one year 

20 after date of the enactment of 

21 the Re-open Enrollment for 

22 Servicemembers to Opt-in to Up23 dated Retirement Choice for En24 during Security Act of 2020, and 

25 not later than the date that is 


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1 two years after such date of en2 actment; and 

3 ‘‘(bb) shall be the same as 

4 the date selected under section 

5 12739(f)(2)(B)(i)(I)(aa); and 

6 ‘‘(II) ends on the date that is 

7 180 days after the date selected under 

8 subclause (I).’’; 

9 (4) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as sub10 paragraph (F); and 

11 (5) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol12 lowing new subparagraph (E): 

13 ‘‘(E) SPECIAL RULES RELATING SECOND

14 ELECTION PERIOD.—The Secretary concerned 

15 shall— 

16 ‘‘(i) to the extent practicable, provide 

17 to each member described in subparagraph 

18 (B) (and the member’s spouse, if mar19 ried)— 

20 ‘‘(I) a class, to be held in person 

21 and with fewer than 50 attendees, on 

22 the Blended Retirement System and 

23 the differences between that system 

24 and the predecessor retirement sys25 tem; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) financial counseling de2 scribed in section 992(b) focused on 

3 the suitability of the Blended Retire4 ment System in the context of the 

5 member’s personal circumstances; 

6 ‘‘(ii) require each such member to 

7 make the election described in subpara8 graph (B) or decline to make that election; 

9 ‘‘(iii) document the decision of the 

10 member under clause (ii) in a statement 

11 that describes the features of the Blended 

12 Retirement System and of the predecessor 

13 retirement system; and 

14 ‘‘(iv) have the member (and the mem15 ber’s spouse, if married) sign the state16 ment described in clause (iii) to acknowl17 edge understanding of those features.’’. 

18 (b) ADDITIONAL ELECTION PERIOD FOR MEMBERS

19 OF RESERVE COMPONENTS.—Section 12739(f) of title 10, 

20 United States Code, is amended— 

21 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

22 following new paragraph (1): 

23 ‘‘(1) REDUCED MULTIPLIER FOR FULL TSP

24 MEMBERS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sub2 section (a) or (c), in the case of a person de3 scribed in subparagraph (B) (referred to as a 

4 ‘full TSP member’)— 

5 ‘‘(i) subsection (a)(2) shall be applied 

by substituting ‘2 percent’ for ‘21 6 ⁄2 per7 cent’; 

8 ‘‘(ii) subparagraph (A) of subsection 

9 (c)(2) shall be applied by substituting ‘60 

10 percent’ for ‘75 percent’; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) subparagraph (B)(ii) of such 

12 subsection shall be applied by substituting 

‘2 percent’ for ‘21 13 ⁄2 percent’. 

14 ‘‘(B) FULL TSP MEMBERS.—A person de15 scribed in this subparagraph is— 

16 ‘‘(i) a person who first performs re17 serve component service on or after Janu18 ary 1, 2018, after not having performed 

19 regular or reserve component service on or 

20 before that date; 

21 ‘‘(ii) a person described in paragraph 

22 (2)(A) who makes the election described in 

23 that paragraph; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) a person who made the election 

25 described in paragraph (2)(A), as in effect 


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1 on the day before the date of the enact2 ment of the Re-open Enrollment for 

3 Servicemembers to Opt-in to Updated Re4 tirement Choice for Enduring Security Act 

5 of 2020.’’; 

6 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

7 (A) by striking subparagraph (A) and in8 serting the following new subparagraph (A): 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to subpara10 graph (B), a person performing reserve compo11 nent service on December 31, 2017, who has 

12 performed fewer than 12 years of service as of 

13 the date selected by the Secretary of Defense 

14 under subparagraph (B)(i)(I) (as computed in 

15 accordance with section 12733 of this title), 

16 may elect, in exchange for the reduced multi17 pliers described in paragraph (1) for purposes 

18 of calculating the retired pay of the person, to 

19 receive Thrift Savings Plan contributions pur20 suant to section 8440e(e) of title 5.’’; 

21 (B) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking 

22 ‘‘the period’’ and all that follows and inserting 

23 that following: ‘‘the period that— 

24 ‘‘(I) begins on a date selected by 

25 the Secretary of Defense, which— 


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1 ‘‘(aa) may be not earlier 

2 than the date that is one year 

3 after date of the enactment of 

4 the Re-open Enrollment for 

5 Servicemembers to Opt-in to Up6 dated Retirement Choice for En7 during Security Act of 2020, and 

8 not later than the date that is 

9 two years after such date of en10 actment; and 

11 ‘‘(bb) shall be the same as 

12 the date selected under section 

13 1409(b)(4)(C)(i)(I)(aa); and 

14 ‘‘(II) ends on the date that is 

15 180 days after the date selected under 

16 subclause (I).’’; 

17 (3) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para18 graph (4); and 

19 (4) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol20 lowing new paragraph (3): 

21 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES RELATING SECOND ELEC22 TION PERIOD.—The Secretary concerned shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) to the extent practicable, provide to 

24 each person described in paragraph (2)(A) (and 

25 the person’s spouse, if married)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a class, to be held in person and 

2 with fewer than 50 attendees, on the 

3 Blended Retirement System and the dif4 ferences between that system and the pred5 ecessor retirement system; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) financial counseling described in 

7 section 992(b) focused on the suitability of 

8 the Blended Retirement System in the con9 text of the person’s personal cir10 cumstances; 

11 ‘‘(B) require each such person to make the 

12 election described in paragraph (2)(A) or de13 cline to make that election; 

14 ‘‘(C) document the decision of the member 

15 under subparagraph (B) in a statement that de16 scribes the features of the Blended Retirement 

17 System and of the predecessor retirement sys18 tem; and 

19 ‘‘(D) have the member (and the member’s 

20 spouse, if married) sign the statement described 

21 in subparagraph (C) to acknowledge under22 standing of those features.’’. 

23 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 8440(e)(1) 

24 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and 

2 inserting a semicolon; 

3 (2) in subparagraph (B)— 

4 (A) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘has’’ and in5 serting ‘‘had’’; 

6 (B) by striking clause (iii) and inserting 

7 the following new clause (iii): 

8 ‘‘(iii) made the election described in 

9 section 1409(b)(4)(B) or 12729(f)(2) of 

10 title 10, as in effect before the date of the 

11 enactment of the Re-open Enrollment for 

12 Servicemembers to Opt-in to Updated Re13 tirement Choice for Enduring Security Act 

14 of 2020, to receive Thrift Savings Plan 

15 contributions under this subsection in ex16 change for the reduced multipliers de17 scribed in section 1409(b)(4)(A) or 

18 12739(f)(1) of title 10, as applicable and 

19 so in effect, for purposes of calculating the 

20 retired pay of the member; or’’; and 

21 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(C) who— 

23 ‘‘(i) first entered a uniformed service 

24 before January 1, 2018; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) has completed fewer than 12 

2 years of service in the uniformed services 

3 as of the date selected by the Secretary of 

4 Defense under sections 

5 1409(b)(4)(C)(i)(I)(aa) and 

6 12739(f)(2)(B)(i)(I)(aa); and 

7 ‘‘(iii) makes the election described in 

8 section 1409(b)(4)(B) or 12729(f)(2) of 

9 title 10 to receive Thrift Savings Plan con10 tributions under this subsection in ex11 change for the reduced multipliers de12 scribed in section 1409(b)(4)(A) or 

13 12739(f)(1) of title 10, as applicable, for 

14 purposes of calculating the retired pay of 

15 the member.’’. 

16 (d) TRAINING OF CERTAIN OFFICERS.—The Sec17 retary of Defense shall ensure that each member of the 

18 armed forces in pay grade E–9 or below or in pay grade 

19 O–6 or below receives training with respect to the features 

20 of the Blended Retirement System, without regard to 

21 whether the members is eligible to make an election be22 tween the Blended Retirement System and the predecessor 

23 retirement system, so that member is able to answer the 

24 questions of other members if necessary. 


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1 SEC. 5. REPORT ON IMPROVED ACCESS TO THRIFT SAV2 INGS PLAN. 

3 Not later than 18 months after the date of the enact4 ment of this Act, the Federal Retirement Thrift Invest5 ment Board shall submit to Congress a plan for improving 

6 the access of members of the Armed Forces to information 

7 about the Thrift Savings Plan that— 

8 (1) takes into account the time likely to pass 

9 between the mailing of account information to a 

10 member of the Armed Forces and the time the mem11 ber is likely to receive the information; and 

12 (2) makes recommendations for statutory 

13 changes necessary to improve such access. 

14 SEC. 6. REGULATIONS. 

15 The Secretary of Defense may prescribe such regula16 tions as are necessary to carry out the amendments made 

17 by this section. 

Æ 


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