III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 340 

Opposing legislation mandating the registration of women for the Selective 

Service System. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 5, 2021 

Mr. LEE (for himself, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. LANKFORD, Mr. HAWLEY, Mr. DAINES, 

and Mr. WICKER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 

to the Committee on Armed Services 

RESOLUTION 

Opposing legislation mandating the registration of women 

for the Selective Service System. 

Whereas clause 12 of section 8 of article I of the Constitution 

of the United States empowers Congress with the responsibility to ‘‘raise and support Armies’’; 

Whereas the Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C. 3801 

et seq.) provides authority to the President to require the 

registration of male citizens of the United States, between the ages of 18 and 26, for the Selective Service 

System; 

Whereas, when a draft for training and service in the Armed 

Forces has commenced under the Military Selective Service Act, the primary function for drafted men is to replace front line combatants after casualty losses; 


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2 

•SRES 340 IS 

Whereas, in Rostker v. Goldberg, 453 U.S. 57 (1981), the 

Supreme Court of the United States upheld the all-male 

draft as constitutional and held that Congress had ‘‘determined that any future draft, which would be facilitated 

by the registration scheme, would be characterized by a 

need for combat troops’’; 

Whereas, in 2015, nearly all combat positions in the all-volunteer force within the Armed Forces became open to 

any woman as long as the woman could meet certain 

physical fitness requirements; 

Whereas only a small subset of women are able to meet the 

physical fitness requirements for combat roles, and physical disadvantages between men and women often result 

in excessive fatigue and more frequent injuries to women; 

Whereas the Ground Combat Element Integrated Task Force 

within the United States Marine Corps found that the 

musculoskeletal rate of injury for a woman was nearly 

twice the rate of injury for a man, and research at the 

Infantry Training Battalion found that the rate of injury 

for an enlisted woman was 6 times the rate of injury for 

a man; 

Whereas the results of United States Marine Corps research 

led General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., a former commandant of the United States Marine Corps, to seek an 

exemption to ensure certain Marine combat roles were 

only available to men; 

Whereas all members of Congress should have the opportunity to review the rationale provided by General 

Dunford for requesting the exemption; 


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3 

•SRES 340 IS 

Whereas, in 2018, the United States Army replaced the gender-separate Army Physical Fitness Test with the gender-neutral Army Combat Fitness Test; 

Whereas United States Army data has demonstrated a fail 

rate ranging between 65 percent and 84 percent for 

women and between 10 percent and 30 percent for men 

on the Army Combat Fitness Test since its inception; 

and 

Whereas mandating the registration of women for the Selective Service System has the potential to unduly increase 

the fatality and injury risks of women in the United 

States and hinder combat unit readiness in battle: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the 

2 Senate should not pass legislation mandating the registra3 tion of women for the Selective Service System. 

Æ 


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