II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2791 

To enhance the benefits and protections for members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces who are called or ordered to extended active 

duty, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2004 

Mr. DASCHLE (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. LEAHY, Mrs. 

LINCOLN, Mr. CORZINE, Mr. AKAKA, Mr. DORGAN, Mr. PRYOR, Mr. 

JOHNSON, and Mr. REID) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To enhance the benefits and protections for members of 

the reserve components of the Armed Forces who are 

called or ordered to extended active duty, 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 ‘‘National Guard and 

5 Reserve Bill of Rights Act of 2004’’. 
2 

•S 2791 IS 

1 SEC. 2. PERIODS OF DEPLOYMENTS OF RESERVES OVER2 SEAS. 

3 (a) UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND DEPLOY4 MENTS.— 

5 (1) LIMITATION.—During a period when there 

6 is in effect a policy of assigning units or members 

7 of one or more of the active components of the 

8 Armed Forces to duty in the area of responsibility 

9 of the United States Central Command for a speci10 fied period of time of not less than one year, the 

11 Secretary of Defense shall provide that the length of 

12 such an assignment in the case of members of the 

13 reserve components of the Armed Forces may not 

14 exceed the length of such period for the cor15 responding active component reduced by the period 

16 of time between the date of entry of the reserve com17 ponent members onto active duty and the date of the 

18 deployment of such members for such assignment. 

19 (2) TRANSITION.—Paragraph (1) applies to 

20 members of reserve components assigned to duty in 

21 the area of responsibility of the United States Cen22 tral Command on or after the date of the enactment 

23 of this Act and to such members assigned to such 

24 duty before such date who as of the date of the en25 actment of this Act have more than 90 days remain26 ing in such assignment. 
3 

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1 (b) COMMUNICATION OF LENGTHS OF DEPLOYMENT

2 PERIODS TO RESERVES IN OPERATION IRAQI FREE3 DOM.— 

4 (1) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following 

5 findings: 

6 (A) Members of all components of the 

7 Armed Forces, active and reserve, exhibit a re8 markable commitment and willingness to serve 

9 their country in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 

10 other United States military efforts around the 

11 world and, in doing so, frequently face grave 

12 risks and difficulties. 

13 (B) While the members of the Armed 

14 Forces have clearly and consistently dem15 onstrated their dedication to duty, much uncer16 tainty has arisen among them about the lengths 

17 of their deployments and when they will be re18 turned to their loved ones. This confusion im19 pairs our troops’ morale and places undue 

20 strain on their families and their civilian em21 ployers. 

22 (C) Fairness to the men and women of the 

23 Armed Forces deployed overseas requires that 

24 the Department of Defense— 
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1 (i) have clear policies regarding 

2 lengths of deployment periods; and 

3 (ii) communicate these policies and 

4 other deployment-related information to 

5 them and their families. 

6 (D) While many military units were de7 ployed months before Operation Iraqi Freedom 

8 was launched on March 19, 2003, the Depart9 ment of Defense did not announce a policy 

10 about the length of deployments until August 

11 2003. 

12 (E) Even after the Department of Defense 

13 issued its so-called ‘‘one year boots-on-the14 ground’’ policy regarding lengths of deployment 

15 periods, many of the members of units deployed 

16 overseas in Operation Iraqi Freedom learned 

17 shortly before their scheduled return dates that 

18 their deployments would be extended for 

19 months beyond the one-year period provided 

20 under that policy. 

21 (2) REPORT.— 

22 (A) REQUIREMENT FOR REPORT.—Not 

23 later than March 1, 2005, the Secretary of De24 fense shall submit to the Committees on Armed 

25 Services of the Senate and the House of Rep-
5 

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1 resentatives a report on Department of Defense 

2 policies governing the length of deployment pe3 riods applicable to members of reserve compo4 nents of the Armed Forces in connection with 

5 Operation Iraqi Freedom, and on the commu6 nication between the Department of Defense 

7 and reserve component personnel and their 

8 families regarding the length of the deployment 

9 periods. 

10 (B) CONSULTATION REQUIREMENT.—In 

11 preparing the report under this section the Sec12 retary shall consult with the Chairman and 

13 other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and 

14 with such other officials as the Secretary con15 siders appropriate. 

16 (C) CONTENT.—The report under this 

17 paragraph shall contain a discussion of the 

18 matters described in subparagraph (A), includ19 ing the following matters: 

20 (i) The process by which the Depart21 ment of Defense determined its policy re22 garding the length of deployment periods. 

23 (ii) The reason that no such policy 

24 was in place before Operation Iraqi Free25 dom began. 
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1 (iii) A comparison of the policy during 

2 Operation Iraqi Freedom with Department 

3 of Defense deployment policies that applied 

4 to previous contingency operations. 

5 (iv) The timeliness of the process for 

6 notifying reserve component units for acti7 vation. 

8 (v) The process for communicating 

9 with activated reserve component members 

10 and their families about demobilization 

11 schedules. 

12 (vi) The family support programs pro13 vided by the National Guard and other re14 serve components for families of activated 

15 Reserves. 

16 (vii) An assessment of lessons learned 

17 about how the increased operations tempo 

18 of the National Guard and other reserve 

19 components can be expected to affect read20 iness, recruitment and retention, civilian 

21 employers of Reserves, and equipment and 

22 supply resources of the National Guard 

23 and the other reserve components. 

24 (D) MATTERS FOR PARTICULAR EMPHA25 SIS.—In the discussion of the matters included 
7 

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1 in the report under this subsection, the Sec2 retary of Defense shall place particular empha3 sis on— 

4 (i) lessons learned, including defi5 ciencies identified; and 

6 (ii) near-term and long-term correc7 tive actions to address the identified defi8 ciencies. 

9 (E) FORM OF REPORT.—The report shall 

10 be submitted in unclassified form, but may in11 clude a classified annex. 

12 SEC. 3. MILITARY PAY. 

13 (a) CORRECTION OF PAY PROBLEMS FOR ACTIVATED

14 RESERVE COMPONENT PERSONNEL.— 

15 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR SENIOR LEVEL AC16 TION.—The Secretary of the Army shall designate a 

17 senior level official of the Department of the Army 

18 to implement— 

19 (A) the recommendations for executive ac20 tion set forth in the report of the Comptroller 

21 General of the United States entitled ‘‘Military 

22 Pay, Army National Guard Personnel Mobilized 

23 to Active Duty Experienced Significant Pay 

24 Problems’’, dated November 2003; and 
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1 (B) the recommendations for executive ac2 tion set forth in the report of the Comptroller 

3 General of the United States entitled ‘‘Military 

4 Pay, Army Reserve Soldiers Mobilized to Active 

5 Duty Experienced Significant Pay Problems’’, 

6 dated August 2004. 

7 (2) SUPERVISION BY COMPTROLLER OF DE8 PARTMENT OF DEFENSE.—The official designated 

9 under paragraph (1) shall report directly to, and be 

10 subject to the direction of, the Under Secretary of 

11 Defense (Comptroller) regarding performance of the 

12 duties that the official is designated to carry out 

13 under such paragraph. 

14 (3) TERMINATION OF REQUIREMENT.—The 

15 designation under paragraph (1) shall terminate 

16 upon the certification of the Under Secretary of De17 fense (Comptroller) to Congress that all rec18 ommendations referred to in such paragraph have 

19 been implemented. 

20 (b) REENLISTMENT BONUS FOR SELECTED RE21 SERVE.— 

22 (1) EXPANDED ELIGIBILITY.—Subsection (a)(1) 

23 of section 308b of title 37, United States Code, is 

24 amended by striking ‘‘14 years’’ and inserting ‘‘17 

25 years’’. 
9 

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1 (2) INCREASED MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—Sub2 section (b) of such section is amended by striking 

3 ‘‘(b) BONUS AMOUNT; PAYMENT.—(1) The amount 

4 of a bonus under this section may not exceed—’’ 

5 and all that follows through the end of paragraph 

6 (1) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) BONUS AMOUNT.—The amount of a bonus 

8 under this section may not exceed $10,000.’’. 

9 (3) OPTION TO RECEIVE LUMP-SUM PAY10 MENT.—Section 308b of title 37, United States 

11 Code, is further amended— 

12 (A) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) of 

13 subsection (c); and 

14 (B) in paragraph (2) of subsection (b)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘(2) Any bonus payable 

16 under this section’’ and inserting the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(c) PAYMENT IN LUMP SUM OR INSTALLMENTS.— 

19 (1) A bonus payable to a member under this section shall 

20 be paid, upon the election of the member, in one lump 

21 sum or in partial payments under paragraph (2). 

22 ‘‘(2) Any bonus payable in partial payments under 

23 this section’’. 

24 (4) REDESIGNATION OF PROVISIONS.—Such 

25 section is further amended— 
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1 (A) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), 

2 and (f), as subsections (e), (f), and (g), respec3 tively; and 

4 (B) in subsection (c)(3)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘(3) In the case of’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘(d) PERSONNEL IN CER7 TAIN CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS.—In the 

8 case of’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)(B) 

10 or’’. 

11 SEC. 4. TRICARE FOR RESERVE COMPONENT PERSONNEL. 

12 (a) EXPANDED ELIGIBILITY OF READY RESERVE

13 MEMBERS UNDER TRICARE PROGRAM.— 

14 (1) UNCONDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY.—Subsection 

15 (a) of section 1076b of title 10, United States Code, 

16 is amended by striking ‘‘is eligible, subject to sub17 section (h), to enroll in TRICARE’’ and all that fol18 lows through ‘‘an employer-sponsored health benefits 

19 plan’’ and inserting ‘‘, except for a member who is 

20 enrolled or is eligible to enroll in a health benefits 

21 plan under chapter 89 of title 5, is eligible to enroll 

22 in TRICARE, subject to subsection (h)’’. 

23 (2) PERMANENT AUTHORITY.—Subsection (l) of 

24 such section is repealed. 
11 

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1 (3) CONFORMING REPEAL OF OBSOLETE PROVI2 SIONS.—Such section is further amended— 

3 (A) by striking subsections (i) and (j); and 

4 (B) by redesignating subsection (k) as sub5 section (i). 

6 (b) CONTINUATION OF NON-TRICARE HEALTH

7 BENEFITS PLAN COVERAGE FOR CERTAIN RESERVES

8 CALLED OR ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY AND THEIR DE9 PENDENTS.— 

10 (1) REQUIRED CONTINUATION.— 

11 (A) REQUIREMENT.—Chapter 55 of title 

12 10, United States Code, is amended by insert13 ing after section 1078a the following new sec14 tion: 

15 ‘‘§ 1078b. Continuation of non-TRICARE health bene16 fits plan coverage for dependents of cer17 tain Reserves called or ordered to active 

18 duty 

19 ‘‘(a) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS.—The Secretary con20 cerned shall pay the applicable premium to continue in 

21 force any qualified health benefits plan coverage for the 

22 members of the family of an eligible reserve component 

23 member for the benefits coverage continuation period if 

24 timely elected by the member in accordance with regula25 tions prescribed under subsection (j). 
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1 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE MEMBER; FAMILY MEMBERS.—(1) A 

2 member of a reserve component is eligible for payment of 

3 the applicable premium for continuation of qualified 

4 health benefits plan coverage under subsection (a) while 

5 serving on active duty pursuant to a call or order issued 

6 under a provision of law referred to in section 

7 101(a)(13)(B) of this title during a war or national emer8 gency declared by the President or Congress. 

9 ‘‘(2) For the purposes of this section, the members 

10 of the family of an eligible reserve component member in11 clude only the member’s dependents described in subpara12 graphs (A), (D), and (I) of section 1072(2) of this title. 

13 ‘‘(c) QUALIFIED HEALTH BENEFITS PLAN COV14 ERAGE.—For the purposes of this section, health benefits 

15 plan coverage for the members of the family of a reserve 

16 component member called or ordered to active duty is 

17 qualified health benefits plan coverage if— 

18 ‘‘(1) the coverage was in force on the date on 

19 which the Secretary notified the reserve component 

20 member that issuance of the call or order was pend21 ing or, if no such notification was provided, the date 

22 of the call or order; 

23 ‘‘(2) on such date, the coverage applied to the 

24 reserve component member and members of the fam25 ily of the reserve component member; and 
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1 ‘‘(3) the coverage has not lapsed. 

2 ‘‘(d) APPLICABLE PREMIUM.—The applicable pre3 mium payable under this section for continuation of health 

4 benefits plan coverage for the family members of a reserve 

5 component member is the amount of the premium payable 

6 by the member for the coverage of the family members. 

7 ‘‘(e) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The total amount that the 

8 Department of Defense may pay for the applicable pre9 mium of a health benefits plan for the family members 

10 of a reserve component member under this section in a 

11 fiscal year may not exceed the amount determined by mul12 tiplying— 

13 ‘‘(1) the sum of one plus the number of the 

14 family members covered by the health benefits plan, 

15 by 

16 ‘‘(2) the per capita cost of providing TRICARE 

17 coverage and benefits for dependents under this 

18 chapter for such fiscal year, as determined by the 

19 Secretary of Defense. 

20 ‘‘(f) BENEFITS COVERAGE CONTINUATION PE21 RIOD.—The benefits coverage continuation period under 

22 this section for qualified health benefits plan coverage for 

23 the family members of an eligible reserve component mem24 ber called or ordered to active duty is the period that— 

25 ‘‘(1) begins on the date of the call or order; and 
14 

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1 ‘‘(2) ends on the earlier of— 

2 ‘‘(A) the date on which the reserve compo3 nent member’s eligibility for transitional health 

4 care under section 1145(a) of this title termi5 nates under paragraph (3) of such section; or 

6 ‘‘(B) the date on which the reserve compo7 nent member elects to terminate the continued 

8 qualified health benefits plan coverage of the 

9 member’s family members. 

10 ‘‘(g) EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF COBRA COV11 ERAGE.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law— 

12 ‘‘(1) any period of coverage under a COBRA 

13 continuation provision (as defined in section 

14 9832(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) 

15 for an eligible reserve component member under this 

16 section shall be deemed to be equal to the benefits 

17 coverage continuation period for such member under 

18 this section; and 

19 ‘‘(2) with respect to the election of any period 

20 of coverage under a COBRA continuation provision 

21 (as so defined), rules similar to the rules under sec22 tion 4980B(f)(5)(C) of such Code shall apply. 

23 ‘‘(h) NONDUPLICATION OF BENEFITS.—A member of 

24 the family of a reserve component member who is eligible 

25 for benefits under qualified health benefits plan coverage 
15 

•S 2791 IS 

1 paid on behalf of the reserve component member by the 

2 Secretary concerned under this section is not eligible for 

3 benefits under the TRICARE program during a period of 

4 the coverage for which so paid. 

5 ‘‘(i) REVOCABILITY OF ELECTION.—A reserve com6 ponent member who makes an election under subsection 

7 (a) may revoke the election. Upon such a revocation, the 

8 member’s family members shall become eligible for bene9 fits under the TRICARE program as provided for under 

10 this chapter. 

11 ‘‘(j) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of Defense shall 

12 prescribe regulations for carrying out this section. The 

13 regulations shall include such requirements for making an 

14 election of payment of applicable premiums as the Sec15 retary considers appropriate.’’. 

16 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

17 sections at the beginning of such chapter is 

18 amended by inserting after the item relating to 

19 section 1078a the following new item: 

‘‘1078b. Continuation of non-TRICARE health benefits plan coverage for dependents of certain Reserves called or ordered to active duty.’’. 

20 (2) APPLICABILITY.—Section 1078b of title 10, 

21 United States Code (as added by paragraph (1)), 

22 shall apply with respect to calls or orders of mem23 bers of reserve components of the Armed Forces to 

24 active duty as described in subsection (b) of such 
16 

•S 2791 IS 

1 section, that are issued by the Secretary of a military 

2 department before, on, or after the date of the enact3 ment of this Act, but only with respect to qualified 

4 health benefits plan coverage (as described in sub5 section (c) of such section) that is in effect on or after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

7 SEC. 5. CHILD CARE FOR CHILDREN OF MEMBERS OF 

8 ARMED FORCES ON ACTIVE DUTY FOR OPER9 ATION ENDURING FREEDOM OR OPERATION 

10 IRAQI FREEDOM. 

11 (a) CHILD CARE FOR CHILDREN WITHOUT ACCESS

12 TO MILITARY CHILD CARE.— 

13 (1) AUTHORITY.—In any case where the chil14 dren of a covered member of the Armed Forces are 

15 geographically dispersed and do not have practical 

16 access to a military child development center, the 

17 Secretary of Defense may, to the extent funds are 

18 available for such purpose, provide such funds as are 

19 necessary permit the member’s family to secure ac20 cess for such children to State licensed child care 

21 and development programs and activities in the pri22 vate sector that are similar in scope and quality to 

23 the child care and development programs and activi24 ties the Secretary would otherwise provide access to 
17 

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1 under subchapter II of chapter 88 of title 10, United 

2 States Code, and other applicable provisions of law. 

3 (2) PROCEDURES.—Funds may be provided 

4 under paragraph (1) in accordance with the provi5 sions of section 1798 of title 10, United States 

6 Code, or by such other mechanism as the Secretary 

7 considers appropriate. 

8 (3) PRIORITIES.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

9 in regulations priorities for the allocation of funds 

10 for the provision of access to child care under para11 graph (1) in circumstances where funds are inad12 equate to provide all children described in that para13 graph with access to child care as described in that 

14 paragraph. 

15 (b) PRESERVATION OF SERVICES AND PROGRAMS.— 

16 The Secretary shall provide for the attendance and partici17 pation of children in military child development centers 

18 and child care and development programs and activities 

19 under subsection (a) in a manner that preserves the scope 

20 and quality of child care and development programs and 

21 activities otherwise provided by the Secretary. 

22 (c) FUNDING.—Amounts otherwise available to the 

23 Department of Defense and the military departments 

24 under this Act may be available for purposes of providing 

25 access to child care under subsection (a). 
18 

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1 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 (1) COVERED MEMBERS OF THE ARMED

3 FORCES.—The term ‘‘covered members of the Armed 

4 Forces’’ means members of the Armed Forces on ac5 tive duty, including members of the Reserves who 

6 are called or ordered to active duty under a provi7 sion of law referred to in section 101(a)(13)(B) of 

8 title 10, United States Code, for Operation Endur9 ing Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom. 

10 (2) MILITARY CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER.— 

11 The term ‘‘military child development center’’ has 

12 the meaning given such term in section 1800(1) of 

13 title 10, United States Code. 

14 SEC. 6. RIGHTS AND DUTIES UNDER USERRA. 

15 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR EMPLOYERS TO PROVIDE

16 NOTICE OF RIGHTS AND DUTIES UNDER USERRA.— 

17 (1) NOTICE.— 

18 (A) REQUIREMENT FOR NOTICE.—Chapter 

19 43 of title 38, United States Code, is amended 

20 by adding at the end the following new section: 

21 ‘‘§ 4334. Notice of rights and duties 

22 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE NOTICE.—Each 

23 employer shall provide to persons entitled to rights and 

24 benefits under this chapter a notice of the rights, benefits, 

25 and obligations of such persons and such employers under 
19 

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1 this chapter. The requirement for the provision of notice 

2 under this section may be met by the posting of the notice 

3 where employers customarily place notices for employees. 

4 ‘‘(b) CONTENT OF NOTICE.—The Secretary shall 

5 provide to employers the text of the notice to be provided 

6 under this section.’’. 

7 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

8 sections at the beginning of such chapter is 

9 amended by adding at the end the following 

10 new item: 

‘‘4334. Notice of rights and duties.’’. 

11 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.— 

12 (A) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than the 

13 date that is 90 days after the date of the enact14 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall 

15 make available to employers the notice required 

16 under section 4334 of title 38, United States 

17 Code, as added by paragraph (1). 

18 (B) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments 

19 made by this subsection shall apply to employ20 ers under chapter 43 of such title on and after 

21 the first date referred to in subparagraph (A). 

22 (b) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR REFERRAL OF

23 USERRA CLAIMS AGAINST FEDERAL AGENCIES TO THE

24 OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL.— 
20 

•S 2791 IS 

1 (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROJECT.—The Sec2 retary of Labor and the Office of Special Counsel 

3 shall carry out a demonstration project under which 

4 certain claims against Federal executive agencies 

5 under the Uniformed Services Employment and Re6 employment Rights Act under chapter 43 of title 38, 

7 United States Code, are referred to, or otherwise re8 ceived by, the Office of Special Counsel for assist9 ance, including investigation and resolution of the 

10 claim as well as enforcement of rights with respect 

11 to the claim. 

12 (2) REFERRAL OF ALL PROHIBITED PER13 SONNEL ACTION CLAIMS TO THE OFFICE OF SPE14 CIAL.— 

15 (A) COVERED CLAIMS.—Under the dem16 onstration project, the Office of Special Counsel 

17 shall receive and investigate all claims under 

18 the Uniformed Services Employment and Reem19 ployment Rights Act with respect to Federal ex20 ecutive agencies in cases where the Office of 

21 Special Counsel has jurisdiction over related 

22 claims pursuant to section 1212 of title 5, 

23 United States Code. 

24 (B) RELATED CLAIMS.—For purposes of 

25 subparagraph (A), a related claim is a claim in-
21 

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1 volving the same Federal executive agency and 

2 the same or similar factual allegations or legal 

3 issues as those being pursued under a claim 

4 under the Uniformed Services Employment and 

5 Reemployment Rights Act. 

6 (3) REFERRAL OF OTHER CLAIMS AGAINST

7 FEDERAL EXECUTIVE.— 

8 (A) OTHER CLAIMS.—Under the dem9 onstration project, the Secretary— 

10 (i) shall refer to the Office of Special 

11 Counsel all claims described in subpara12 graph (B) made during the period of the 

13 demonstration project; and 

14 (ii) may refer any claim described in 

15 subparagraph (B) filed before the dem16 onstration project that is pending before 

17 the Secretary at the beginning of the dem18 onstration project. 

19 (B) COVERED CLAIMS.—A claim referred 

20 to in subparagraph (A) is a claim under chapter 

21 43 of title 38, United States Code, against a 

22 Federal executive agency by a claimant with a 

23 social security account number with an odd 

24 number as its terminal digit, or, in the case of 

25 a claim that does not contain a social security 
22 

•S 2791 IS 

1 account number, a case number assigned to the 

2 claim with an odd number as its terminal digit. 

3 (4) ADMINISTRATION OF DEMONSTRATION — 

4 (A) OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL.—The 

5 Office of Special Counsel shall administer the 

6 demonstration project. The Secretary shall co7 operate with the Office of Special Counsel in 

8 carrying out the demonstration project. 

9 (B) LAW ADMINISTERED BY THE SEC10 RETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.—In the case of 

11 any claim referred to, or otherwise received by, 

12 the Office of Special Counsel under the dem13 onstration project, any reference to the ‘‘Sec14 retary’’ in sections 4321, 4322, and 4326 of 

15 title 38, United States Code, is deemed a ref16 erence to the ‘‘Office of Special Counsel’’. 

17 (C) RETENTION OF JURISDICTION OVER

18 REFERRED CLAIMS.—In the case of any claim 

19 referred to, or otherwise received by, the Office 

20 of Special Counsel under the demonstration 

21 project, the Office of Special Counsel shall re22 tain administrative jurisdiction over the claim. 

23 (5) PERIOD OF PROJECT.—The demonstration 

24 project shall be carried out during the period begin25 ning on the date that is 60 days after the date of 
23 

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1 the enactment of this Act, and ending on September 

2 30, 2007. 

3 (6) PERIODIC EVALUATIONS.—The Comptroller 

4 General of the United States shall conduct periodic 

5 evaluations of the demonstration project under this 

6 subsection. 

7 (7) REPORT ON EVALUATIONS.—Not later than 

8 April 1, 2007, the Comptroller General shall submit 

9 to Congress a report on the evaluations conducted 

10 under paragraph (6). The report shall include the 

11 following information and recommendations: 

12 (A) A description of the operation and re13 sults of the demonstration program, includ14 ing— 

15 (i) the number of claims described in 

16 paragraph (3) referred to, or otherwise re17 ceived by, the Office of Special Counsel 

18 and the number of such claims referred to 

19 the Secretary of Labor; and 

20 (ii) for each Federal executive agency, 

21 the number of claims resolved, the type of 

22 corrective action obtained, the period of 

23 time for final resolution of the claim, and 

24 the results obtained. 
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1 (B) An assessment of whether referral to 

2 the Office of Special Counsel of claims under 

3 the demonstration project— 

4 (i) improved services to service5 members and veterans; or 

6 (ii) significantly reduced or eliminated 

7 duplication of effort and unintended delays 

8 in resolving meritorious claims of those 

9 servicemembers and veterans. 

10 (C) An assessment of the feasibility and 

11 advisability of referring all claims under chapter 

12 43 of title 38, United States Code, against Fed13 eral executive agencies to the Office of Special 

14 Counsel for investigation and resolution. 

15 (D) Such other recommendations for ad16 ministrative action or legislation as the Comp17 troller General determines appropriate. 

18 (8) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

19 (A) OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL.—The 

20 term ‘‘Office of Special Counsel’’ means the Of21 fice of Special Counsel established by section 

22 1211 of title 5, United States Code. 

23 (B) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

24 means the Secretary of Labor. 
25 

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1 (C) FEDERAL EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The 

2 term ‘‘Federal executive agency’’ has the mean3 ing given that term in section 4303(5) of title 

4 38, United States Code. 

5 (c) USERRA IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.— 

6 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR REGULATIONS.—Sub7 sections (a) and (b)(1) of section 4331 of title 38, 

8 United States Code, are amended by striking ‘‘may 

9 prescribe’’ and inserting ‘‘shall prescribe’’. 

10 (2) CLARIFICATION OF RIGHT TO MERIT PAY

11 INCREASES.—The regulations prescribed for the im12 plementation of chapter 43 of title 38, United States 

13 Code, under section 4331 of such title shall include 

14 regulations that clarify that the entitlement of per15 sons returning to employment under such chapter to 

16 receive pay increases under merit pay systems of 

17 employers may not be denied on the basis of lack of 

18 work performance evaluations for periods of absence 

19 for active duty in the uniformed services. 

20 SEC. 7. IMPROVED EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE BENEFITS 

21 FOR MEMBERS OF THE SELECTED RESERVE. 

22 (a) INCREASE IN AMOUNT OF BASIC EDUCATIONAL

23 ASSISTANCE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 16131(b) of title 10, 

25 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
26 

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1 ‘‘(b) Except as provided in subsections (d) through 

2 (f), each educational assistance program established under 

3 subsection (a) shall provide for payment by the Secretary 

4 concerned, through the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to 

5 each person entitled to educational assistance under this 

6 chapter who is pursuing a program of education of an edu7 cational assistance allowance at the following monthly 

8 rates: 

9 ‘‘(1) For such a program of education pursued 

10 on a full-time basis, at the monthly rate equal to the 

11 applicable percentage (as defined in paragraph (3)) 

12 of the rate that applies for the month under section 

13 3015(a)(1) of title 38. 

14 ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), for such 

15 a program of education pursued on less than a full16 time basis, at an appropriately reduced rate, as de17 termined under regulations which the Secretaries 

18 concerned shall prescribe. 

19 ‘‘(B) No payment may be made to a person for 

20 less than half-time pursuit of such a program of 

21 education if tuition assistance is otherwise available 

22 to the person for such pursuit from the military de23 partment concerned. 
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1 ‘‘(3) In this subsection, the term ‘applicable 

2 percentage’ means, with respect to months occurring 

3 during— 

4 ‘‘(A) fiscal year 2005, 33 percent; 

5 ‘‘(B) fiscal year 2006, 37 percent; 

6 ‘‘(C) fiscal year 2007, 41 percent; 

7 ‘‘(D) fiscal year 2008, 45 percent; and 

8 ‘‘(E) fiscal year 2009, and each subsequent 

9 fiscal year, 50 percent.’’. 

10 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

11 by paragraph (1) shall take effect on October 1, 

12 2004, and shall apply with respect to educational as13 sistance allowances under section 16131(b) of such 

14 title paid for months after September 2004. 

15 (b) EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR

16 MEMBERS OF THE SELECTED RESERVE HAVING SERVED

17 ON ACTIVE DUTY FOR A PERIOD OF 24 NON-CONSECU18 TIVE MONTHS UNDER CHAPTER 30 OF TITLE 38, 

19 UNITED STATES CODE.— 

20 (1) CREDIT FOR 24 MONTHS OF ACTIVE DUTY

21 SERVICE OVER A PERIOD OF 5 YEARS.—Subsection 

22 3012(a) of title 38, United States Code, is amended 

23 in paragraphs (1)(A)(i), (1)(B)(i), and (1)(C)(iii)(I) 

24 by striking ‘‘two years of continuous active duty’’ 
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•S 2791 IS 

1 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘a cumulative 

2 period of 24 months during any 5-year period’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (b) 

4 of section 3012 of such title is amended in para5 graph (1) by striking ‘‘during such two years’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘at any time during such 5-year period’’. 

7 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

8 by this subsection shall apply on or after October 1, 

9 2005. 

10 SEC. 8. REDUCTION IN AGE FOR RECEIPT OF MILITARY RE11 TIRED PAY FOR NONREGULAR SERVICE. 

12 (a) REDUCTION IN AGE.—Section 12731(a)(1) of 

13 title 10, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘at 

14 least 60 years of age’’ and inserting ‘‘at least 55 years 

15 of age’’. 

16 (b) APPLICATION TO EXISTING PROVISIONS OF LAW

17 OR POLICY.—With respect to any provision of law, or of 

18 any policy, regulation, or directive of the executive branch, 

19 that refers to a member or former member of the uni20 formed services as being eligible for, or entitled to, retired 

21 pay under chapter 1223 of title 10, United States Code, 

22 but for the fact that the member or former member is 

23 under 60 years of age, such provision shall be carried out 

24 with respect to that member or former member by sub25 stituting for the reference to being 60 years of age a ref-
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•S 2791 IS 

1 erence to the age in effect for qualification for such retired 

2 pay under section 12731(a) of title 10, United States 

3 Code, as amended by subsection (a). 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

5 subsection (a) shall take effect on the first day of the first 

6 month beginning on or after the date of the enactment 

7 of this Act and shall apply to retired pay payable for that 

8 month and subsequent months. 

9 SEC. 9. DEPUTY UNDER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR PER10 SONNEL AND READINESS (RESERVE AF11 FAIRS). 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF POSITION.— 

13 (1) POSITION AND DUTIES.—Chapter 4 of title 

14 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

15 after section 136a the following new section: 

16 ‘‘§ 136b. Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Per17 sonnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs) 

18 ‘‘(a) There is a Deputy Under Secretary of Defense 

19 for Personnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs), appointed 

20 from civilian life by the President, by and with the advice 

21 and consent of the Senate. 

22 ‘‘(b) The Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Per23 sonnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs) shall have as his 

24 principal duty the overall supervision of reserve component 

25 affairs of the Department of Defense.’’. 
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•S 2791 IS 

1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec2 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

3 by inserting after the item relating to section 136a 

4 the following new item: 

‘‘136b. Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs).’’. 

5 (b) EXECUTIVE LEVEL IV.—Section 5315 of title 5, 

6 United States Code, is amended by inserting after ‘‘Dep7 uty Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readi8 ness.’’ the following: 

9 ‘‘Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Per10 sonnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs).’’. 

11 (c) ELIMINATION OF POSITION OF ASSISTANT SEC12 RETARY OF DEFENSE FOR RESERVE AFFAIRS.— 

13 (1) REPEAL OF REQUIREMENT FOR POSI14 TION.—Subsection (b) of section 138 of title 10, 

15 United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by striking paragraph (2); and 

17 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), 

18 and (5), as paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), re19 spectively. 

20 (2) REDUCTION IN TOTAL NUMBER OF ASSIST21 ANT SECRETARIES OF DEFENSE.— 

22 (A) AUTHORIZED NUMBER.—Subsection 

23 (a) of such section is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘nine’’ and inserting ‘‘eight’’. 
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1 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

3 by striking ‘‘(9)’’ after ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of 

4 Defense’’ and inserting ‘‘(8)’’. 

5 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

6 subsection (c) shall take effect on the date on which a 

7 person is first appointed as Deputy Under Secretary of 

8 Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs). 

Æ