Title: A bill to amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend lease protections for servicemembers under stop movement orders in response to a local, national, or global emergency, and for other purposes.
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
This bill provides certain lease protections for service members under stop movement orders in response to a local, national, or global emergency.
A service member may terminate a lease for premises or for a motor vehicle, and may not be charged an early termination fee for doing so, if the service member (1) enters into the lease upon receipt of certain military orders for permanent change of station, deployment with a military unit, or individual support of military operations; and (2) subsequently receives, in response to a local, national, or global emergency, a stop movement order for an indefinite period or at least 30 days.
For the bill to apply in the case of a lease for premises, the stop movement order must prevent the service member or the service member's dependents from occupying the premises.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3637 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3637

     To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend lease 
 protections for servicemembers under stop movement orders in response 
   to a local, national, or global emergency, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 6, 2020

Mr. Tester (for himself, Mr. Moran, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. 
 Boozman, Mr. Brown, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Cramer, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Rounds, 
 Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Manchin, and Mrs. Loeffler) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
                          on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend lease 
 protections for servicemembers under stop movement orders in response 
   to a local, national, or global emergency, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF LEASE PROTECTIONS FOR SERVICEMEMBERS UNDER STOP 
              MOVEMENT ORDERS IN RESPONSE TO LOCAL, NATIONAL, OR GLOBAL 
              EMERGENCY.

    (a) Termination.--Subsection (a)(1) of section 305 of the 
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. 3955) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; or'' and inserting 
        a semicolon;
            (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) the date of the lessee's stop movement order 
                described in paragraph (1)(C) or (2)(C) of subsection 
                (b), as the case may be.''.
    (b) Covered Leases.--
            (1) Leases of premises.--Paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of 
        such section is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; or'' and 
                inserting a semicolon;
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
                    ``(C) the servicemember, while in military 
                service--
                            ``(i) executes a lease upon receipt of 
                        military orders for a permanent change of 
                        station or to deploy with a military unit, or 
                        as an individual in support of a military 
                        operation, for a period of not less than 90 
                        days; and
                            ``(ii) thereafter receives a stop movement 
                        order issued by the Secretary of Defense in 
                        response to a local, national, or global 
                        emergency, effective for an indefinite period 
                        or for a period of not less than 30 days, which 
                        prevents the servicemember or servicemember's 
                        dependents from occupying the lease for a 
                        residential, professional, business, 
                        agricultural, or similar purpose.''.
            (2) Leases of motor vehicles.--Paragraph (2) of such 
        subsection is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; or'' and 
                inserting a semicolon;
                    (B) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking the period 
                at the end and inserting ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
                    ``(C) the servicemember, while in military 
                service--
                            ``(i) executes a lease upon receipt of 
                        military orders described in subparagraph (B); 
                        and
                            ``(ii) thereafter receives a stop movement 
                        order issued by the Secretary of Defense in 
                        response to a local, national, or global 
                        emergency, effective for an indefinite period 
                        or for a period of not less than 30 days, which 
                        prevents the servicemember, or the 
                        servicemember's dependents, from using the 
                        vehicle for personal or business 
                        transportation.''.
    (c) Effective Date of Termination.--Paragraph (1) of subsection (d) 
of such section is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) Lease of premises.--
                    ``(A) Entrance to military service, permanent 
                change of station, or deployment.--In the case of a 
                lease described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of 
                subsection (b)(1) that provides for monthly payment of 
                rent, termination of the lease under subsection (a) is 
                effective 30 days after the first date on which the 
                next rental payment is due and payable after the date 
                on which the notice under subsection (c) is delivered. 
                In the case of any other lease described in 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (b)(1) 
                termination of the lease under subsection (a) is 
                effective on the last day of the month following the 
                month in which the notice is delivered.
                    ``(B) Stop movement orders.--In the case of a lease 
                described in subsection (b)(1)(C), termination of the 
                lease under subsection (a) is effective on the date on 
                which the requirements of subsection (c) are met for 
                such termination.''.
    (d) Technical Correction.--Subsection (i) is amended, in the matter 
before paragraph (1), by inserting ``In this section:'' after 
``Definitions.--''.
    (e) Retroactive Application.--The amendments made by this section 
shall apply to stop movement orders issued on or after March 1, 2020.
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