WASHINGTON – With some military-retiree pensions now facing temporary reductions to their cost-of-living-adjustments in 2015, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) has cosponsored legislation that would repeal and replace those changes.
The Bipartisan Budget Act adopted by the Senate this week included $6 billion in savings over 10 years obtained by reducing the cost-of-living adjustments for working-age military retirees younger than 62 by 1 percent beginning January 1, 2015. The Military Retirement Restoration Act would replace this provision with new legislation that could raise as much as $6.6 billion over ten years by preventing companies from avoiding U.S. taxes through the use of foreign tax havens.
“There is no question that the fiscal challenges facing our nation require shared sacrifice, but this budget unfairly singles out military families,” Senator Coons said. “I’ve said repeatedly that the budget the Senate passed this week was not perfect, and this was one of its major flaws. Fortunately it is not too late to replace these cuts with more responsible savings, and that’s what the Military Retirement Restoration Act aims to do. With a year before these changes take effect, it is my hope that Congress passes this bill and more responsibly finds the savings it needs to move forward.”
The Military Retirement Restoration Act — S. 1844 — was introduced by U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and now has 19 cosponsors. It has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration. U.S. Rep. Dan Maffei (D-NY-24) has introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.