NewsBytes January 14, 2022
In this issue:
Hearing on Pearl Harbor Fuel Leak
House Passes 2 Bills for Veterans
RC Incentive Pay Parity
CFPB Warning Letters
HASC-Readiness Holds Hearing on Pearl Harbor Fuel Leak
The House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee held a hearing on the recent jet fuel leak at Hawaii’s Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. More than 9,000 military families in Hawaii have been stuck in hotels through the holidays after jet fuel from underground storage tanks at the Red Hill Bulk Storage Facility leaked into a well that supplies water to their on-base homes.
Rear Admiral Blake Converse and Vice Admiral Yancy Lindsey testified at the hearing and assured subcommittee members that the Navy will work to get the families back into their housing with safe drinking water. “The Navy caused this problem. We own it, and we’re going to fix it,” said RADM. Converse, deputy commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet. The Navy pledged to work with Hawaii state agencies, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on cleaning up the leakage. The Center of Disease Control (CDC) has begun surveying residents about the health impact of the leaks. The FRA wants to ensure service members and their families have safe, quality homes and communities.
House Passes Two Veteran Bills
The House approved the Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act (H.R.1836) sponsored by Rep. Mike Levin (Calif.), which would allow National Guard and Reserve members to count time spent in training toward their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits. The House also passed a bill (H.R.4673) sponsored by Rep. Mark Takano (Calif), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, that would require qualifying veterans to be automatically enrolled in the VA’s health benefits after they separate from the service — there would be the ability to opt out. Republicans expressed concerns about both bills’ long-term costs when they were marked up last year in the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Both bills now go to the Senate for further consideration.
RC Incentive Pay Parity
The FRA is supporting the National Guard and Reserve Incentive Pay Parity Act (S.1859, H.R.3626) that would require the military to provide Reserve and National Guard members incentive and special duty pay at the same rate as their active-duty counterparts. The Armed Services utilizes more than 60 special and incentive pays to influence retention and sustain the size of the force. Current law caps the amount of pay members of the National Guard and Reserves receive, which is a fraction of what those on active duty receive. This legislation requires equal pay for equal proficiency. Members are encouraged to weigh in on this issue by using the FRA Action Center .
CFPB Warning Letters
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Department of Justice (DOJ) issued two joint letters regarding important legal housing protections for military families. One letter was sent to landlords regarding protections for military tenants. A second letter was sent to mortgage servicers regarding military borrowers who have already exited or will be exiting COVID-19 mortgage forbearance programs in the coming weeks and months.
The letter to landlords and other housing providers reminds property owners of the important housing protections in place for military tenants. While military families enjoy the same legal protections and privileges afforded to all other homeowners and tenants, they also have additional housing protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), which is enforceable by the DOJ and service members themselves.
The letter to mortgage servicers comes in response to complaints from military families and veterans about a range of potential mortgage servicing violations, including inaccurate credit reporting, misleading communications to borrowers and required lump sum payments for reinstating their mortgage loans. These complaints are being reviewed for compliance by the CFPB with the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
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