Senator Lautenberg on Stop-Loss Bonuses

Provision Now Goes to President; Would Provide Payments to Service Members Held Beyond Enlistment Between 2001-2008

June 19, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC – The Senate yesterday approved a spending bill which includes $534.4 million to pay retroactive bonuses for troops affected by “stop loss,” a policy which involuntarily extends military service beyond an enlistment contract, between 2001 and 2008.

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The funding for the retroactive bonuses was included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Act, which a key conference committee Lautenberg served on passed last week and the House of Representatives passed earlier his week. The bill will now be sent to President Obama for his signature.

“Troops who risk their lives beyond their scheduled enlistment deserve to be rewarded for their sacrifice and commitment,” Sen. Lautenberg said. “These bonuses are the least we can do for service members kept from their families because of a stop-loss policy that was abused in the past and will soon be eliminated.”

Lautenberg has been the Senate leader calling for stop-loss compensation. Troops affected by stop loss at the end of 2008 and during 2009 will already receive $500 monthly bonuses due to a provision championed by Lautenberg, Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) and Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) that became law last September. The new provision will provide bonuses for troops affected by stop loss between 2001 and 2008.

The military’s stop loss policy can keep a soldier in service if his or her unit deploys within 90 days of the end of the soldier’s commitment. In total, more than 185,000 troops have been affected by stop loss since 2002 and according to the Army, approximately 12,000 troops are currently stop-lossed, including active duty, Reserve and National Guard troops. In March 2009, the Pentagon announced it would soon end the stop loss policy.

Lautenberg’s continued efforts to compensate stop-loss soldiers have been supported by leading veterans and military service organizations, including the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS), the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) and Veterans for America (VFA).

Source: Senator Frank Lautenberg