Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) and three of his colleagues have introduced a bill meant to give military families more flexibility when a service member has to move.
Senator Roy Blunt (at podium) and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (left) are two of the four Senate sponsors of the Military Family Stability Act. (courtesy; Sen. Blunt’s Twitter feed)
The proposed Military Family Stability Act of 2015 would let military families keep receiving an unchanged level of support for six months when a service member is ordered to relocate. That service member, meanwhile would be given temporary housing or compensation at their station.
Blunt says that will make transitions easier on families.
“Allowing somebody to go earlier, allowing somebody to stay back a little longer, allowing that separated individual in the military to be treated as just that and look for quarters that make it possible for them to achieve their assignment but still let family members who need to finish a semester of school, to get started a little earlier, make something that make sense for their career or transition at the same time to happen,” said Blunt.
The bill is also sponsored by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), Richard Burr (R-North Carolina), and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii).
Gillibrand said the legislation reflects the role of the modern military family.
“Military families in the 21st century are very different, and we need new laws to reflect the new reality,” said Gillibrand. “Senator Blunt and I have authored the Military Family Stability Act so that military families have more flexibility and resources when deciding when to move.”
Blunt says supporting service members’ families helps strengthen the military.
“There are times when the unanticipated change of duty post – the change that comes at just the wrong time for the family – isn’t really that hard to work out.”
The bill is also backed by several military groups: The Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the National Military Family Association, the Military Officers Association of America, the Military Child Education Coalition, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Blue Star Families, and the Veterans Support Foundation.
