![]() Chief Policy Officer Aniela Szymanski provides an overview of recent and upcoming legislative developments. After a dizzying campaign season, Congress swore in new Members and is beginning its session with a great deal of momentum. Upcoming cabinet nomination confirmation hearings will be held by the Senate in the upcoming month, including Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Secretary of Transportation and Secretary of Homeland Security.
Before departing for the holidays, the President signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act for 2025. This included pay raises of 14.5% for ranks E1-E4 and pay raises of 4.5% for all other ranks. It also expanded Basic Needs Allowance to military households that earn up to 200% of the federal poverty guidelines. Congress did not, however, pass the Coast Guard Authorization Act before it ended its session. The Senate had introduced a comprehensive funding bill that included housing improvement provisions and expanded travel benefits for those stationed in Alaska. Unfortunately, however did not pass that Authorization Act before the legislative session ended, so the bill will have to be reintroduced in this current Congressional term. A government shutdown could not occur until March 2025, which gives Congress plenty of time to pass its funding bills. CWOA will continue to press Congress for passage of on time funding for the Coast Guard. The Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act was recently enacted on January 2, 2025. That bill included several provisions that veterans organizations had been lobbying for over several years. It essentially included 10 other veterans bills combined into one package. It included improvements to home-based care for veterans, but also included other important provisions. It requires VA to develop a same-day appointment scheduling program. It also includes a requirement that for veterans using the Post 9/11 GI Bill, that VA pay the full monthly housing stipend for the month when a semester ends. The bill further requires VA to publish annually, and to make publicly available, a “National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report.” Lastly, it includes a provision that allows reservists to recover $50,000 in liquidated damages for successful lawsuits against employers under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). For the upcoming session of Congress, CWOA will continue to advocate for pay and benefits parity with the other services, access to affordable housing and healthcare, as well as retiree benefits. Association members should share their priorities and ideas with the CWOA committees to ensure the organization can include them in our advocacy efforts.
3 Comments
John Crawford
1/16/2025 14:06:31
Thank you.
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Jim Stoffer
1/16/2025 21:29:58
Thank you for the updates, much appreciated.
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Thomas P Lally
1/17/2025 07:38:19
Thank you for the overview.
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AuthorThe views expressed in the articles in this publication are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organizations for which they work, CWOAUSCG, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, or the U.S. government. Archives
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