To amend the Federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States to reflect the service of women in the Armed Forces of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5441, which amends the federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) to reflect the service of women in the Armed Forces of the United States.

As approved by Congress in 1936, the VFW charter provides that the VFW is a ``national association of men who as soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen served this Nation in wars, campaigns and expeditions on foreign soil or in hostile waters[.]''

The charter further provides that one of the purposes of the organization is ``to perpetuate the memory and history of our dead, and to assist their widows and orphans[.]''

By replacing the terms ``men'' with ``veterans'' and ``widows'' with ``surviving spouses,'' H.R. 5441 modifies the VFW charter to make it gender-neutral and reflect the reality that women have and continue to serve in combat theaters in defense of the United States.

At the time the charter was created, only men were permitted to serve in the military. Today, both women and men are permitted to serve in the military and over the last few years, women have become more involved in combat operations.

For example, between September 2001 and February 28, 2013), 299,548 female service members have been deployed for contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan during which time more than 800 women have been wounded and over 130 have died.

As of February 29, 2013, 16,407 female members were currently deployed in contingency operation according to the Department of Defense.

Women have been tested in battle and proved their heroism, earning numerous awards and commendations, including two Silver Star medals.

The expansion of roles for women in the armed forces has evolved over decades.

Under a Defense Department policy promulgated in 1994 policy, women could not be assigned to units, below the brigade level, whose primary mission is to engage in direct combat on the ground.

The practical effect of this policy meant that women were barred from infantry, artillery, armor, combat engineers, and special operations units of battalion size or smaller.

On January 24, 2013, however, then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta rescinded that policy, thus enabling women to serve in combat units.

The leadership and rank and file of the VFW strongly supports changing the national charter to make it gender-neutral:

Today, our military consists of both men and women who

honorably put duty and service before themselves. Consistent

with the growing number of military women who serve at all

levels, women are taking leadership roles throughout our

organization. That is why we opened our membership to women

over 35 years ago.

Mr. Speaker, according to the VFW practice, it is combat service, not gender, that determines VFW membership eligibility.

Over 2 million women veterans have courageously served our country and defended our

freedoms for over 100 years, and their countless contributions and sacrifices must not be overlooked.

In the 18th Congressional District of Texas, there are 29,757 veterans, 3,219 of which are women.

Women veterans fortified the crucial role of women in the military, and females currently serving in the military continue to break down barriers, such as:

Admiral Michelle Howard, the Navy's first female four-star admiral; Army General Ann E. Dunwoody, the U.S. military's first female four- star officer; Dr. Mary E. Walker, the only woman who has been awarded the Medal of Honor.

As Anne S. (Sosh) Brehm, 1st Lt., USA NC, a World War II veteran said, ``Let the generations know that the women in uniform also guaranteed their freedom.''

Each year, I participate in the Annual Women in the Military Wreath Laying Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery to honor all women who have defended America throughout history.

The Women in Military Service for America Memorial serves as a reminder of the patriotism and bravery of women who have served in the United States Armed Services, and also tells their stories of service, sacrifice, and achievement.

Women veterans have a passion for service and an unfathomable amount of bravery that is truly worthy and deserving of our recognition, admiration, and commendation.

H.R. 5441 modifies VFW's federal charter to reflect current practice and reality and, accordingly, I support the bill and urge all members to do so as well.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5441) to amend the Federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States to reflect the service of women in the Armed Forces of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on H.R. 5441, the bill currently under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars is one of our largest and most lauded veterans organizations. It has successfully fought for veterans' rights for over a century and its members provide millions of hours a year in community service.

Among its goals are to ``assist worthy comrades'' and to ``perpetuate the memory and history of our dead and to assist their widows and orphans.'' Our veterans from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are in a better place because of activities of the VFW.

Membership in the VFW is open to Korean war veterans and veterans who have ``served honorably as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States--in a foreign war, insurrection, or expedition in service that has been recognized as campaign-medal service; and is governed by the authorization of the award of a campaign badge by the United States Government or in an area which entitled the individual to receive special pay for duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger.''

Membership does not require that a servicemember have engaged in actual combat, only that they served in a combat zone.

Congress provided the VFW with a Federal charter in 1936. Robert Wallace, executive director of the VFW's Washington office, has sent a letter to the Judiciary Committee requesting that its charter be amended to be gender neutral. This is in recognition, Mr. Speaker, of the many female members of the VFW and their invaluable contributions to our military.

Mr. Wallace stated that:

Today, our military consists of both men and women who

honorably put duty and service before themselves. Consistent

with the growing number of military women who serve at all

levels, women are taking leadership roles throughout our

organization. The VFW strongly believes that combat service,

not gender, determines VFW membership eligibility. That is

why we opened our membership to women over 35 years ago.

However, our congressional charter does not reflect this

reality.

As the Congressional Research Service reported last year,

almost 300,000 ``female servicemembers have been deployed for

contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.'' In

approximately 12 years of combat operations in Iraq and

Afghanistan, over 800 women have been wounded and over 130

have died. Women have been recognized for their heroism, two

earning Silver Star medals.

H.R. 5441, introduced by Congressman Jeff Miller, makes the changes sought by the VFW and is strongly supported by the organization. I commend Representative Miller for introducing the bill.

The VFW's current charter provides that the VFW is a ``national association of men who as soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen served this Nation in wars, campaigns, and expeditions on foreign soil or in hostile waters.''

H.R. 5441 would replace ``men'' with ``veterans.'' The current charter provides that one of the purposes of the

organization is ``to perpetuate the memory and history of our dead and to assist their widows and orphans.'' The bill would replace ``widows'' with ``surviving spouses.''

I urge my colleagues to support this meritorious bill that reflects the valor of women in our Armed Forces.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), a champion for veterans' rights and chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 5441, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as has been said, this bill makes a small but important change to the Federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. As has been mentioned, it would amend the charter to become gender neutral by replacing ``men'' with ``veterans'' and ``widows'' with ``surviving spouses.'' I think doing this aligns the charter with the actual makeup of the organization today, and I totally support the change.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States has been serving veterans of our Armed Forces for over 100 years and traces its roots to the Spanish-American War. Only men were permitted to serve in the military when the organization was chartered in 1936, and of course, we know, since that time, things have changed a great deal.

The role of women in the military has greatly expanded. In fact, two of our colleagues--Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth of Illinois--both served with both distinction and honor in our military services and now serve with us as colleagues in the House.

Women serve in varied roles throughout the Armed Forces, and they have made many important sacrifices for the country. Women in fact now make up almost 10 percent of the total veterans population, and the Department of Veterans Affairs predicts they will represent nearly 18 percent of veterans by the year 2040.

In recognition of these facts, the VFW opened its membership to women over 35 years ago, and they certainly deserve our commendation for doing so.

Generally, as has been said many times, it should be up to the organization, not Congress, to decide who may and may not be a member of that organization. That is one of the many reasons why Members on both sides of the aisle have long supported the committee's policy against creating new Federal charters.

Even so, there is no policy against amending existing charters, and if such amendments are needed to align the charter to actual reality, then there is no reason to prevent such an amendment.

In fact, I also support the reason for this change. The Veterans of Foreign Wars seeks this change because it ``strongly believes that combat service, not gender, determines membership eligibility.'' I could not agree more, and I can only applaud the VFW for initiating this change and coming to the Judiciary Committee, seeking out the author of the bill and working with us in a bipartisan basis to get here today.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the author of the bill, and this was unanimously approved by the Judiciary Committee.

I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Miller for his leadership in this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

I thank the gentleman from North Carolina for yielding the time. I also want to thank Chairman Goodlatte and the ranking member for speeding this through the Judiciary Committee.

I rise in support of this piece of legislation, which is a simple bill, Mr. Speaker, designated to update the congressional charter of the VFW to reflect today's active duty and veteran population by changing, as we have already heard, the word ``men'' to ``veterans'' and the word ``widows'' to ``surviving spouses.''

Women veterans have in fact been eligible as members of the VFW since 1978, but like many things, it sometimes takes a little time for paperwork to catch up. I think VFW Commander in Chief John Stroud said it best in describing why they have requested this change:

We are not changing our congressional charter because it's

politically correct. We're changing it because being an

eligible veteran is what's important to our great

organization, not one's gender, and changing ``widows'' to

``surviving spouses'' is more representative of today's

military.

Women do in fact comprise over 16 percent of today's military force, and obviously, that means that they are making up an ever-increasing share of America's 22 million veterans as they return to civilian life.

I ask my colleagues to join Chairman Goodlatte, Ms. Lofgren, and myself in supporting H.R. 5441.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5441, which will amend the Federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States to reflect the service of women in the Armed Forces.

This legislation is a common-sense update of an 80-year-old charter to better reflect the makeup of the modern military--namely, the inclusion of women in prominent roles throughout several branches of the military. The Veterans of Foreign Wars is a premier Veterans Service Organization, with more than 2 million members of all ages across our great country.

All Veterans are heroes regardless of their gender, and this legislation reflects that equality in the formal charter of a remarkably successful organization that exists to support all Veterans, and their spouses.