H.R. 7445 – Equal Justice Under Military Law Act

AI-Generated Summary

Updated February 8, 2026 at 10:47 AM UTC

The Equal Justice Under Military Law Act amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice to create an independent convening authority for certain offenses, require random selection of court‑martial members with controls for rank and representation, and expand annual reporting on racial, sex, and ethnic data in the military‑justice system. It affects service members, victims, and the Department of Defense.

Key Provisions

Adds several offenses (sections 921, 921a, 922, 926, 928(b), 928(c)) to the list of covered offenses under the UCMJ.
Requires that general and special courts‑martial for covered offenses be convened only by an independent authority appointed by the President, separate from the chain of command.
Mandates the President designate this independent convening authority by the effective date, who may include a special trial counsel.
Imposes a randomized selection process for court‑martial members, allowing exclusions based on availability, rank, and equitable representation of race, sex, and ethnicity.
Expands annual Defense Department reports to include offense estimates disaggregated by victim and principal demographics, analyses of disparities, and detailed breakdowns by installation, career field, and Navy duty status.
Requires the reports to be published on a public DoD website in a machine‑readable, searchable, and sortable format.

Legislative Activity

Stay on top of the latest movement without scrolling through every action

1 earlier action

HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

Armed Services Committee

April 7, 2022

View full timeline

HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

April 7, 2022

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

Armed Services Committee

April 7, 2022

Floor Debate

3 members

What members said about H.R. 7445 on the floor

2 Republicans1 Democrat

Rep. Mark TakanoD-CA-41 · Sep 28, 2022

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 8875) to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand eligibility of members of the National Guard for housing loans guaranteed by…

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 8875) to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand eligibility of members of the National Guard for housing loans guaranteed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 8875, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 8875, as amended, the Expanding Home Loans for Guard and Reservists Act.

One of the most valuable benefits veterans earn is the VA home loan benefit, which can provide them a head start in their transition to civilian life.

That is why 2 years ago we passed into law an expansion to grant National Guard members credit for the days they serve on Active Duty. However, through oversight and case work we have learned how some veterans are missing out on this benefit.

This legislation makes a technical fix, which updates the law to define eligibility by counting Active Duty for training when guard and reservists are training for things like Special Forces, Aviation, or Linguistics.

These servicemembers deserve eligibility because they are going through the same courses and training as their Active Duty counterparts, taking the same risks, and passing the very same requirements.

Guard and reservists are at a greater disadvantage because they are removed from the civilian workforce for extended periods of time. After their training is complete, they transition back to civilian life, move back home from the base where they were training, find employment, and find a place to live.

This technical fix makes sure that guard and reservists don't miss out on using a great benefit from the VA home loan guarantee service.

I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Ryan), our newest Member, for taking up this issue and making veterans a priority. As an added bonus, this fix actually saves the Federal Government money by bringing more borrowers into the attractive low rates of the VA home loan program.

Madam Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, again, I ask all my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 8875, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Rep. Mike BostR-IL-12 · Sep 28, 2022

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in reluctant support of the Expanding Home Loans for Guard and Reservists Act. Last Congress, my bill, H.R. 7445,…

Rep. Chip RoyR-TX-21 · Sep 28, 2022

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Bill Text

Latest available legislative text

Reading Mode

Raw Text PDF XML

Introduced in HouseIssued April 7, 2022

I

117th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 7445

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 7, 2022

Mr. Brown of Maryland introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services

A BILL

To amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice to establish an independent convening authority for certain offenses, randomize jury selection, and improve reporting on racial and ethnic demographics, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This act may be cited as the Equal Justice Under Military Law Act.

2.

Modifications to covered offenses under uniform code of military justice

(a)

In general

Section 801(17)(A) of title 10, United States Code (article 1(17)(A) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), as amended by section 533 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81), is amended—

(1)

by inserting , section 921 (article 121), section 921a (article 121a), section 922 (article 122) after (article 120c); and

(2)

by inserting , section 926 (article 126), section 928(b) (article 128(b)), section 928(c) (article 128(c)) after (article 125).

(b)

Effective date

The amendments made by subsection (a) shall take effect immediately after the coming into effect of the amendments made by section 533 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81) as provided in section 539C of that Act.

3.

Establishment of independent convening authority for certain offenses

(a)

General courts-Martial

Section 822 of title 10, United States Code (article 22 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) is amended—

(1)

in subsection (a), by striking General courts-martial may be convened by and inserting Subject to subsection (c), general courts-martial may be convened by; and

(2)

by adding at the end the following new subsection:

(c)

A general court-martial involving a covered offense may be convened only by the independent convening authority designated by the President pursuant to section 3(d) of the Equal Justice Under Military Law Act.

.

(b)

Special courts-Martial

Section 823 of title 10, United States Code (article 23 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) is amended—

(1)

in subsection (a), by striking Special courts-martial may be convened by and inserting Subject to subsection (c), special courts-martial may be convened by; and

(2)

by adding at the end the following new subsection:

(c)

A special court-martial involving a covered offense may be convened only by the independent convening authority designated by the President pursuant to section 3(d) of the Equal Justice Under Military Law Act.

.

(c)

Effective date

The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect immediately after the coming into effect of the amendments made by part 1 of title V of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81) as provided in section 539C of that Act.

(d)

Designation of independent authority

(1)

In general

Not later than the effective date specified in subsection (c), the President shall designate an independent convening authority who shall have exclusive authority for convening general and special courts-martial involving covered offenses in accordance with sections 822(c) and 823(c) of title 10, United States Code (articles 22(c) and 23(c) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), as added by subsection (a). An independent convening authority designated under this subsection shall be an individual who is independent of the military chains of command of both the victims and those accused of covered offenses, and may include a special trial counsel.

(2)

Definitions

In this subsection:

(A)

The term covered offense has the meaning given that term in section 801(17) of title 10, United States Code (article 1(17) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), as added by section 533 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81) and further amended by section 2 of this Act.

(B)

The term special trial counsel has the meaning given that term in section 801(18) of title 10, United States Code (article 1(18) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), as added by section 533 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81).

(e)

Conforming amendment

Title V of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law 117–81) is amended by striking section 534.

4.

Selection process for members to serve on courts-martial

Section 825(e) of title 10, United States Code (article 25(e) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended—

(1)

by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) as paragraphs (3), (4), and (5), respectively;

(2)

by inserting after the subsection enumerator the following new paragraphs:

(1) When convening a court-martial, the convening authority shall detail as members thereof members of the armed forces under such regulations as the President may prescribe for the randomized selection of qualified personnel available to the convening authority for detail.

(2)

The randomized selection process developed and implemented under paragraph (1) may include parameter controls that—

(A)

allow for exclusions based on availability;

(B)

allow for controls based on military rank; and

(C)

allow for controls based on equitable representation on the basis of race, sex, and ethnicity.

; and

(3)

in paragraph (4), as so redesignated—

(A)

by striking the first sentence; and

(B)

by striking when he is and inserting when the member is.

5.

Modifications to annual reports on racial and ethnic demographics in the military justice system

Section 486 of title 10, United States Code, is amended—

(1)

in subsection (b)—

(A)

in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting and other information after statistics;

(B)

in paragraph (7), by striking and at the end;

(C)

in paragraph (8), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(D)

by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:

(9)

an estimate, based on survey data from the Armed Forces Workplace and Equal Opportunity Surveys, of the number of offenses committed by members of the armed force, disaggregated by—

(A)

statistical category as related to the victim; and

(B)

statistical category as related to the principal;

(10)

an analysis of any disparities among race, sex, and ethnicity in the incidence, reporting, disposition, and prosecution of offenses by units, commands, and installations during the year covered by the report, including trends relating to—

(A)

the prosecution of offenses; and

(B)

the prevalence of offenses, set forth separately for—

(i)

each installation with 5,000 or more servicemembers;

(ii)

the major career fields of any individuals involved in such incidents, including the fields of combat arms, aviation, logistics, maintenance, administration, and medical; and

(iii)

in the case of the Navy, the operational status (whether sea duty or shore duty) of any individuals involved in such incidents; and

(11)

the policies, procedures, and processes implemented by the Secretary concerned during the year covered by the report in response to any race, sex, or ethnicity disparities involving members of the armed force concerned.

; and

(2)

by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsection:

(d)

Publication

The Secretary of Defense shall—

(1)

publish on an appropriate publicly available website of the Department of Defense the reports required by subsection (a); and

(2)

ensure that any data included with each such report is made available in a machine-readable format that is downloadable, searchable, and sortable.

.