Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2024

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Takano for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 2911, the Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2024.

I first thank Chairmen Bost and Luttrell and Ranking Members Takano and Pappas for working with me to get this bill to the floor. I also thank my partners in this effort, Congressman Don Bacon and Senator John Cornyn.

The Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act would help ensure that life insurance benefits for servicemembers and veterans account for changes in the economy. This legislation would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to periodically review and report on the maximum coverage available under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance and Veterans' Group Life Insurance. Accurate and reliable data will allow the VA to make necessary policy adjustments to ensure accurate payments.

I have the honor of representing Joint Base Lewis-McChord and tens of thousands of servicemembers and their families who call the South Sound home. Our servicemembers courageously put their lives on the line for their country, and it is our duty to reciprocate and help them. This means ensuring the well-being of their families and loved ones in the event of a tragedy.

Servicemembers' life insurance plans must keep pace with economic demands. A robust life insurance policy can provide a grieving family with the security they need to navigate the loss of their loved ones with dignity.

The brave men and women who sacrifice their lives deserve peace of mind, knowing that their families will be taken care of.

For nearly two decades, the maximum coverage of the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance and Veterans' Group Life Insurance programs have been stagnant, even as the cost of housing, goods, and services rose, as they typically do over time.

This bill would ensure that these programs are reviewed periodically to verify that their value sufficiently reflects the contemporary Consumer Price Index.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their unwavering commitment to supporting veterans and their families and for prioritizing their care.

Finally, I will take a point of privilege to thank my Army fellow who worked in my office last year, Major Felix Gumbiner, for bringing this issue to my attention and for working with the offices of Congressman Bacon and Senator Cornyn to develop this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the House passing the Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2024 and for it to become the law of the land.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 2911, the Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2024, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, last Congress, we passed S. 2794 into law. This bill increased the maximum coverage amount under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance, or SGLI, program and the Veterans' Group Life Insurance, or VGLI, program from $400,000 to $500,000.

Prior to that legislation, however, those maximum coverage amounts had not increased since 2005, clearly failing to keep pace with inflation.

To ensure that we are not waiting another decade or more to improve this benefit for our servicemembers and veterans, my good friend, Representative Marilyn Strickland, has introduced this bill, which requires VA to periodically review coverage amounts every 5 years and to report to Congress what the level of benefits would be if adjusted for inflation over that period.

This will allow Congress to regularly make a more informed decision about whether or not these maximum coverage amounts should be increased.

Mr. Speaker, this is commonsense legislation that allows Congress to better do our part to support servicemembers, veterans, and their families, and I encourage my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Strickland), my good friend who is the author of H.R. 2911. She serves on the Armed Services Committee and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2911, the Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2024, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2911) to amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to periodically review the automatic maximum coverage under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance program and the Veterans' Group Life Insurance program, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 2911, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2911, as amended. This bill was introduced by Representative Strickland and co-led by our colleagues, Representative Bacon and Representative Turner.

H.R. 2911, as amended, would require VA to regularly review and compare the maximum coverage under the VA life insurance programs with average cost-of-living changes across the country.

Mr. Speaker, I support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.