Supporting Our Coast Guard Members Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3066 To amend title 14, United States Code, to make certain changes to Coast Guard personnel programs, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 3, 2019 Mrs. FLETCHER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To amend title 14, United States Code, to make certain changes to Coast Guard personnel programs, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Supporting Our Coast 4 Guard Members Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. AUTHORITY FOR OFFICERS TO OPT OUT OF PRO- 6 MOTION BOARD CONSIDERATION. 7 (a) ELIGIBILITY OF OFFICERS FOR CONSIDERATION 8 FOR PROMOTION.—Section 2113 of title 14, United States 9 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3066 IH ‘‘(g)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Com- 1 mandant may provide that an officer may, upon the offi- 2 cer’s request and with the approval of the Commandant, 3 be excluded from consideration by a selection board con- 4 vened under section 2106(a). 5 ‘‘(2) The Commandant shall approve a request under 6 paragraph (1) only if— 7 ‘‘(A) the basis for the request is to allow the of- 8 ficer to complete a broadening assignment, advanced 9 education, another assignment of significant value to 10 the Coast Guard, a career progression requirement 11 delayed by the assignment or education, or a quali- 12 fying personal or professional circumstance, as de- 13 termined by the Commandant; 14 ‘‘(B) the Commandant determines the exclusion 15 from consideration is in the best interest of the 16 Coast Guard; and 17 ‘‘(C) the officer has not previously failed of se- 18 lection for promotion to the grade for which the offi- 19 cer requests the exclusion from consideration.’’. 20 (b) ELIGIBILITY OF RESERVE OFFICER FOR PRO- 21 MOTION.—Section 3743 of title 14, United States Code, 22 is amended to read as follows: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3066 IH ‘‘§ 3743. Eligibility for promotion 1 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 2 (b), a Reserve officer is eligible for consideration for pro- 3 motion and for promotion under this subchapter, if that 4 officer is in an active status. 5 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—A Reserve officer who has been 6 considered but not recommended for retention in an active 7 status by a board convened under subsection 3752(a) of 8 this title, is not eligible for consideration for promotion. 9 ‘‘(c) REQUEST FOR EXCLUSION.— 10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant may pro- 11 vide that an officer may, upon the officer’s request 12 and with the approval of the Commandant, be ex- 13 cluded from consideration by a selection board con- 14 vened under section 3740(b) of this title to consider 15 officers for promotion to the next higher grade. 16 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL OF REQUEST.—The Com- 17 mandant shall approve a request under paragraph 18 (1) only if— 19 ‘‘(A) the basis for the request is to allow 20 an officer to complete a broadening assignment, 21 advanced education, another assignment of sig- 22 nificant value to the Coast Guard, a career pro- 23 gression requirement delayed by the assignment 24 or education, or a qualifying personal or profes- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3066 IH sional circumstance, as determined by the Com- 1 mandant; 2 ‘‘(B) the Commandant determines the ex- 3 clusion from consideration is in the best inter- 4 est of the Coast Guard; and 5 ‘‘(C) the officer has not previously failed of 6 selection for promotion to the grade for which 7 the officer requests the exclusion from consider- 8 ation.’’. 9 SEC. 3. TEMPORARY PROMOTION AUTHORITY FOR OFFI- 10 CERS IN CERTAIN GRADES WITH CRITICAL 11 SKILLS. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 21 of title 14, United 13 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 2129 14 the following: 15 ‘‘§ 2130. Promotion to certain grades for officers with 16 critical skills: captain, commander, lieu- 17 tenant commander, lieutenant 18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—An officer in the grade of lieu- 19 tenant (junior grade), lieutenant, lieutenant commander, 20 or commander, who is described in subsection (b) may be 21 temporarily promoted to the grade of lieutenant, lieuten- 22 ant commander, commander, or captain under regulations 23 prescribed by the Secretary. Appointments under this sec- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3066 IH tion shall be made by the President, by and with the advice 1 and consent of the Senate. 2 ‘‘(b) COVERED OFFICERS.—An officer described in 3 this subsection is any officer in a grade specified in sub- 4 section (a) who— 5 ‘‘(1) has a skill in which the Coast Guard has 6 a critical shortage of personnel (as determined by 7 the Secretary); and 8 ‘‘(2) is serving in a position (as determined by 9 the Secretary) that— 10 ‘‘(A) is designated to be held by a lieuten- 11 ant, lieutenant commander, commander, or cap- 12 tain; and 13 ‘‘(B) requires that an officer serving in 14 such position have the skill possessed by such 15 officer. 16 ‘‘(c) PRESERVATION OF POSITION AND STATUS OF 17 OFFICERS APPOINTED.— 18 ‘‘(1) The temporary positions authorized under 19 this section shall not be counted among or included 20 in the list of positions on the active duty promotion 21 list. 22 ‘‘(2) An appointment under this section does 23 not change the position on the active-duty list or the 24 permanent, probationary, or acting status of the of- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3066 IH ficer so appointed, prejudice the officer in regard to 1 other promotions or appointments, or abridge the 2 rights or benefits of the officer. 3 ‘‘(d) BOARD RECOMMENDATION REQUIRED.—A tem- 4 porary promotion under this section may be made only 5 upon the recommendation of a board of officers convened 6 by the Secretary for the purpose of recommending officers 7 for such promotions. 8 ‘‘(e) ACCEPTANCE AND EFFECTIVE DATE OF AP- 9 POINTMENT.—Each appointment under this section, un- 10 less expressly declined, is, without formal acceptance, re- 11 garded as accepted on the date such appointment is made, 12 and a member so appointed is entitled to the pay and al- 13 lowances of the grade of the temporary promotion under 14 this section beginning on the date the appointment is 15 made. 16 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION OF APPOINTMENT.—Unless soon- 17 er terminated, an appointment under this section termi- 18 nates— 19 ‘‘(1) on the date the officer who received the 20 appointment is promoted to the permanent grade of 21 lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or 22 captain; 23 ‘‘(2) on the date the officer is detached from a 24 position described in subsection (b)(2), unless the of- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3066 IH ficer is on a promotion list to the permanent grade 1 of lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or 2 captain, in which case the appointment terminates 3 on the date the officer is promoted to that grade; or 4 ‘‘(3) when the appointment officer determines 5 that the officer who received the appointment has 6 engaged in misconduct or has displayed substandard 7 performance. 8 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON NUMBER OF ELIGIBLE POSI- 9 TIONS.—An appointment under this section may only be 10 made for service in a position designated by the Secretary 11 for the purposes of this section. The number of positions 12 so designated may not exceed the following percentages 13 of the respective grades: 14 ‘‘(1) As lieutenant, 0.5 percent. 15 ‘‘(2) As lieutenant commander, 3.0 percent. 16 ‘‘(3) As commander, 2.6 percent. 17 ‘‘(4) As captain, 2.6 percent.’’. 18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at the be- 19 ginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end 20 the following new item: 21 ‘‘2130. Promotion to certain grades for officers with critical skills: captain, com- mander, lieutenant commander, lieutenant.’’. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3066 IH SEC. 4. CAREER INTERMISSION PROGRAM. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 25 of title 2 14, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 3 the following: 4 ‘‘§ 2514. Career flexibility to enhance retention of 5 members 6 ‘‘(a) PROGRAMS AUTHORIZED.—The Commandant 7 may carry out a program under which members of the 8 Coast Guard may be inactivated from active service in 9 order to meet personal or professional needs and returned 10 to active service at the end of such period of inactivation 11 from active service. 12 ‘‘(b) PERIOD OF INACTIVATION FROM ACTIVE SERV- 13 ICE; EFFECT OF INACTIVATION.— 14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The period of inactivation 15 from active service under a program under this sec- 16 tion of a member participating in the program shall 17 be such period as the Commandant shall specify in 18 the agreement of the member under subsection (c), 19 except that such period may not exceed three years. 20 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION FROM YEARS OF SERVICE.— 21 Any service by a Reserve officer while participating 22 in a program under this section shall be excluded 23 from computation of the total years of service of 24 that officer pursuant to section 14706(a) of title 10. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3066 IH ‘‘(3) EXCLUSION FROM RETIREMENT.—Any pe- 1 riod of participation of a member in a program 2 under this section shall not count toward— 3 ‘‘(A) eligibility for retirement or transfer 4 to the Ready Reserve under either chapter 571 5 or 1223 of title 10; or 6 ‘‘(B) computation of retired or retainer 7 pay under chapter 71 or 1223 of title 10. 8 ‘‘(c) AGREEMENT.—Each member of the Coast 9 Guard who participates in a program under this section 10 shall enter into a written agreement with the Commandant 11 under which that member shall agree as follows: 12 ‘‘(1) To accept an appointment or enlist, as ap- 13 plicable, and serve in the Coast Guard Ready Re- 14 serve during the period of the inactivation of the 15 member from active service under the program. 16 ‘‘(2) To undergo during the period of the inac- 17 tivation of the member from active service under the 18 program such inactive service training as the Com- 19 mandant shall require in order to ensure that the 20 member retains proficiency, at a level determined by 21 the Commandant to be sufficient, in the military 22 skills, professional qualifications, and physical readi- 23 ness of the member during the inactivation of the 24 member from active service. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3066 IH ‘‘(3) Following completion of the period of the 1 inactivation of the member from active service under 2 the program, to serve two months as a member of 3 the Coast Guard on active service for each month of 4 the period of the inactivation of the member from 5 active service under the program. 6 ‘‘(d) CONDITIONS OF RELEASE.—The Commandant 7 shall prescribe regulations specifying the guidelines re- 8 garding the conditions of release that must be considered 9 and addressed in the agreement required by subsection 10 (c). At a minimum, the Commandant shall prescribe the 11 procedures and standards to be used to instruct a member 12 on the obligations to be assumed by the member under 13 paragraph (2) of such subsection while the member is re- 14 leased from active service. 15 ‘‘(e) ORDER TO ACTIVE SERVICE.—Under regula- 16 tions prescribed by the Commandant, a member of the 17 Coast Guard participating in a program under this section 18 may, in the discretion of the Commandant, be required 19 to terminate participation in the program and be ordered 20 to active service. 21 ‘‘(f) PAY AND ALLOWANCES.— 22 ‘‘(1) BASIC PAY.—During each month of par- 23 ticipation in a program under this section, a member 24 who participates in the program shall be paid basic 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3066 IH pay in an amount equal to two-thirtieths of the 1 amount of monthly basic pay to which the member 2 would otherwise be entitled under section 204 of title 3 37 as a member of the uniformed services on active 4 service in the grade and years of service of the mem- 5 ber when the member commences participation in 6 the program. 7 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL OR INCENTIVE PAY OR BONUS.— 8 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—A member who par- 9 ticipates in such a program shall not, while par- 10 ticipating in the program, be paid any special 11 or incentive pay or bonus to which the member 12 is otherwise entitled under an agreement under 13 chapter 5 of title 37 or section 1925 of this title 14 that is in force when the member commences 15 participation in the program. 16 ‘‘(B) NOT TREATED AS FAILURE TO PER- 17 FORM SERVICES.—The inactivation from active 18 service of a member participating in a program 19 shall not be treated as a failure of the member 20 to perform any period of service required of the 21 member in connection with an agreement for a 22 special or incentive pay or bonus under chapter 23 5 of title 37 that is in force when the member 24 commences participation in the program. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Jun 25, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3066.IH H3066 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 3066 IH ‘‘(3) RETURN TO ACTIVE SERVICE.— 1 ‘‘(A) SPECIAL OR INCENTIVE PAY OR 2 BONUS.—Subject to subparagraph (B), upon 3 the return of a member to active service after 4 completion by the member of participation in a 5 program— 6 ‘‘(i) any agreement entered into by 7 the member under chapter 5 of title 37 for 8 the payment of a special or incentive pay 9 or bonus that was in force when the mem- 10 [Text truncated for display. 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