Restore Honor to Service Members Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1991 To direct the Secretary of Defense to review the discharge characterization of former members of the Armed Forces who were discharged by reason of the sexual orientation of the member, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 26, 2019 Mr. SCHATZ (for himself, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BENNET, Mr. BROWN, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. CARPER, Mr. CASEY, Mr. COONS, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. DURBIN, Ms. HARRIS, Ms. HIRONO, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. TESTER, Mr. UDALL, Ms. WARREN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. WYDEN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and Mr. PETERS) in- troduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Armed Services A BILL To direct the Secretary of Defense to review the discharge characterization of former members of the Armed Forces who were discharged by reason of the sexual orientation of the member, 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 ‘‘Restore Honor to Serv- 4 ice Members Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1991 IS SEC. 2. REVIEW OF DISCHARGE CHARACTERIZATION. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with this section, 2 the appropriate discharge boards— 3 (1) shall review the discharge characterization 4 of covered members at the request of the covered 5 member; and 6 (2) if such characterization is any characteriza- 7 tion except honorable, may change such character- 8 ization to honorable. 9 (b) CRITERIA.—In changing the discharge character- 10 ization of a covered member to honorable under subsection 11 (a)(2), the Secretary of Defense shall ensure that such 12 changes are carried out consistently and uniformly across 13 the military departments using the following criteria: 14 (1) The original discharge must be based on 15 Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (in this Act referred to as 16 ‘‘DADT’’) or a similar policy in place prior to the 17 enactment of DADT. 18 (2) Such discharge characterization shall be so 19 changed if, with respect to the original discharge, 20 there were no aggravating circumstances, such as 21 misconduct, that would have independently led to a 22 discharge characterization that was any character- 23 ization except honorable. For purposes of this para- 24 graph, such aggravating circumstances may not in- 25 clude— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1991 IS (A) an offense under section 925 of title 1 10, United States Code (article 125 of the Uni- 2 form Code of Military Justice), committed by a 3 covered member against a person of the same 4 sex with the consent of such person; or 5 (B) statements, consensual sexual conduct, 6 or consensual acts relating to sexual orientation 7 or identity, or the disclosure of such state- 8 ments, conduct, or acts, that were prohibited at 9 the time of discharge but after the date of such 10 discharge became permitted. 11 (3) When requesting a review, a covered mem- 12 ber, or the member’s representative, shall be re- 13 quired to provide either— 14 (A) documents consisting of— 15 (i) a copy of the DD–214 form of the 16 member; 17 (ii) a personal affidavit of the cir- 18 cumstances surrounding the discharge; and 19 (iii) any relevant records pertaining to 20 the discharge; or 21 (B) an affidavit certifying that the mem- 22 ber, or the member’s representative, does not 23 have the documents specified in subparagraph 24 (A). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1991 IS (4) If a covered member provides an affidavit 1 described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3)— 2 (A) the appropriate discharge board shall 3 make every effort to locate the documents speci- 4 fied in subparagraph (A) of such paragraph 5 within the records of the Department of De- 6 fense; and 7 (B) the absence of such documents may 8 not be considered a reason to deny a change of 9 the discharge characterization under subsection 10 (a)(2). 11 (c) REQUEST FOR REVIEW.—The appropriate dis- 12 charge board shall ensure the mechanism by which covered 13 members, or their representative, may request to have the 14 discharge characterization of the covered member reviewed 15 under this section is simple and straightforward. 16 (d) REVIEW.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—After a request has been 18 made under subsection (c), the appropriate dis- 19 charge board shall review all relevant laws, records 20 of oral testimony previously taken, service records, 21 or any other relevant information regarding the dis- 22 charge characterization of the covered member. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1991 IS (2) ADDITIONAL MATERIALS.—If additional 1 materials are necessary for the review, the appro- 2 priate discharge board— 3 (A) may request additional information 4 from the covered member or the member’s rep- 5 resentative, in writing, and specifically detailing 6 what is being requested; and 7 (B) shall be responsible for obtaining a 8 copy of the necessary files of the covered mem- 9 ber from the member, or when applicable, from 10 the Department of Defense. 11 (e) CHANGE OF CHARACTERIZATION.—The appro- 12 priate discharge board shall change the discharge charac- 13 terization of a covered member to honorable if such change 14 is determined to be appropriate after a review is conducted 15 under subsection (d) pursuant to the criteria under sub- 16 section (b). A covered member, or the member’s represent- 17 ative, may appeal a decision by the appropriate discharge 18 board to not change the discharge characterization by 19 using the regular appeals process of the board. 20 (f) CHANGE OF RECORDS.—For each covered mem- 21 ber whose discharge characterization is changed under 22 subsection (e), or for each covered member who was hon- 23 orably discharged but whose DD–214 form reflects the 24 sexual orientation of the member, the Secretary of Defense 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1991 IS shall reissue to the member or the member’s representa- 1 tive a revised DD–214 form that reflects the following: 2 (1) For each covered member discharged, the 3 Separation Code, Reentry Code, Narrative Code, and 4 Separation Authority shall not reflect the sexual ori- 5 entation of the member and shall be placed under 6 secretarial authority. Any other similar indication of 7 the sexual orientation or reason for discharge shall 8 be removed or changed accordingly to be consistent 9 with this paragraph. 10 (2) For each covered member whose discharge 11 occurred prior to the creation of general secretarial 12 authority, the sections of the DD–214 form referred 13 to paragraph (1) shall be changed to similarly reflect 14 a universal authority with codes, authorities, and 15 language applicable at the time of discharge. 16 (g) STATUS.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each covered member whose 18 discharge characterization is changed under sub- 19 section (e) shall be treated without regard to the 20 original discharge characterization of the member, 21 including for purposes of— 22 (A) benefits provided by the Federal Gov- 23 ernment to an individual by reason of service in 24 the Armed Forces; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1991 IS (B) all recognitions and honors that the 1 Secretary of Defense provides to members of 2 the Armed Forces. 3 (2) REINSTATEMENT.—In carrying out para- 4 graph (1)(B), the Secretary shall reinstate all rec- 5 ognitions and honors of a covered member whose 6 discharge characterization is changed under sub- 7 section (e) that the Secretary withheld because of 8 the original discharge characterization of the mem- 9 ber. 10 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE OF CHANGE OF CHARAC- 11 TERIZATION FOR VETERANS BENEFITS.—For pur- 12 poses of the provision of benefits to which veterans 13 are entitled under the laws administered by the Sec- 14 retary of Veterans Affairs to a covered member 15 whose discharge characterization is changed under 16 subsection (e), the date of discharge of the member 17 from the Armed Forces shall be deemed to be the 18 effective date of the change of discharge character- 19 ization under that subsection. 20 (4) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sub- 21 section shall be construed to authorize any benefit to 22 a covered member in connection with the change of 23 discharge characterization of the member under sub- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1991 IS section (e) for any period before the effective date of 1 the change of discharge characterization. 2 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 3 (1) The term ‘‘appropriate discharge board’’ 4 means the boards for correction of military records 5 under section 1552 of title 10, United States Code, 6 or the discharge review boards under section 1553 7 of such title, as the case may be. 8 (2) The term ‘‘covered member’’ means any 9 former member of the Armed Forces who was dis- 10 charged from the Armed Forces because of the sex- 11 ual orientation of the member. 12 (3) The term ‘‘discharge characterization’’ 13 means the characterization under which a member 14 of the Armed Forces is discharged or released, in- 15 cluding ‘‘dishonorable’’, ‘‘general’’, ‘‘other than hon- 16 orable’’, and ‘‘honorable’’. 17 (4) The term ‘‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’’ means 18 section 654 of title 10, United States Code, as in ef- 19 fect before such section was repealed pursuant to the 20 Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act of 2010 (Public 21 Law 111–321). 22 (5) The term ‘‘representative’’ means the sur- 23 viving spouse, next of kin, or legal representative of 24 a covered member. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1991 IS SEC. 3. TIGER TEAM FOR OUTREACH TO FORMER MEM- 1 BERS. 2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 3 gress that— 4 (1) the mission of the Department of Defense 5 is to provide the military forces needed to deter war 6 and to protect the security of the United States; 7 (2) expanding outreach to veterans impacted by 8 DADT or a similar policy prior to the enactment of 9 DADT is important to closing a period of history 10 harmful to the creed of integrity, respect, and honor 11 of the military; 12 (3) the Department is responsible for providing 13 for the review of a veteran’s military record before 14 the appropriate discharge review board or, when 15 more than 15 years has passed, board of correction 16 for military or naval records; and 17 (4) the Secretary of Defense should, wherever 18 possible, coordinate and conduct outreach to im- 19 pacted veterans through the veterans community 20 and networks, including through the Department of 21 Veterans Affairs and veterans service organizations, 22 to ensure that veterans understand the review proc- 23 esses that are available to them for upgrading mili- 24 tary records. 25 (b) TIGER TEAM.— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1991 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 1 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 2 of Defense shall establish a team (commonly known 3 as a ‘‘tiger team’’ and referred to in this section as 4 the ‘‘Tiger Team’’) responsible for conducting out- 5 reach to build awareness among former members of 6 the Armed Forces of the process established pursu- 7 ant to section 2 for the review of discharge charac- 8 terizations by appropriate discharge boards. The 9 Tiger Team shall consist of appropriate personnel of 10 the Department of Defense assigned to the Tiger 11 Team by the Secretary for purposes of this section. 12 (2) TIGER TEAM LEADER.—One of the persons 13 assigned to the Tiger Team under paragraph (1) 14 shall be a senior-level officer or employee of the De- 15 partment who shall serve as the lead official of the 16 Tiger Team (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Tiger 17 Team Leader’’) and who shall be accountable for the 18 activities of the Tiger Team under this section. 19 (3) REPORT ON COMPOSITION.—Not later than 20 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 21 the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report set- 22 ting forth the names of the personnel of the Depart- 23 ment assigned to the Tiger Team pursuant to this 24 subsection, including the positions to which assigned. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:26 Jul 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1991 IS The report shall specify the name of the individual 1 assigned as Tiger Team Leader. 2 (c) DUTIES.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Tiger Team shall con- 4 duct outreach to build awareness among veterans of 5 the process established pursuant to section 2 for the 6 review of discharge characterizations by appropriate 7 discharge boards. 8 (2) COLLABORATION.—In conducting activities 9 under this subsection, the Tiger Team Leader shall 10 identify appropriate external stakeholders with 11 whom the Tiger Team shall work to carry out such 12 activities. Such stakeholders shall include the fol- 13 lowing: 14 (A) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 15 (B) The Archivist of the United States. 16 (C) Representatives of veterans service or- 17 ganizations. 18 (D) Such other stakeholders as the Tiger 19 Team Leader considers appropriate. 20 (3) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec- 22 retary of Defense shall submit to Congress the fol- 23 lowing: 24 (A) A plan setting forth the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:00 Jul 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1991.IS S1991 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1991 IS (i) A description of the manner in 1 which the Secretary, working through the 2 Tiger Team and in collaboration with ex- 3 ternal stakeholder [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]