Love Lives On Act of 2023

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1266 To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve benefits and services for surviving spouses, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 25, 2023 Mr. MORAN (for himself, Mr. WARNOCK, Mr. COTTON, Ms. WARREN, and Ms. HIRONO) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs A BILL To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve benefits and services for surviving spouses, 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 ‘‘Love Lives On Act 4 of 2023’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •S 1266 IS SEC. 2. REMOVAL OF EXPIRATION ON ENTITLEMENT TO 1 MARINE GUNNERY SERGEANT JOHN DAVID 2 FRY SCHOLARSHIP FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES. 3 Section 3311(f) of title 38, United States Code, is 4 amended— 5 (1) by striking paragraph (2); 6 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through 7 (5) as paragraphs (2) through (4), respectively; 8 (3) in paragraph (2), as redesignated by para- 9 graph (2) of this section, by striking ‘‘in paragraph 10 (4)’’ and inserting ‘‘in paragraph (3)’’; and 11 (4) in paragraph (3)(A), as redesignated by 12 paragraph (2) of this section, by striking ‘‘under 13 paragraph (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘under paragraph 14 (2)’’. 15 SEC. 3. MODIFICATION OF ENTITLEMENT TO VETERANS 16 DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSA- 17 TION FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES WHO RE- 18 MARRY. 19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(d) of title 38, United 20 States Code, is amended— 21 (1) in paragraph (2)(B)— 22 (A) by inserting ‘‘(i)’’ before ‘‘The remar- 23 riage’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •S 1266 IS (B) in clause (i), as designated by subpara- 1 graph (A), by striking ‘‘Notwithstanding the 2 previous sentence’’ and inserting the following: 3 ‘‘(ii) Notwithstanding clause (i)’’; and 4 (C) by adding at the end the following new 5 clause: 6 ‘‘(iii) Notwithstanding clause (ii), the remarriage of 7 a surviving spouse shall not bar the furnishing of benefits 8 under section 1311 of this title to the surviving spouse 9 of a veteran.’’; and 10 (2) in paragraph (5)— 11 (A) by striking subparagraph (A); and 12 (B) by renumbering subparagraphs (B) 13 through (E) as subparagraphs (A) through (D), 14 respectively. 15 (b) RESUMPTION OF PAYMENTS TO CERTAIN INDI- 16 VIDUALS PREVIOUSLY DENIED DEPENDENCY AND IN- 17 DEMNITY COMPENSATION.—Beginning on the first day of 18 the first month after the date of the enactment of this 19 Act, the Secretary shall resume payment of dependency 20 and indemnity compensation under section 1311 of such 21 title to each living individual who— 22 (1) is the surviving spouse of a veteran; and 23 (2) remarried before— 24 (A) reaching age 55; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •S 1266 IS (B) the date of the enactment of this Act. 1 SEC. 4. CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR SURVIVOR BENEFIT 2 PLAN FOR CERTAIN SURVIVING SPOUSES 3 WHO REMARRY. 4 Section 1450(b)(2) of title 10, United States Code, 5 is amended— 6 (1) by striking ‘‘An annuity’’ and inserting the 7 following: 8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—(A) Subject to sub- 9 paragraph (B), an annuity’’; and 10 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub- 11 paragraph: 12 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF SURVIVORS OF MEM- 13 BERS WHO DIE ON ACTIVE DUTY.—The Sec- 14 retary may not terminate payment of an annu- 15 ity for a surviving spouse described in subpara- 16 graph (A) or (B) of section 1448(d)(1) solely 17 because that surviving spouse remarries. In the 18 case of a surviving spouse who remarried before 19 reaching age 55 and before the date of the en- 20 actment of Love Lives On Act of 2023, the Sec- 21 retary shall resume payment of the annuity to 22 that surviving spouse— 23 ‘‘(i) except as provided by clause (ii), 24 for each month that begins on or after the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •S 1266 IS date that is one year after such date of en- 1 actment; or 2 ‘‘(ii) on January 1, 2023, in the case 3 of a surviving spouse who elected to trans- 4 fer payment of that annuity to a surviving 5 child or children under the provisions of 6 section 1448(d)(2)(B) of title 10, United 7 States Code, as in effect on December 31, 8 2019.’’. 9 SEC. 5. ACCESS TO COMMISSARY AND EXCHANGE PRIVI- 10 LEGES FOR REMARRIED SPOUSES. 11 (a) BENEFITS.—Section 1062 of title 10, United 12 States Code, is amended— 13 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary of Defense’’ and 14 inserting the following: 15 ‘‘(a) CERTAIN UNREMARRIED FORMER SPOUSES.— 16 The Secretary of Defense’’; 17 (2) by striking ‘‘commissary and exchange 18 privileges’’ and inserting ‘‘use commissary stores 19 and MWR retail facilities’’; 20 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub- 21 section: 22 ‘‘(b) CERTAIN REMARRIED SURVIVING SPOUSES.— 23 The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe such regulations 24 as may be necessary to provide that a surviving spouse 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •S 1266 IS of a deceased member of the armed forces, regardless of 1 the marital status of the surviving spouse, is entitled to 2 use commissary stores and MWR retail facilities to the 3 same extent and on the same basis as an unremarried sur- 4 viving spouse of a member of the uniformed services.’’; 5 and 6 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub- 7 section: 8 ‘‘(c) MWR RETAIL FACILITIES DEFINED.—In this 9 section, the term ‘MWR retail facilities’ has the meaning 10 given that term in section 1063(e) of this title.’’. 11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 12 (1) SECTION HEADING.—The heading of section 13 1062 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to 14 read as follows: 15 ‘‘§ 1062. Certain former spouses and surviving 16 spouses’’. 17 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 18 at the beginning of chapter 54 of title 10, United 19 States Code, is amended by striking the item relat- 20 ing to section 1062 and inserting the following new 21 item: 22 ‘‘1062. Certain former spouses and surviving spouses.’’. VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •S 1266 IS SEC. 6. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF DEPENDENT UNDER 1 TRICARE PROGRAM TO INCLUDE A REMAR- 2 RIED WIDOW OR WIDOWER WHOSE SUBSE- 3 QUENT MARRIAGE HAS ENDED. 4 Section 1072(2) of title 10, United States Code, is 5 amended— 6 (1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 7 and inserting a semicolon; 8 (2) in subparagraph (I)(v), by striking the pe- 9 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 10 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub- 11 paragraph: 12 ‘‘(J) a remarried widow or widower whose 13 subsequent marriage has ended due to death, 14 divorce, or annulment.’’. 15 SEC. 7. DEFINITION OF SURVIVING SPOUSE FOR PURPOSES 16 OF VETERANS BENEFITS. 17 Paragraph (3) of section 101 of title 38, United 18 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 19 ‘‘(3) The term ‘surviving spouse’ means (except 20 for purposes of chapter 19 of this title) a person 21 who was the spouse of a veteran at the time of the 22 veteran’s death, and who lived with the veteran con- 23 tinuously from the date of marriage to the date of 24 the veteran’s death (except where there was a sepa- 25 ration which was due to the misconduct of, or pro- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •S 1266 IS cured by, the veteran without the fault of the 1 spouse) and who has not remarried.’’. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S1266.IS S1266 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB