New Dem Play | Rewarding military families for their sacrifice by improving their quality of life.
Where It's Working | Kentucky
Players | State and local officials
Our modern military is the best trained, best equipped fighting force in the world. But the individual members of that force face difficulties unlike those of previous generations of soldiers. The strains of that service are putting pressure on their families and jeopardizing recruitment capabilities. Unlike the Army of 1973, which was made up mostly of single draftees, today's all-volunteer Army is largely composed of married personnel who have children. While most have learned skills that would be better rewarded in the private sector, the average soldier falls into the bottom quartile of American wage-earners. A survey of Army spouses conducted last year by The Washington Post, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard University found that three-quarters believed that the Army is going to encounter personnel problems as soldiers and their families tire of the strain and leave for civilian lives.
Recognizing these unique struggles, former Kentucky State Treasurer Jonathan Miller created the Military Families' Bill of Rights to provide services that improve these families' quality of life and give recognition and gratitude for their contribution to American life. Miller's plan, laid out in his book, The Compassionate Community, calls for an "inviolable contract" with the men and women of the Armed services and the families they leave behind. Modeled on best practices from a variety of other states (notably Illinois and Virginia), the Bill of Rights is intended to become a truly comprehensive approach to supporting military families.
"It's only right that we help provide financial security for the families of those brave men and women who are providing for our nation's security."
-- Former State Treasurer Jonathan Miller, Kentucky
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The Kentucky Treasury outlines the Bill of Rights as follows:
Every military family shall be provided free, comprehensive financial education;
No military family shall be subjected to predatory financial practices;
All military families shall have access to counseling and emotional support when a family member is deployed, activated, or killed or disabled in action;
Every military family shall be provided a safety net to protect them from a life of poverty;
The spouse of a service member shall be able to take reasonable leave when his or her spouse has been deployed and shall be freed from administrative red tape to earn a living;
Adequate and appropriate death benefits shall be provided for all veterans and members and retirees of the Reserve and the National Guard;
The right of every National Guard member or Reservist called into active duty to receive supplemental income shall be encouraged through tax incentives to private employers and through state tax deductions for active service;
Veterans and members of the National Guard and Reserve shall receive adequate and affordable health care for their entire lives;
Job preferences for veterans shall be provided by the state and encouraged through tax incentives to private employers; and veterans shall be protected from penalties due to time spent in service; and
Military families shall receive access to affordable higher education and occupational training, and shall receive help in identifying and obtaining other benefits that are available to them.
Miller has put a special emphasis on asking civilian Kentuckians to take part in these efforts to support military families, many of whom feel they have shouldered the sacrifice of the Iraq war alone. In the spring of 2006, he launched a money mentoring program that pairs volunteers in every Kentucky county with a military family in need of assistance with financial planning and budgeting. Volunteers meet with these families a few hours each month to provide advice that will allow them to develop sound budgeting skills, claim all the benefits available to them, prepare for deployments and transfers, and avoid financial predators scheming against them. Training and military-specific education are provided so that anyone with good budgeting skills can help.
In April 2006, the Military Families' Bill of Rights passed the Kentucky State Legislature, providing a safety net for military families struggling with economic hardship, and encouraging them to achieve financial self-sufficiency. Kentucky Rep. Mike Weaver, a colonel and veteran of the Vietnam conflict, championed the bill in the Kentucky General Assembly.
One key element of the legislation, modeled on a successful Illinois program spearheaded by Lt. Governor Pat Quinn, established an assistance fund from military families based on voluntary contributions. Unfortunately, Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher has yet to make appointments to the board authorized to supervise this fund, but the system is in place to move forward when that step is taken.
The Compassionate Community
www.thecompassionatecommunity.com/
Military Families' Bill of Rights
www.kytreasury.com/misc/mfbr.html
Legislative Agenda
www.kytreasury.com/misc/mfbr_leg.html
Illinois Military Family Assistance Program
www.operationhomefront.com
Ed Kilgore
Senior Fellow
Democratic Leadership Council
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE,
Suite 400
Washington, DC 20003
(202) 547-0001
(202) 544 5014 (fax)
ekilgore@dlc.org
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