LAUTENBERG ANNOUNCES $534.4 MILLION FOR STOP-LOSS BONUSES IN SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING BILL

LAUTENBERG ANNOUNCES $534.4 MILLION FOR STOP-LOSS BONUSES IN SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING BILL
Provision Would Provide Payments to Service Members Held Beyond Enlistment Between 2001-2008

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ), today announced that $534.4 million is included in legislation to pay retroactive bonuses to troops affected by "stop loss," a policy which involuntarily extends military service beyond an enlistment contract, between 2001 and 2008. The funding for the retroactive bonuses was included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Act, which a key conference committee passed last night and must now be approved by both the full Senate and House before being sent to the President for his signature.   
 
"Troops who risk their lives beyond their scheduled enlistment deserve to be rewarded for their sacrifice and commitment," Sen. Lautenberg said.  "These bonuses are the least we can do for service members kept from their families because of a stop-loss policy that was abused in the past and will soon be eliminated."
 
Lautenberg has been the Senate leader calling for stop-loss compensation and served on the Senate-House conference committee on the FY2009 Supplemental that approved the new bonuses.  Troops affected by stop loss at end of 2008 and during 2009 will already receive monthly bonuses due to a provision championed by Lautenberg, Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) and Chairman of the House Defense appropriations Subcommittee John Murtha that became law last September.
 
The military's stop loss policy could keep a soldier in service if his or her unit deploys within 90 days of the end of the soldier's commitment. However, troops were not compensated for that extra commitment.  In total, more than 185,000 troops have been affected by stop loss since 2002 and according to the Army, approximately 12,000 troops are currently stop-lossed, including active duty, Reserve and National Guard troops.  In March 2009, the Pentagon announced it would end the stop loss policy.
 
Lautenberg's continued efforts to compensate stop-loss soldiers have been supported by leading veterans and military service organizations, including the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS), the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) and Veterans for America (VFA). 
 
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