US Congress Senate Bill 1956 (Prior Session Legislation)

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Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 29-0)
Status: Introduced on January 16 2014 - 25% progression, died in committee
Action: 2014-01-16 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
Pending: Senate Armed Services Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]

Restore Honor to Service Members Act - Requires appropriate military record correction boards or discharge review boards to review the discharge characterization of any former members of the Armed Forces requesting a review who were discharged because of their sexual orientation. Permits such boards to change a characterization to honorable if such characterization is any characterization except honorable. Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to ensure that any such changes are carried out consistently and uniformly across the military departments using specified criteria, including that: (1) the original discharge was based on the policy of Don't Ask Don't Tell (as in effect before it was repealed pursuant to the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010) or a similar earlier policy; and (2) the discharge characterization will be changed if, with respect to the original discharge, there were no aggravating circumstances, such as misconduct, that would have independently led to any discharge characterization except honorable. Prohibits "aggravating circumstances" from including: (1) an offense of sodomy committed by the member against a consenting person of the same sex; or (2) statements, consensual sexual conduct, or consensual acts relating to sexual orientation or identity, or the disclosure of such statements, conduct, or acts, that were prohibited at the time of discharge but that became permitted after such discharge. Directs the Secretary of each military department to ensure that oral historians of the department: (1) review discharges between World War II and September 2011 based on sexual orientation, and (2) receive oral testimony of individuals who personally experienced discrimination and discharge because of actual or perceived sexual orientation so that such testimony may serve as an official record of such discriminatory policies and their impact on American lives. Requires the reissuance of specified military personnel records and discharge forms in a manner that shall not reflect the sexual orientation of the member.

Restore Honor to Service Members Act

Sen. Brian Schatz [D-HI]	Sen. Tammy Baldwin [D-WI]	Sen. Mark Begich [D-AK]	Sen. Michael Bennet [D-CO]
Sen. Cory Booker [D-NJ]	Sen. Barbara Boxer [D-CA]	Sen. Sherrod Brown [D-OH]	Sen. Maria Cantwell [D-WA]
Sen. Benjamin Cardin [D-MD]	Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]	Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D-CA]	Sen. Al Franken [D-MN]
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand [D-NY]	Sen. Martin Heinrich [D-NM]	Sen. Heidi Heitkamp [D-ND]	Sen. Mazie Hirono [D-HI]
Sen. Amy Klobuchar [D-MN]	Sen. Edward Markey [D-MA]	Sen. Robert Menendez [D-NJ]	Sen. Jeff Merkley [D-OR]
Sen. Christopher Murphy [D-CT]	Sen. John Rockefeller [D-WV]	Sen. Charles Schumer [D-NY]	Sen. Jeanne Shaheen [D-NH]
Sen. Mark Udall [D-CO]	Sen. Tom Udall [D-NM]	Sen. Elizabeth Warren [D-MA]	Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse [D-RI]
Sen. Ron Wyden [D-OR]

Date	Chamber	Action
2014-01-16	Senate	Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

HB2839 (Related) 2013-08-29 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

Type	Source
Summary	https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/senate-bill/1956/all-info
Text	https://www.congress.gov/113/bills/s1956/BILLS-113s1956is.pdf