Congress·In Committee·H.R. 2102

Rep. Bilirakis Introduces Major Richard Star Act to End Benefit Offsets for Combat-Injured Veterans

Major Richard Star Act

11 months ago·View on Congress.gov

⏸

Stalled

No legislative action in over 90 days.

↔Companion bill: Bipartisan Bill in Congress Aims to End Benefit Cuts for Combat-Injured Veterans

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill would allow veterans who were forced to retire early due to combat-related injuries to receive their full military retirement pay and their VA disability compensation at the same time. Currently, many of these veterans have their retirement pay reduced by the amount of disability pay they receive.
The change specifically helps 'Chapter 61' retirees, who are service members medically retired with fewer than 20 years of service because of injuries sustained in combat or combat-related training. It aims to end what many veterans' groups call an unfair 'offset' that forces injured heroes to give up part of the pension they earned.
If passed, the new rules would take effect on the first day of the first month after the bill is signed into law. This would provide a significant monthly income boost for thousands of veterans who were injured in the line of duty and could no longer serve a full 20-year career.
The bill has massive bipartisan support, with Rep. Bilirakis and over 150 co-sponsors from both parties signing on at the time of introduction. This broad support highlights a shared goal of ensuring that combat-injured veterans receive the full value of the benefits they were promised.

VeteransNational Security Foreign Policy

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Who is affectedScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

3 milestones3 actions

Apr 4, 2025House

Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Mar 14, 2025House

Referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Mar 14, 2025

Introduced in House

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

First day of the first month after the bill is signed into law

Concurrent receipt payments begin for eligible combat-injured veterans

Thousands of combat-disabled retirees would start receiving both their full military retirement pay and VA disability compensation in the same month, potentially adding hundreds or thousands of dollars to their monthly income.

Related News

1 article

Military.com·about 2 months ago

Disabled Combat Veterans Feel Shortchanged, Push for Retirement Benefits

Veterans are advocating for the Major Richard Star Act to eliminate a policy that prevents combat-injured retirees with less than 20 years of service from accessing full retirement benefits. The bill has widespread bipartisan support but faces challenges regarding its funding.