Blumenthal Announces He Will Live UC & Force NDAA Amendment Votes on the Major Richard Star Act This Week

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ranking Member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, today announced he will ask for unanimous consent this week to advance the Major Richard Star Act-bipartisan legislation to deliver 59,000 combat-injured veterans their full military benefits. He also announced he will force amendment votes on the legislation during the Senate Armed Services Committee markup on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This bipartisan legislation has been blocked twice in the last year by Senate Republican leadership.

"This week, I will again demand passage of the Major Richard Star Act on the Senate Floor, and plan on forcing votes on the legislation during the NDAA markup. Secretary Pete Hegseth supports the legislation. 79 Republican and Democrat Senators cosponsor it. 59,000 combat-injured men and women need it and deserve action- not excuses. Veterans should not be forced to sacrifice important VA benefits to correct this DOD injustice."

At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in April, Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Pete Hegseth pledged the Department's support for the Major Richard Star Act, following pressure from Blumenthal. "As I have said in the past to other organizations, we support the Richard Star Act," said Hegseth at the hearing.

The Major Richard Star Act is bipartisan legislation to fix an injustice preventing combat-injured veterans from receiving their full military benefits. Currently, only veterans with disability ratings above 50 percent and more than 20 years of service are eligible to receive the full amount of their DoD retirement and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability payments-leaving behind more than 50,000 combat-injured military retirees.

This legislation has overwhelming support from the majority of both chambers of Congress, with 79 bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate and 334 bipartisan cosponsors in the House. However, Senate Republican leadership has blocked two attempts from Blumenthal in October and March to advance this overwhelming bipartisan support, claiming our country cannot afford these benefits.