Congressional Democrats Call on Chairman Hunter to Help Military Widows

Congressional Democrats Call on Chairman Hunter to Help Military Widows

May 5, 2004

Washington, D.C.-House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and 168 House Democrats sent a letter today to Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter calling on him to include the Widow's Tax relief, supported by 328 Members of the House of Representatives, in the 2005 National Defense Authorization bill.

The Members wrote: "This penalty overwhelmingly affects elderly women and has been referred to as the 'Widow's Tax.' This reduction in benefits is currently causing severe hardship for many of the surviving spouses whose benefits have already been reduced. Unless corrected, the number of surviving spouses who will lose income over the next decade will increase dramatically as more and more survivors reach age 62."

The full text of the letter follows:

May 5, 2004
Chairman Duncan Hunter
Armed Services Committee
2120 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Chairman Hunter:

We are writing to request that you include as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005, legislation such as that provided in H.R. 548 to phase out the reduction in Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) benefits suffered by surviving spouses of military retirees who reach the age of 62. This policy has broad bipartisan support as evidenced by the 328 Members of the House of Representatives who have agreed to cosponsor the bill.

Despite such widespread support, H.R. 548 has not been brought to the floor of the House either as a stand-alone bill or as part of a Defense Authorization Act. We believe that it is time to do so.

Many servicemembers who agreed to pay premiums to provide their spouses with an adequate retirement income in the event of their death were informed that the SBP benefit payable to their survivors would be 55 percent of their retirement benefit. The documents they signed did not include any information to indicate that the benefits would be reduced to 35 percent when the spouses attained age 62.

This penalty overwhelmingly affects elderly women and has been referred to as the "Widow's Tax." This reduction in benefits is currently causing severe hardship for many of the surviving spouses whose benefits have already been reduced. Unless corrected, the number of surviving spouses who will lose income over the next decade will increase dramatically as more and more survivors reach age 62.

We have heard from surviving spouses who are struggling to meet basic living expenses and who must make painful choices concerning food, fuel and housing costs as the result of current law. These spouses were married to persons who gave 20 or more years of military service. In many cases, the survivors endured significant hardships, including months of separation from spouses who were serving around the world.

The reduction is unfair, unnecessary and unworthy of a Nation that can afford tax breaks for wealthy individuals and corporations. We urge you to include language in the 2005 defense authorization bill to eliminate immediately or at least phase out the reduction over the next five years.

Sincerely,
Anibal Acevedo-Vila
Gary Ackerman
Rodney Alexander
Tom Allen
Robert Andrews
Joe Baca
Tammy Baldwin
Frank Ballance
Chris Bell
Shelley Berkley
Howard Berman
Marion Berry
Tim Bishop
Sanford Bishop
Earl Blumenauer
Madeline Bordallo
Leonard Boswell
Rick Boucher
Sherrod Brown
Corrine Brown
Lois Capps
Mike Capuano
Dennis Cardoza
Brad Carson
Julia Carson
Ed Case
Ben Chandler
Donna Christensen
William Lacy Clay
Jim Clyburn
John Conyers
Jim Cooper
Jerry Costello
Joe Crowley
Elijah Cummings
Artur Davis
Jim Davis
Susan Davis
Lincoln Davis
Peter DeFazio
William Delahunt
Rosa DeLauro
Norm Dicks
John Dingell
Lloyd Doggett
Mike Doyle
Chet Edwards
Rahm Emanuel
Elliot Engel
Anna Eshoo
Bob Etheridge
Lane Evans
Eni Faleomavaega
Sam Farr
Bob Filner
Harold Ford
Barney Frank
Martin Frost
Dick Gephardt
Gene Green
Raul Grijalva
Luis Gutierrez
Jane Harman
Alcee Hastings
Baron Hill
Maurice Hinchey
Ruben Hinojosa
Joe Hoeffel
Tim Holden
Rush Holt
Michael Honda
Darlene Hooley
Steny Hoyer
Jay Inslee
Steve Israel
Jesse Jackson
Shelia Jackson Lee
Christopher John
Paul Kanjorski
Marcy Kaptur
Patrick Kennedy
Dale Kildee
Carolyn Kilpatrick
Ron Kind
Dennis Kucinich
Nick Lampson
James Langevin
Tom Lantos
Rick Larsen
John Larson
Barbara Lee
Sander Levin
John Lewis
Zoe Lofgren
Nita Lowey
Kenneth Lucas
Stephen Lynch
Denise Majette
Carolyn Maloney
Edward Markey
Jim Marshall
Robert Matsui
Carolyn McCarthy
Betty McCollum
Jim McDermott
James McGovern
Mike McIntyre
Martin Meehan
Kendrick Meek
Gregory Meeks
Robert Menendez
Michael Michaud
Juanita Millender-McDonald
Brad Miller
George Miller
Dennis Moore
Jim Moran
Jerrold Nadler
Grace Napolitano
Richard Neal
Eleanor Holmes Norton
James Oberstar
Solomon Ortiz
Major Owens
Frank, Jr. Pallone
William, Jr. Pascrell
Donald Payne
Nancy Pelosi
Nick, II Rahall
Charles Rangel
Ciro Rodriguez
Mike Ross
Steven Rothman
Lucille Roybal-Allard
Dutch Ruppersberger
Bobby Rush
Tim Ryan
Linda Sanchez
Loretta Sanchez
Bernie Sanders
Max Sandlin
Janice Schakowsky
Adam Schiff
David Scott
Robert Scott
José Serrano
Brad Sherman
Adam Smith
Vic Snyder
Hilda Solis
Fortney Stark
Charles Stenholm
Ted Strickland
Bart Stupak
Ellen Tauscher
Gene Taylor
Mike Thompson
John Tierney
Edolphus Towns
Jim Turner
Mark Udall
Tom Udall
Chris Van Hollen
Maxine Waters
Henry Waxman
Anthony Weiner
Robert Wexler
Lynn Woolsey
Albert Wynn