House Passes Major Richard Star Act to End the “Wounded Veteran Tax,” Goodlander Calls on Senate to Finish the Job
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Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, who served 11 years as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve and now serves on the House Armed Services and Veterans’ Affairs Committees, championed the bill as an original cosponsor and helped lead the fight to force today’s vote. “American heroes like Major Richard Star put their lives on the line for America — the last thing our own government should do is cut the pay and benefits our combat-disabled have earned,” said Congresswoman Goodlander . “Right now, our government is taxing tens of thousands of our combat veterans — and it’s dead wrong. No American patriot who gives their health to our country should have to choose between the pay and benefits they earned. The House took a mission-critical step today to correct this grave injustice, and the Senate must act now to make our bipartisan bill law — without delay.” Under current law, American servicemembers who are medically retired because of combat-related disabilities before reaching 20 years of service see their military retirement pay cut dollar for dollar by their VA disability compensation. The Major Richard Star Act ends that injustice for nearly 60,000 combat-injured veterans, so they receive both benefits in full. The bipartisan bill is named for Major Richard Star, an Army combat engineer who cleared roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan so his fellow soldiers could make it home safe. In 2018, Major Star was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer linked to burn pit exposure and was medically retired before reaching 20 years of service. He spent his final years fighting to change the law that cut his retirement pay. He died in 2021 at age 51. His wife, Tonya, carried on his fight until her death in 2024. Congresswoman Goodlander has been a leading champion of the Major Richard Star Act. She is an original cosponsor, signed and rallied signatures for the bipartisan discharge petition that forced today’s vote, and championed the Major Richard Star Act as an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act. A Navy Reserve veteran who served 11 years as an intelligence officer and now serves on key House Committees, Congresswoman Goodlander has delivered real results for New Hampshire’s veterans, servicemembers, and military families: Goodlander helped secure a raise for our troops and lower costs for military families. She helped secure a 3.8% pay raise for our troops in the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act, alongside measures to make child care more affordable, including a pilot program authorizing a 30% increase in the maximum child-care subsidy for children two and younger in high-cost areas . She also fought for a Pentagon PFAS cleanup strategy to protect military families’ drinking water. Goodlander championed protections for New Hampshire’s Guard and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Her bipartisan TRANSFER Act cuts the red tape that keeps the National Guard from holding on to experienced officers. Its provisions and the protections she helped secure against hiring freezes, layoffs, and unjustified hiring delays at public shipyards , including Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, became law in the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act
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