Changing Age-Determined Eligibility to Student Incentive Payments Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. BERGMAN. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 467) to modify the age requirement for the Student Incentive Payment Program of the State maritime academies.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: S. 467
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Changing Age-Determined Eligibility To Student Incentive Payments Act'' or the ``CADETS Act''. SEC. 2. AGE REQUIREMENT FOR THE STUDENT INCENTIVE PAYMENT PROGRAM OF THE STATE MARITIME ACADEMIES.
Section 51509 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(i) Age Requirement.--The Secretary may make an agreement under this section only with a qualified student who will meet the age requirement for enlistment or commission in the Navy Reserve at the time of graduation from the academy.''.
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Mr. BERGMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 467, the CADETS Act.
The CADETS Act was introduced earlier this year by a bipartisan group of Senators led by Senator Peters of Michigan. It passed the Senate by unanimous consent last month. I am the proud sponsor of the companion legislation here in this House.
The CADETS Act will begin to help solve the problem our Nation faces in recruiting qualified mariners to serve in the Navy Reserve and crew our strategic sealift vessels.
Our fleet of strategic sealift vessels is critical to our ability to project and sustain U.S. forces around the world and defend ourselves and our allies. However, we can't do that without qualified Americans willing and able to crew these ships.
S. 467 will incentivize Americans to serve in this critical defense role by making those older than 25 years of age eligible for MARAD's Student Incentive Payment Program.
The Student Incentive Payment Program provides financial assistance to cadets who attend one of the six State maritime academies and commit to a post-graduation service obligation in the Navy Reserve.
I am proud to represent the Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City, Michigan, and I was honored to address the cadets at their graduation ceremony just a few weeks ago in May.
Cadets at Great Lakes and other maritime academies can receive up to $32,000 in incentive payments over 4 years to help offset the cost of tuition and other education expenses. However, current law prohibits candidates older than 25 years of age from participating in the program. This is despite the fact that Americans between the ages of 18 and 42 can currently join the Navy Reserve and that State maritime academies are actively seeking to enroll veterans and servicemembers, many of whom are older than age 25.
S. 467 amends the Student Incentive Payment Program to align its eligibility age with the age requirements for enlisting or commissioning in the United States Navy Reserve.
This is a good bipartisan bill that will help our veterans transition to well-paying jobs, support the great work done by our State maritime academies, and help fill critical national security vacancies.
Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. KIM of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I join my colleague, Mr. Bergman, and rise in support of the CADETS Act.
This bipartisan bill raises the age requirement for MARAD's Student Incentive Payment Program, which provides financial support to cadets who attend one of six State maritime academies and commit to a post- graduation service obligation.
Current age requirements for the Student Incentive Payment Program limit participation to people between 17 and 25 years of age. This proposal would expand eligibility to people up to age 42. This bill would widen the pool of potential candidates and aligns the age requirements with that of the Navy Reserve.
Many military veterans attend these State academies, but many applicants are too old to qualify for aid or the program.
Graduates from the State maritime academies become licensed officers in the U.S. Merchant Marine and are part of the Navy's Strategic Sealift Officer Force. Currently, our merchant mariner force is around 1,800 officers short of wartime needs. Because the average age of a merchant mariner is 47, we need to increase the number of eligible individuals for this program.
This bill would open up additional opportunities to our best and brightest and bolster our national security.
State maritime academies provide our veterans unique opportunities to transition to well-paying jobs and continue to serve in support of our Nation.
For those reasons, Madam Speaker, I urge Members to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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Mr. BERGMAN. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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