National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Act of 2011

Floor Speech

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Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

I rise in strong support of H.R. 2192, the National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Act of 2011. This bipartisan legislation, which I introduced in June of this year with Mr. Forbes, Mr. Rohrabacher and others, ensures that certain members of the National Guard and Reserves who fall on hard economic times after their service to this country will continue to obtain bankruptcy relief without having to fill out the substantial paperwork required by the so-called means test under chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code.

H.R. 2192 simply extends the existing means test exception, which will expire in a few weeks if Congress fails to act, and act we should for our reservists and National Guardspeople who have put themselves in the line of fire for our country and our safeties and liberties.

Under the means test, a chapter 7 bankruptcy case is presumed to be an abuse of the bankruptcy process if it appears that the debtor has income in excess of certain thresholds.

The National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Act of 2008 created an exception to the means test's presumption for members of the National Guard and Reserves who, after September 11, 2001, served on active duty or in a homeland defense activity for at least 90 days. The exception remains available for 540 days after the servicemember leaves the military.

The National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Act of 2011 would simply extend that exception until December 2015. This modest, but important exception to the means test allows qualifying members of the National Guard and Reserves to obtain chapter 7 bankruptcy relief without fulfilling the means test paperwork requirements.

Since September 11, 2001, more than 815,000 members of the National Guard and Reserves have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, with many having served multiple tours of duty.

As of August of this year, members of the National Guard and Reserves made up 43 percent of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan and represent more than 20 percent of those killed in action and 20 percent of those wounded in action. Many of these citizen warriors have been asked to disrupt their civilian lives with little notice to serve their country in active war zones, and like other veterans returning from war zones, they often have difficulty adjusting to civilian life.

It is estimated that approximately 40 percent of all Guard members will experience some sort of financial hardship and that 26 percent of Guard members had money problems related to their deployment into war zones.

H.R. 2192 is a meaningful way for our Nation to recognize the tremendous sacrifice made by National Guard and Reserve members who have served on active duty or homeland defense since September 11, 2001, and may be suffering financial hardship. This bipartisan measure is in the tradition of the GI Bill, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, and numerous other provisions of law enacted to benefit military veterans.

I thank Representatives Forbes and Rohrabacher, two members of the Republican Party who worked with me on this and helped cosponsor it, and Representatives Schakowsky and Nadler of my party for cosponsoring H.R. 2192. I also thank the Judiciary Chairman, Mr. Smith, the Ranking Member, Mr. Conyers, and the Subcommittee on Courts, Commercial and Administrative Law chairman, the distinguished Mr. Howard Coble, for their assistance in moving this bill.

This bill does indeed help Reservists and National Guardsmen in a special way. But it also shows that the previous bill that Mr. Chaffetz sponsored shows that we in the Judiciary Committee can work in a bipartisan manner, and that Congress can work, and that we should be at least in double digits.

I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2192, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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