On December 1, the Senate approved, 93-7, the FY2012 Defense Authorization Act (S. 1867). The Senate Armed Services Committee approved the bill, 26-0, on November 15. The committee approved an earlier version of the bill (S. 1253) in June (see The Source, 6/17/11), but drafted S. 1867 to comply with spending reductions passed in August under the Budget Control Act (P.L. 112-25) and to conform with funding limits set in the FY2012 Defense appropriations bill (H.R. 2219) (see The Source, 7/11/11 and 9/18/11). The House approved its version of the FY2012 Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 1540) on May 26 (see The Source, 5/27/11). The measure will be considered next by a House-Senate conference, where differences between S. 1867 and H.R. 1540 will be resolved.
The legislation would authorize $661.5 billion for Department of Defense (DoD) operations. This amount includes $142.348 billion for military personnel and $32.852 billion for the Defense Health Program. The House bill would provide $690.056 billion for the department, which includes $142.164 billion for military personnel and $31.963 billion for the Defense Health Program.
The bill would address the issue of sexual assault in the military. The measure would revise the Uniform Code of Military Justice with regard to rape, sexual assault, aggravated or abusive sexual conduct, and the rape and sexual assault of children.
The bill would require the secretary of Defense to issue guidelines to implement the recommendations of the Defense Task Force on Sexual Assault in the Military Services report. Each military department would be required to determine the appropriate number of sexual assault response coordinators (SARC) and sexual assault victim advocates (SAVA) to be assigned to deployed and non-deployed units. Each military installation would be required to have at least one SARC; the military departments would be required to establish credentialing programs for the SARCs and SAVAs. After October 2013, only credentialed SARCs and SAVAs would be assigned to duty.
The bill would require the secretaries of the military departments to prescribe regulations on the provision of legal services to victims of sexual violence. Victims could request legal assistance from military or civilian legal counsel and could be assisted by SARCs and SAVAs. The legislation would permit victims to elect for restricted reporting of the incident, which would allow them to obtain legal services, counseling, and medical treatment without initiating a formal investigation.
Expedited consideration and final determination of requests for permanent change of status or unit transfer would be provided to sexual assault victims. The secretaries of Defense and Veterans’ Affairs would be required to develop a comprehensive policy for the retention of, and access, to evidence and records relating to sexual assaults involving armed forces members.
Travel for obstetrical anesthesia services would be provided for command-sponsored dependents of members assigned to remote locations outside the continental United States.
The bill would authorize $25 million in assistance for schools with significant numbers of military dependent children and $5 million for impact aid for children with severe disabilities.
