On April 26, the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel approved, by voice vote, its portion of the FY2013 Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 4310).
The measure would authorize $525.4 billion in FY2013 for the base defense budget. According to the subcommittee summary of the legislation, the bill would require the Department of Defense (DoD) to brief Congress frequently regarding allegations of military sexual assault and harassment. The legislation would authorize special victims teams for the investigation, prosecution, and victim support in connection with cases of child abuse, serious domestic violence, or sexual offenses.
Courts that issued temporary child custody orders based solely on the deployment or anticipated deployment of a parent-servicemember would be required to reinstate the custody order in effect immediately before the temporary custody order, unless doing so would not be in the best interest of the child.
The measure would extend the deadline for the comptroller general’s report on health care services for female members of the armed forces. In addition, transitional benefits and compensation available to victims of dependent abuse would be extended to “dependent children who were carried during pregnancy” at the time of the dependent abuse.
The legislation would require the secretary of Defense to submit to Congress a report on the feasibility of incorporating gender-neutral occupational standards for occupation specialties currently closed to female members of the armed forces.
The bill would continue the authorization of $25 million for local education agencies impacted by the enrollment of dependent children of military members and DoD civilian employees. The authorization of $5 million for local education agencies significantly impacted by base closures, force relations, or force structure changes also would be continued.
