Bill Details
S.802 - 119th Congress
Status
Latest action
2025-02-27 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
Introduced Date
2025-02-27
Policy Area
Transportation and Public Works
Committees
View committees (1)
Sponsors
Cosponsors
View cosponsors (9)
- Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-Washington]
- Sen. Sullivan, Dan [R-Alaska]
- Sen. Wicker, Roger F. [R-Mississippi]
- Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-Wisconsin]
- Sen. Blunt Rochester, Lisa [D-Delaware]
- Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-Alaska]
- Sen. King, Angus S., Jr. [I-Maine]
- Sen. Scott, Rick [R-Florida]
- Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-Connecticut]
6
0
0
AI Summary This summary was generated by AI from the bill text. AI can get information wrong.
This bill would make sure the Coast Guard can keep paying its people during a shutdown that affects the Coast Guard but not the rest of the military. If Congress has not passed a funding bill for the Coast Guard on time, the bill would automatically provide money so Coast Guard service members, reservists, civilian workers, and certain contract workers can still receive pay and benefits. It would also keep in place some important survivor benefits, such as death gratuity payments, funeral travel costs, and temporary housing support for families of members who die on active duty. The goal is to treat the Coast Guard more like the other armed forces when it comes to pay during a funding gap.
- Creates automatic funding for Coast Guard pay during a Coast Guard-only funding lapse.
- Covers military members, reservists, qualified civilian employees, and certain contract workers.
- Allows continued payment of survivor-related benefits, including death gratuities, funeral travel, and temporary housing support for eligible families.
- Ends the automatic funding once a new law provides money, a law without that funding is enacted, or Defense Department funding expires.
Official Summaries
Pay Our Coast Guard Act
This bill provides continuing appropriations to the Coast Guard for pay and benefits when there is a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse.
Under the bill, a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse occurs when (1) a bill providing appropriations for the Coast Guard for a fiscal year has not been enacted before the beginning of that fiscal year, and no joint resolution providing continuing appropriations for the Coast Guard is in effect; and (2) a bill providing appropriations for the Department of Defense (DOD) for the fiscal year has been enacted before the beginning of the fiscal year, or a joint resolution providing continuing appropriation for DOD is in effect.
If a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse occurs, the bill provides appropriations to the Coast Guard for
- pay and allowances for military members of the Coast Guard who perform active service or inactive-duty training;
- pay and benefits for certain civilian employees and contract employees;
- the payment of a death gratuity;
- payments for travel related to funerals, the dignified transfer of remains, and unit memorial services; and
- the temporary continuation of the basic allowance for housing for dependents of members of the Coast Guard dying on active duty.
The bill generally provides the appropriations to the Coast Guard until the earlier of (1) the enactment of specified Coast Guard appropriations legislation, or (2) the termination of the availability of appropriations for DOD.
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 802 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 802
To amend title 14, United States Code, to make appropriations for Coast
Guard pay in the event an appropriations Act expires before the
enactment of a new appropriations Act, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 27, 2025
Mr. Cruz (for himself, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Wicker, Ms.
Baldwin, and Ms. Blunt Rochester) introduced the following bill; which
was read twice and referred to the Committee on Appropriations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 14, United States Code, to make appropriations for Coast
Guard pay in the event an appropriations Act expires before the
enactment of a new appropriations Act, and for other purposes.
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 ``Pay Our Coast Guard Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The Coast Guard is a military service and a branch of
the Armed Forces of the United States at all times regardless
of whether it operates as a service in the Department of
Homeland Security or as a service in the Navy.
(2) Notwithstanding respective appropriations and except as
otherwise provided in law, members of the Coast Guard should
receive treatment equitable to that of other members of the
Armed Forces with regard to pay and benefits.
SEC. 3. COAST GUARD PAY; CONTINUATION.
(a) In General.--Chapter 27 of title 14, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 2780. Pay; continuation during lapse in appropriations
``(a) In General.--In the case of any period in which there is a
Coast Guard-specific funding lapse, there are appropriated such sums as
may be necessary--
``(1) to provide pay and allowances to military members of
the Coast Guard, including the reserve component thereof, who
perform active service or in-active-duty training during such
period;
``(2) to provide pay and benefits to qualified civilian
employees of the Coast Guard;
``(3) to provide pay and benefits to qualified contract
employees of the Coast Guard; and
``(4) to provide for--
``(A) the payment of a death gratuity under
sections 1475 through 1477 and 1489 of title 10, with
respect to members of the Coast Guard;
``(B) the payment or reimbursement of authorized
funeral travel and travel related to the dignified
transfer of remains and unit memorial services under
section 481f of title 37, with respect to members of
the Coast Guard; and
``(C) the temporary continuation of a basic
allowance of housing for dependents of members of the
Coast Guard dying on active duty, as authorized by
section 403(l) of title 37.
``(b) Coast Guard-Specific Funding Lapse.--For purposes of this
section, a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse occurs in any case in
which--
``(1) a general appropriation bill providing appropriations
for the Coast Guard for a fiscal year is not enacted before the
beginning of such fiscal year (and no joint resolution making
continuing appropriations for the Coast Guard is in effect);
and
``(2) a general appropriation bill providing appropriations
for the Department of Defense for such fiscal year is enacted
before the beginning of such fiscal year (or a joint resolution
making continuing appropriations for the Department of Defense
is in effect).
``(c) Termination.--Appropriations and funds made available and
authority granted for any fiscal year for any purpose under subsection
(a) shall be available until whichever of the following first occurs:
``(1) The enactment into law of an appropriation (including
a continuing appropriation) for such purpose.
``(2) The enactment into law of the applicable regular or
continuing appropriations resolution or other Act without any
appropriation for such purpose.
``(3) The termination of availability of appropriations for
the Department of Defense.
``(d) Rate for Operations; Applicability to Appropriations Acts.--
Appropriations made pursuant to this section shall be at a rate for
operations and to the extent and manner that would be provided by the
pertinent appropriations Act.
``(e) Charge to Future Appropriations.--Expenditures made pursuant
to this section shall be charged to the applicable appropriation, fund,
or authorization whenever a bill in which such applicable
appropriation, fund, or authorization is enacted into law.
``(f) Apportionment.--Appropriations and funds made available by or
authority granted under this section may be used without regard to the
time limitations for submission and approval of apportionments set
forth in section 1513 of title 31, but nothing in this section may be
construed to waive any other provision of law governing the
apportionment of funds.
``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Qualified civilian employee.--The term `qualified
civilian employee' means a civilian employee of the Coast Guard
who the Commandant determines is--
``(A) providing support to members of the Coast
Guard or another Armed Force; or
``(B) performing work as an excepted employee or an
employee performing emergency work, as such terms are
defined by the Office of Personnel Management.
``(2) Qualified contract employee of the coast guard.--The
term `qualified contract employee of the Coast Guard' means an
individual performing work under a contract who the Commandant
determines is--
``(A) providing support to military members or
qualified civilian employees of the Coast Guard or
another Armed Force; or
``(B) required to perform work during a lapse in
appropriations.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 27 of title 14,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``2780. Pay; continuation during lapse in appropriations.''.
<all>