Representative Cory Mills (R-FL) is cosponsoring Representative Jen Kiggans' (R-VA) bill improving disabled veterans' Thrift Savings Plans (TSPs).
A Thrift Savings Plan is effectively a retirement fund for veterans. However, once members leave the service and/or are rated as 100% disabled, they are not allowed to continue contributing funds to the system, even if it is their only retirement savings tool.
The Financial Opportunities for Retirees and Warriors Advancing Retirement Development (FORWARD) Act, then, is simple yet impactful: veterans can continue contributing to their TSPs after leaving the service or after being qualified as 100% disabled.
Additional provisions include allowing military retirement pay or VA disability compensation to be rolled into TSPs and requiring the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board to implement regulations within 180 days, in coordination with the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.
"This is a common-sense, bipartisan fix that honors our veterans' continued service by giving them the tools to build a strong financial future," said Rep. Mills in a statement. "Our 100% disabled veterans and military retirees have earned the right to keep contributing to the retirement system they trusted while in uniform. The FORWARD Act is a small but meaningful way to help them continue planning for the future they deserve."
The bill comes on the heels of Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick's (D-FL) Veterans' Bill of Rights, legislation that codifies that veterans have the right to fair treatment, privacy, timely health care (including community care), mental health and family support, housing and job assistance, education benefits, and transparency in claims and appeals, which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) must provide to every veteran in print and online in plain English.
"Our veterans fought for us—now we fight for them," said Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick in a statement. "We fight and we win when we honor our veterans not just with words, but with action—ensuring every veteran has the care, dignity, and opportunity they've earned. That's what the bipartisan Veterans' Bill of Rights Act does.
