{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://royce.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=398207", "Rep. Royce Protects CalGuard Bonuses", "2016-11-15", "2016", "2016-11", "Republican", "House", "CA", "Edward Royce", "R000487", "royce.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, U.S. Representative Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) cosponsored the\u00a0VET Bonus Act (H.R. 6316), legislation to stop U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) efforts to reclaim bonuses rightfully paid to California National Guard members.\r\n\u201cBonus payments made in good faith to CalGuard members shouldn't be touched. These soldiers shouldn't be punished for serving their country,\u201d said Rep. Royce.On October 22, 2016, the\u00a0Los Angeles Times reported that nearly 10,000 soldiers in the California National Guard\u00a0had been ordered to repay enlistment bonuses of $15,000 or more by DoD. Shortly thereafter,\u00a0Rep. Royce wrote Defense Secretary Ash Carter\u00a0to request a suspension of his Department's attempts to clawback such bonuses.The\u00a0VET Bonus Act, authored by U.S. Representative Jeff Denham (R-Modesto), dictates that:\u2022 Bonuses paid between 2004 and 2010 in good faith shall not be subject to repayment to DoD unless the recipient committed fraud or did not satisfy corresponding service requirements\u2022 Bonus payments reclaimed by DoD shall be paid back with interest to veterans who accepted them in good faith\u2022 For veterans who are reimbursed by the U.S. Army, the Secretary of the Army must notify credit agencies that any debt previously reported is invalid\u2022 The Secretary of the Army shall provide financial assistance to veterans who suffered severe financial hardships after having bonus payments reclaimed", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://royce.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=398207"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8071819320321083, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}