{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://thompson.house.gov/press-release/reps-thompson-walz-introduce-%E2%80%9Cproudly-restoring-officers-prior-enlistment-retirement", "Reps. Thompson, Walz Introduce Proudly Restoring Officers of Prior Enlistment Retirement (PROPER) Act", "2014-12-11", "2014", "2014-12", "Republican", "House", "PA", "Glenn Thompson", "T000467", "thompson.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Representatives Glenn 'GT' Thompson (R-PA) and Tim Walz (D-MN) have introduced H.R. 5832, the Proudly Restoring Officers of Prior Enlistment Retirement (PROPER) Act, legislation preventing commissioned officers from being forced to retire at their highest previous enlisted rank as a result of the military\u2019s current force reduction policy. \u00a0\n\tDuring the \u201cGrow the Army\u201d effort beginning in 2007, the Army dramatically increased in size, expanding to 570,000 soldiers by 2010.\u00a0 A large number of non-commissioned officers stepped up to lead and received commissions as Army officers.\n\tThe Army is currently undergoing a significant downsizing, as combat forces draw down from Iraq and Afghanistan and the Obama Administration executes a broader force restructuring and end strength reduction plan, which includes plans to involuntarily retire up to 30% of commissioned officers and shrink the Army to 450,000 soldiers.\n\tUnder current law soldiers must serve a minimum of 20 years to become eligible for retirement. In order to retire at the rank of an officer, at least 8 of those years must come after receiving a commission. Some soldiers who have served over 20 years total, but less than 8 years as commissioned officers, are now being involuntarily retired at their highest enlisted rank, which has led to a large cut in their retirement. While the existing policy impacts all military branches, the Army is the most directly affected.\n\tThe PROPER Act, which is supported by the Military Officers Association of America, the American Military Retirees Association, and the National Guard Association, enables soldiers to keep their commissioned rank during retirement by lowering the eligibility threshold from 8 to 4 years.\n\t\u201cBrave men and women answered the call to military service as our nation expanded its ranks during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Despite having served for years in commissioned status and rising through the officer ranks, these experienced and dedicated warfighters are now being forced to retire at their previous enlisted rank,\u201d stated Rep. Thompson. \u201cSoldiers deserve to retire with the rank they have earned and corresponding benefits they\u2019ve been promised, and anything less devalues the sacrifices they have made for our country. With the introduction of the Proudly Restoring Officers of Prior Enlistment Retirement Act, we plan to fix this injustice.\u201d\n\t\u201cThis measure gives military retirees the benefits they have earned,\u201d said Rep. Walz. \u201cI am proud to introduce this measure with Rep. Thompson and look forward to working together with him in the next congress to make this provision law.\u201d \u00a0\n\tCosponsors of the PROPER Act include Representatives Charles Rangel (D-NY), Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Bobby Rush, (D-IL), Tom Marino (R-PA), Mark Amodei (R-NV), Lou Barletta (R-PA), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Joe Wilson (R-SC), Scott Perry (R-PA), Richard Nugent (R-FL), and Randy Weber (R-TX).\n###", 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://thompson.house.gov/press-release/reps-thompson-walz-introduce-%E2%80%9Cproudly-restoring-officers-prior-enlistment-retirement"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.8320828676223755, "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"}