Urges Congress enact Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act.

AR115

ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION No. 115

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� CAROL A. MURPHY

District 7 (Burlington)

SYNOPSIS

���� Urges Congress enact Military Surviving Spouses
Equity Act.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Assembly
Resolution

urging Congress to enact
the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act.�

Whereas,

Under current federal law, survivors of deceased military members are required
to forfeit part or all of their Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuity when they
are awarded Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from the United States
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA); and

Whereas,

Currently, surviving spouses of active duty or retired members who died of a
service-connected cause are required to forfeit $1 of their SBP annuity for
each $1 received in DIC; and

Whereas,

For FY 2017, the DIC was approximately $1,258 a month and the offset wiped out
most if not all of the SBP annuity compensation for a majority of survivors;
and

Whereas,

Congress has made attempts to help some of the survivors by: raising the
lump-sum death gratuity for deaths after October 2001; ending the offset for
survivors who remarry after age 57; and authorizing the Special Survivor
Indemnity Allowance (SSIA), a modest monthly rebate (approximately $310 in FY
2017) to SBP-DIC recipients subjected to this inequity; and

Whereas,

However, the lump-sum increases in the death gratuity did not help the 95% of
survivors whose spouses died of service-caused conditions before 2001.� Forced
to forfeit $1,258 a month, survivors view the SSIA $310 rebate a poor effort at
restitution; and

Whereas,

In 2007, the Veterans Disability Benefits Commission was asked to review the
inequity and determined that when military service causes a member�s death, the
DIC should be paid in addition to the SBP annuity, not subtracted from it; and

Whereas,

The Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act is currently pending in Congress to:
repeal certain provisions that require the offset of money paid in DIC
compensation from SBP annuities for surviving spouses under 60 years of age;
prohibit requiring repayment of certain monies previously paid to SBP
recipients; and require certain military departments to pay the dependent
children when there is no eligible surviving spouse; and

Whereas,

This House urges Congress to pass the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act
because our nation�s military personnel risk their lives to defend our nation
and our freedoms and they should be able to trust that the benefits they
designate for their families will be provided; now, therefore,

����
Be It
Resolved
by the General Assembly of the State
of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� This House urges
Congress to enact the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act.��

���� 2.��� Copies of this
resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State shall be transmitted by the
Clerk of the General Assembly to the President and Vice President of the United
States, the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, the
Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives,
every member of Congress elected from this State, and the Secretary of the
United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

STATEMENT

���� This House urges Congress to
enact the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act.� The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)
annuity is purchased insurance and the Dependency and Indemnity Compensation
(DIC) is paid for service-caused death.� The offset has been an unfair penalty
that cuts earned benefits to military survivors.�

���� Currently, the surviving
spouse of a military member who dies on active duty or of a service-connected
illness or injury in retirement is entitled to survivor�s benefits from the
Department of Veterans Affairs� DIC fund. However, if they had also voluntarily
paid into the Department of Defense�s SBP in addition to the DIC, their
survivors� benefits can be subtracted by as much as $15,828 per year.� Essentially,
the SBP is subtracted from the total survivor�s benefit, rather than added to
it.� This offset is a substantial burden for many surviving military families.�
Our nation�s military personnel risk their lives to defend our nation and our
freedoms.� They should be able to trust that the benefits they designate for
their families will be provided.