July 24, 2017 - Issue: Vol. 163, No. 124 — Daily Edition115th Congress (2017 - 2018) - 1st Session
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MILITARY RESIDENCY CHOICE ACT; Congressional Record Vol. 163, No. 124
(House of Representatives - July 24, 2017)
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[Pages H6170-H6171] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] MILITARY RESIDENCY CHOICE ACT Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 282) to amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to authorize spouses of servicemembers to elect to use the same residences as the servicemembers. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 282 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 ``Military Residency Choice Act''. SEC. 2. RESIDENCE OF SPOUSES OF SERVICEMEMBERS FOR TAX PURPOSES. (a) Residence for Tax Purposes.--Section 511(a)(2) of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. 4001(a)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: ``The spouse of a servicemember may elect to use the same residence for purposes of taxation as the servicemember regardless of the date on which the marriage of the spouse and the servicemember occurred.''. (b) Applicability.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any return of State or local income tax filed for any taxable year beginning with the taxable year that includes the date of the enactment of this Act. SEC. 3. RESIDENCE OF SPOUSES OF SERVICEMEMBERS FOR VOTING. (a) In General.--Section 705(b) of such Act is amended-- (1) by striking ``State or local office'' and all that follows through the period at the end of paragraph (3) and inserting ``State or local office--''; and (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs: ``(1) a person who is absent from a State because the person is accompanying the person's spouse who is absent from that same State in compliance with military or naval orders shall not, solely by reason of that absence-- ``(A) be deemed to have lost a residence or domicile in that State, without regard to whether or not the person intends to return to that State; ``(B) be deemed to have acquired a residence or domicile in any other State; or ``(C) be deemed to have become a resident in or a resident of any other State; and ``(2) the spouse of a servicemember may elect to use the same residence as the servicemember regardless of the date on which the marriage of the spouse and the servicemember occurred.''. (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall take effect on the date that is 90 days after the enactment of this Act. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe) and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee. General Leave Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Tennessee? There was no objection. Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 282, the Military Residency Choice Act. The Military Residency Choice Act would change the way military spouses claim State residency by allowing a spouse to claim the same State of residence as their servicemember spouse, even if they have never physically lived in that State. I want to commend Representatives Stefanik and Wittman for their work on this bill, and I will allow them to describe it in greater detail in a moment. Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 282, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 282. This is a commonsense bill. It has received bipartisan support as it moved through the committee. It simplifies the process for a spouse of a servicemember to choose and change their State of residency for tax and voting purposes. The bill is about removing additional headaches from servicemembers' lives and doing right by them. There are enough issues being a member of the military and for spouses and family. We don't need to add more to it. This is a smart piece of legislation. It does exactly what it says it is going to do, and I support and encourage all Members to join me in support. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Stefanik), coauthor of the bill and my colleague on the Education and the Workforce Committee. Ms. STEFANIK. Mr. Speaker, my legislation gives military spouses the choice to establish the same State of residency as the servicemember, giving them the benefit of retaining the same State of residency for voting and tax purposes. As the proud Representative of Fort Drum and the Navy site at Kesselring, which I visited just this past Friday, I have heard firsthand about the challenges that military families face, and I have the highest respect for the sacrifices these families make to help protect our Nation and safeguard our freedom. Military families must relocate every few years due to their spouse's responsibility to meet the requirements within the military. They sacrifice a great deal during these relocations, uprooting their lives and disrupting their families, all while serving as the critical support system for their loved ones. This is often a difficult and challenging time, with the heaviest burden falling upon military spouses. Current law allows Active-Duty servicemembers to maintain one State of legal residence for tax and voting purposes, even when servicemembers receive military orders requiring them to relocate, but this does not apply to the servicemember's spouse. Essentially, this loophole requires spouses to establish residency every time the servicemember receives a new assignment, adding undue stress and anxiety to military families already under the pressure of managing their relocation. This legislation fixes this inconsistency. Military spouses serve, too, and this bill eliminates the daunting task of documenting multiple tax jurisdictions and helps reduce instances of military spousal unemployment. Traveling across the north country in New York, I have listened to the sacrifices our military families make to keep our Nation safe. We have a duty to reduce these burdens they face. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill on a bipartisan basis. Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I again urge Members to support this smart piece of legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time. {time} 1530 Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to support this commonsense legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Walker). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 282. The question was taken. The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds being in the affirmative, the ayes have it. Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present. [[Page H6171]] The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn. ____________________
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