CONGRESSMAN HENRY BROWN: Legislative Assistant- Mr. Earl Copeland 5900 Core Ave., Suite 401 North Charleston, SC 29406 Phone 747-4175

SENATOR JIM DEMINT Regional Director Ms. Ashley Holbrook 112 Custom House 200 East Bay Street Charleston, SC 29401 Phone 727-4525

SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM: Regional Director Mr. Bill Tuten 530 Johnnie Dodds Blvd., Suite 203 Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 Phone 849-3887

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Medal of Honor Pension Hearing

On November 8th, Congressman Henry Brown had the opportunity to testify before the Veterans Affairs’ Sub-committee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs on legislation that he introduced to increase the pension awarded to Medal of Honor recipients. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States of America, and the pension acts as a small token of appreciation for the selfless leadership, courageous actions, and extraordinary devotion to duty shown by Medal Recipients. You can view more information about the hearing online at: http://veterans.house.gov/hearings/hearing.aspx?NewsID=140.

Military Survivor Annuity Update

The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) successfully pressed Congress to include an important provision in the FY 2005 Defense Authorization Act ending the reduction in the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) by as much as one-third after the surviving spouse reached age 62. Signed into law on Oct 28,2004, the minimum age –62 annuity rose from 35% to 40% on Oct. 1,2005; to 45% on April 1.2006;t and will rise to 50% on April 1,2007 and to the full 55% on April 1, 2008. No action is required by SBP annuitants, as they will receive these increases automatically.

After two decades of trying to end the unfair reduction, MOAA was extremely instrumental in obtaining passage of this law. To help gather support of key legislators in both the House and Senate, MOAA members generated more than 600,000 letters, postcards and e-mails that were vital in securing this victory for the entire military community.

MOAA and other members of the Military Coalition met with members of the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee and presented their priorities for inclusion in the FY2008 Defense Authorization Act. The following priorities were cited:

According to VADM Ryan, “MOAA members are the single best influence in getting Congress to take positive action on military benefits issues.” MOAA membership is open to any person who holds or who has ever held a warrant or a commission in any of the seven uniformed services and their surviving spouses.

MOAA members keep informed about legislative issues via their “Military Officer” magazine subscription that includes pre-addressed postcards and letters to appropriate legislators. MOAA’s “Legislative Update”, e-newsletters, and alerts make it easy for members to send pre-addressed messages to their legislators.

Raise your voice to support the issues that matter most with your continued membership-or a Life Membership. Use the tear-out cards and letters from your magazine and connect to the Web site at www.moaa.org to help with our top legislative priorities in 2007.