Iowa House Bill HR105

Iowa 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/4/26

Caption

A resolution urging the members of Congress to support the Major Richard Star Act to allow medically retired service members to receive full access to their much-deserved retirement pay and benefits.

Summary

House Resolution 105 is a nonbinding memorial urging Congress to support the federal Major Richard Star Act. The resolution argues that service members who are medically retired before completing 20 years of service should be able to receive both military retirement pay and Department of Veterans Affairs disability benefits without an offset. It highlights the story of Major Richard Star, an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran who developed lung cancer after burn pit exposure and, because he retired before 20 years of service, could not receive full concurrent benefits. The resolution states that current federal rules reduce retirement pay dollar-for-dollar for certain medically retired veterans who also receive disability compensation, and it cites an estimated 50,000 retired service members affected by the offset. It also references a Congressional Budget Office estimate that the average offset was about $1,900 per month in 2022. The resolution directs the Iowa House clerk to transmit copies to congressional leaders and Iowa’s congressional delegation, but it does not itself change Iowa law or create state-level benefits; instead, it is a formal expression of support for federal legislation.

Impact

HR 105 has no direct effect on Iowa statutes, regulations, or state-administered benefits. Its practical impact is political and advocacy-based: it places the Iowa House on record supporting federal legislation that would alter military retirement and veterans disability compensation rules for medically retired service members. If Congress enacted the Major Richard Star Act, the change would affect federal retirement and veterans benefits law, especially for service members who retire with a disability before reaching 20 years of service.

Sentiment

The sentiment reflected in the bill text is strongly supportive and sympathetic toward medically retired veterans. The resolution frames the issue as one of fairness and gratitude, emphasizing that veterans should receive the benefits they earned regardless of cost. No opposing views appear in the available committee or vote history, and there are no recorded committee transcripts or roll-call votes in the provided materials, suggesting the measure was presented as a straightforward expression of support rather than a contested policy debate.

Contention

The main point of contention underlying the resolution is the federal offset rule itself: whether medically retired veterans who receive disability compensation should also receive full retirement pay, or whether those benefits should remain partially offset. Supporters, including the resolution’s sponsors, argue the current system unfairly penalizes veterans injured in service and that the Major Richard Star Act would correct that inequity. Potential concerns implied by the text involve federal cost and benefit expansion, but no explicit opposition is recorded in the provided materials.