WASHINGTON
REPORT
President Signs Fiscal
Cliff Bill and NDAA
On Wednesday, President
Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act while on vacation in
Hawaii. The finished bill was brought along in Air Force One for his
signature. He also directed that the “Fiscal Cliff” bill be signed by autopen.
It was not in final form when he left town after the passage of the
bill.
Fiscal Cliff
Deal
While the cliff “deal”
waited until the last minute, all is not super-duper especially as there will be
tax increases for everyone. As many of our readers are on fixed incomes you
will need to know these details.
The payroll tax is
scheduled to go back to 6.2 percent from 4.2 percent after the temporary
decreases in 2011 and 2012.
This amounts to a $1,000
tax increase for someone earning $50,000 a year and a $2,200 tax increase for
someone earning $150,000.
Even workers taking home
less than $20,000 annually will be impacted, paying roughly $100 more.
Here are some other
implications of the budget deal:
- Income tax rates: Extends decade-old tax cuts on incomes up to $400,000 for individuals, $450,000 for couples. Earnings above those amounts would be taxed at a rate of 39.6 percent, up from the current 35 percent. Also extends Clinton-era caps on itemized deductions and the phase-out of the personal exemption for individuals making more than $250,000 and couples earning more than $300,000.
- Estate tax: Estates would be taxed at a top rate of 40 percent, with the first $5 million in value exempted for individual estates and $10 million for family estates. In 2012, such estates were subject to a top rate of 35 percent.
- Capital gains, dividends: Taxes on capital gains and dividend income exceeding $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for families would increase from 15 percent to 20 percent.
- Alternative minimum tax: Permanently addresses the alternative minimum tax and indexes it for inflation to prevent nearly 30 million middle- and upper- middle income taxpayers from being hit with higher tax bills averaging almost $3,000. The tax was originally designed to ensure that the wealthy did not avoid owing taxes by using loopholes.
Other tax changes:
Extends
for five years Administration-sought expansions of the child tax credit, the
earned income tax credit, and an up-to-$2,500 tax credit for college tuition.
Also extends for one year accelerated "bonus" depreciation of business
investments in new property and equipment, a tax credit for research and
development costs and a tax credit for renewable energy such as wind-generated
electricity.
Unemployment benefits:
Extends
jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed for one year.
Cuts in Medicare
reimbursements to doctors: Blocks a 27 percent cut
in Medicare payments to doctors for one year. (Doc Fix punted again for a
year.)
Across-the-board cuts:
Delays
for two months $109 billion worth of across-the-board spending cuts set to start
striking the Pentagon and domestic agencies this week. Cost of $24 billion is
divided between spending cuts and new revenues from rule changes on converting
traditional individual retirement accounts into Roth IRAs.
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Veteran Friendly Bills
Waiting for Signature
While the Fiscal Cliff
negotiations kept the Congress in town taking care of business, it also allowed
other good legislation to be acted upon and be passed. One bill S. 3202 The Dignified
Burial of Veterans Act of 2012, directs the American Battle Monuments Commission
to take over maintenance duties at the cemetery near the former Clark, AFB. The
cemetery, which contains the remains of over 6000 military members and their
families from as far back as the Spanish American war. What remains is a final
agreement with the governments of the Philippines and United States.
Indications are that an agreement will happen pretty quickly after the President
signs the bill.
The bill also
requires VA
and DoD to establish open burn pit registry for service members and veterans
potentially exposed to hazardous substances. VA must enter into agreement with
independent scientific org and publish a report after 2 years.
Finally it establishes
policy and procedures for the recovery and burial of veterans who are indigent
or have no next of kin.
The other bill
H.R.
4057 is a bill that directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to
collect data on all of the schools that have veterans using the Post 9/11 GI
Bill to be able to provide to effective and efficient methods to inform veterans
of the educational and vocational counseling provided by schools.
Additionally the bill
will establish a centralized mechanism for tracking and publishing feedback from
students and State approving agencies regarding the quality of instruction,
recruiting practices, and post-graduation employment placement of institutions
of higher learning.
These and other measures
in the bill will aid in the selection of a school, which most closely meets the
needs of individual veterans pursuing higher education.
Both bills were
presented to the President on January 1 and are expected to be signed
shortly.
HEALTH
CARE NEWS
NDAA Includes TRICARE
Pharmacy Increases
The
NDAA, signed by President Obama on Jan. 3, includes a provision increasing
co-pays for TRICARE’s pharmacy program.
The fee increases,
scheduled to take effect Feb. 1, includes a requirement that beneficiaries 65
and older have all maintenance drugs for chronic conditions refilled, for at
least one year, through TRICARE mail order or at base pharmacies, rather than
through retail outlets where the cost to TRICARE is a third higher.
According to the
article, TRICARE likely will need to publish a draft regulation, solicit public
comment and launch an education effort for elderly beneficiaries before it
begins to enforce home delivery for seniors. That could delay starting that
portion of the pharmacy plan until April or later.
When TMA publishes the
schedule/timeline for signing up for home delivery of medicines, NAUS will pass
on to you.
ACTIVE
DUTY NEWS
Marines to Wear Service
Uniforms Every Friday
Beginning today, all non-deployed Marines and sailors assigned to Marine
units, regardless of component, active or Reserve, will be required to wear the
appropriate seasonal service uniform each Friday.
“Unlike the utility uniform, the service uniforms are form fitting, and
this characteristic provides leaders with an opportunity to frequently evaluate
the personal appearance of their Marines without inducing a work stoppage,” said
Sgt. Maj. Michael E. Sprague, senior enlisted advisor for Force Headquarters
Group, Marine Forces Reserve.
The service B uniform, otherwise known as “bravos,” consists of a
long-sleeve khaki shirt with a tie and trousers and is worn November through
March. The service C uniform, popularly referred to as “charlies,” consists of
a short-sleeve khaki shirt with trousers and is worn during daylight savings
time.
“Watching Marines square their gig line away and adjust their uniform is
indicative of the ‘spit and polish’ pride we seem to have strayed from,” said
Sprague.
According to Marine Corps Order P1020.34G, all Marines, including
Reservists, are required to maintain their uniforms in a neat and serviceable
condition and “by their appearance, set an example of neatness and strict
conformity” with uniform regulations. This means that Marines must not only
abide by the proper wear of the uniform, but also pay attention to their
personal and physical appearance and must fully comply with the service’s
grooming and weight control standards.
Commanders may make case-by-case exceptions to the wearing of service
uniforms on Fridays based on operational requirements, but for the most part,
the rule is service uniform Fridays.
Marines should direct questions to their unit leaders for further
clarification on how their units will implement the new policy.
Army Sleep
Study
Academic and private
sector researchers are teaming up to study and improve the sleep quality of
soldiers through an online survey. The survey is now available online
to active and reserve-component soldiers, other service members, as well as
veterans. Participants take the 10-minute survey to describe their own sleep
patterns and habits, which will help researchers which kinds of sleep aids and
coaching might be most useful to others.
The focus is not just on
sleep, but also on other health problems that poor sleep might be signaling.
There are more than 100 types of sleep disorders and some of these are linked to
serious health issues like post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. For
more information, visit the National Sleep Foundation website.
Scholarships for
Military Families
Army Emergency Relief
offers two scholarship programs, the Spouse
Education Assistance Program and the Maj.
Gen. James Ursano Scholarship Program. Applications are available now but
the packets for both programs do not have to be completed and returned until May
1. The 2013 Scholarships for Military Children is also now open for students at
commissaries around the world. Applications must be turned in to a commissary
by Feb. 22. For more information on the Scholarships for Military Children,
visit the Commissaries.com website
and or the Scholarships for Military Children website at website.
AF Marathon
Registration Opens
Registration for the
2013 Air Force Marathon opened Jan. 1. The Air Force Marathon sold out in
record time in 2012 and organizers anticipate selling out even faster this year.
Officials will not be increasing the number of runners this year, capping the
participants at 15,000. Thus, all participants should register as early as
possible. For more information, visit the Air Force Marathon website.
VETERANS
NEWS
Time Running
Short For Ohio Military Veteran Bonuses
Veterans of the Persian Gulf War have only until the end of this year to
apply for a tax-free bonus" from Ohio "totaling between $150 and $5,700. If
veterans miss the Dec. 31, 2013, deadline to apply, they will no longer be
eligible, said Ed Zackery, director of Medina County Veterans Service Office."
Zackery added, "We ask that our veterans of other eras and our families let
everyone they know who served in the Persian Gulf era to get busy and apply
before it's too late."
New Book About Agent
Orange
A new book, from Western
Michigan University history professor Ed Martini, chronicles the history of
using Agent Orange in the Vietnam War. It also deals with the aftermath of the
herbicide in his book Agent Orange: History,
Science and the Politics of Uncertainty. Martini says American
scientists started paying closer attention to the effects of dioxin as the war
escalated. He claims the Nixon administration eventually ended the use of Agent
Orange over the objections of military commanders. Martini also says, despite
extensive research, much remains unknown about Agent Orange. For more
information on the book, visit the University
of Massachusetts Press website.
Hiring Our
Heroes
The US Chamber of
Commerce is continuing their very successful Career Fairs for veterans and their
spouses. Below are the events scheduled for January. If you need more
information click on the city where you want to attend:
NAUS
NEWS
NAUS Speakers for Your
Event
If your organization or
chapter is planning a meeting, Retiree Appreciation Day (RAD) or other event in
2013, you may want to consider inviting NAUS as you make your plans. We will
try to accommodate as many requests as we can, but getting your requests in
early helps us plan and budget for our participation. Please start by sending
your invitations specifying speaker, table display or both, to Ms. Vicki Sumner
at vsumner@naus.org. Please try to get your
requests in to us by January 31.
NAUS
East Tennessee
Chapter
On Jan. 15 the Blount
County Veteran’s Affairs Service Officer, Nathan Weinbaum, will speak at the
NAUS East Tennessee Chapter meeting. The group meets on the third Tuesday of
the month at RJ’s Courtyard, 3749 Alcoa Highway, Alcoa, TN. Order lunch and eat
11:00 to 12:00 with the program at 12:00.
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