Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland (WA-10) and Congressman Don Bacon (NE-02) introduced the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) Restoration Act to address the housing crunch that servicemembers and their families face. The legislation would mandate that the Department of Defense (DoD) restore the full BAH benefit and increase access to affordable housing, on and off base. Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) is introducing companion legislation in the Senate.
“Access to affordable housing is one of the top issues I hear from servicemembers at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Servicemembers are being priced out of options to live near their bases, putting strain on our military families,” said Rep. Strickland. “When the Department reduces the housing allowance, it exacerbates economic, food access, and readiness issues. Restoring the BAH to 100% provides servicemembers and their families with stability and shows that meeting their basic needs is a national security priority.”
“Our service members and their families should not have to struggle to find and afford housing. When they volunteer to put their lives on the line for their country, we should be able to guarantee that they will have access to clean and comfortable housing within the allowance they are given,” said Rep. Bacon. “Restoring BAH to 100% will help improve the quality of life for those that are willing to sacrifice so much.”
“Georgia is a military state, and with all that we ask from our servicemembers and their families, ensuring they have quality, affordable housing is the least we can do,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. “I have long been a champion for our servicemembers in Georgia and across the nation, which is why I am proud to partner with Representatives Strickland and Bacon to champion the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) Restoration Act. Our bill will help ensure military families who sacrifice so much to serve our nation can access safe, dignified housing, and I look forward to introducing companion legislation in the Senate.”
In addition to bipartisan, bicameral support, the legislation has support from servicemember, military family, and veterans advocacy groups, including Military Family Advisory Network, Blue Star Families, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Military Officers Association of America, and the National Military Family Association.
“Our research shows that 69.2% of active duty military family respondents carry the burden of paying more than they can comfortably afford for housing. Furthermore, 59.4% of active duty families living off-installation pay more than $251 beyond their housing allowance each month for housing-related expenses,” said Shannon Razsadin, President and Executive Director of the Military Family Advisory Network (MFAN). “The intersection between housing, economic security, and overarching well-being is clear. We applaud Representatives Strickland and Bacon for their bipartisan effort to support military families who navigate unpredictable housing markets, on average, every two and a half years.”
“Military families struggle to the point of experiencing ‘PCS homelessness’ and chronic money shortfalls because of skyrocketing housing costs, according to our research,,” said Kathy Roth-Douquet, CEO of Blue Star Families. “We were grateful last year to see Chairman Smith address restoring the basic allowance for housing (BAH) to 100 percent, and we continue to urge Congress to restore BAH to cover 100 percent of the calculated rate. We are thrilled that Rep. Strickland and Rep. Bacon are reintroducing legislation this year and we wholeheartedly support the effort to make life easier for thousands of military families.”
“As we weigh in for the future of the All-Volunteer Force, we see the strain being placed on our service members and families, particularly among our junior enlisted,” said Military Officers Association of America President and CEO Lt. Gen. Brian T. Kelly, USAF (Ret). “Financial security starts at home. We are grateful for Representatives Strickland and Bacon’s leadership to care for our service-families by introducing legislation to restore the Basic Allowance for Housing to 100 percent. Our servicemembers give their all to our nation, the least we can do is ensure that we fully provide for adequate housing.”
“Our families move wherever the military sends them, regardless of how expensive the housing is. When they get there, they shouldn’t have to choose between putting food on the table or paying for the roof over their heads,” said Besa Pinchotti, CEO of the National Military Family Association (NMFA). “We appreciate Rep. Strickland’s, Rep. Bacon’s and Senator Warnock’s efforts to ensure that military families can afford to live wherever the military sends them by fully restoring the Basic Allowance for Housing.”
House co-sponsors for the BAH Restoration Act are Scott DesJarlais (TN-04), Rob Wittman (VA-01), Rep Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Rick Larsen (WA-02), Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Derek Kilmer (WA-06), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Don Beyer (VA-08), Scott Peters (CA-50), Seth Moulton (MA-06), Mike Turner (OH-10), Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), Jason Crow (CO-06), Sara Jacobs (CA-51), and Blake Moore (UT-01).
The decreased BAH has profound economic effects for many servicemembers and military families. The 2022 Blue Star Families Military Lifestyle Survey found that 81% of military families with out-of-pocket expenses spend over $200 a month above their BAH on housing. Additionally, 24% of servicemembers are estimated to be experiencing food insecurity. Restoring BAH to 100% would have significant ripple effects on the economic health of the nation’s Armed Forces.
In FY2015, Congress authorized, but did not require, the DoD to implement a cost-sharing measure and BAH was adjusted to cover 95%. Servicemembers are entitled to a BAH, which seeks to provide equitable housing compensation based on housing costs in local civilian housing markets within the United States. BAH rates are based on local area rental market data, varying by geographic duty station, pay grade, and dependency status. The DoD hires a contractor to survey rental markets each year, looking for median rent, and utilities for six different types of properties. This system often lags behind dynamic changes in the housing market, especially in high cost of living areas.
U.S. Representative Marilyn Strickland serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. She is the Congressional Black Caucus whip, a member of the New Democrat Coalition, one of the first Korean-American women elected to Congress, and the first African-American elected to represent the Pacific Northwest at the federal level.
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