Protecting Gold Star Spouses Act of 2025
The Protecting Gold Star Spouses Act of 2025 (H.R. 2631) would establish interim funding to keep paying the Coast Guard Retired Serviceman's Family Protection and Survivor Benefits Plans for fiscal years after 2024. The appropriations would come from the Treasury and mirror the funding level, terms, and conditions of the most recent full-year appropriations for these Coast Guard survivor programs, until a newer, full appropriation act is enacted. The bill also provides a mechanism to shift any expenditures to a later, enacted appropriation if Congress passes a general appropriation that includes funding for these plans, and it states that the interim funding under this act would no longer be available once such later appropriations are enacted. In short, it aims to prevent funding gaps for Gold Star spouses and other survivors by providing temporary, standby funding for the Coast Guard survivor benefits.
Key Points
- 1Establishes interim funding, out of the Treasury, for the Coast Guard Retired Serviceman's Family Protection and Survivor Benefits Plans for each fiscal year after 2024.
- 2Funding level and administration would follow the rate, operations, and terms of the most recent full-year appropriations for these plans, as described in the Coast Guard retirement pay provisions referenced from Public Law 116-260 (2021).
- 3The interim funds are intended to ensure continued payments until a future full-year appropriation is enacted.
- 4If a subsequent appropriation bill (either specific to the Coast Guard or a general appropriation bill) provides funding for these plans, the later appropriation would govern and the interim funds would no longer be available after the date the later appropriation becomes law.
- 5The bill’s title highlights the protection of Gold Star spouses, signaling a focus on ensuring survivor benefits for spouses of Coast Guard service members who died in the line of duty.