The mission of this Operation is to gain Congressional and Military support and approval to authorize retroactivity of certain awards, medals and badges to eligible living and deceased military veterans who served from our Revolutionary War to the Present... without costing either the taxpayer or our military branches any money.

Today there exists a number of U.S. military awards created since WW2 that have never been made applicable, or retroactive, to veterans or prior wars simply because Congress cannot budget the enormous cost of providing retroactive hardware to the millions of former servicemen and women who performed the exact same service and duty for our country over the past 200 years that current military members perform today. Understandably, the administrative cost alone of processing approvals, or rejections, for retroactive awards would burden billions of dollars on the American taxpayer and drain the active military of those billions required to fund our active national defense.

In the proposed (sample) Legislation provided below, this operation proposes that certain awards (see list below) created after WW2, in which their criteria renders them applicable to prior eras, be made automatically retroactive to qualified veterans based on their existing military documentation (DD-214 or Report of Separation)

This Operation also proposes in the sample Legislation that any qualified veteran who wishes to obtain a retroactive award must purchase it him or herself. In other words, neither the taxpayer nor the military budget will be required to fund the cost of providing newly retroactive awards enacted under any approval legislation.

This Operation believes that this simple remedy will fully resolve all issues of deserved retroactivity authorization and funding, while at the same time preserving the enforceability of the Stolen Valor Act of 2007.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
(DATE)
PROPOSED LEGISLATION

A BILL

A. To expand retroactive eligibility of certain awards (medals, badges and ribbons) to eligible former U.S. Military Personnel, living or deceased, of the United States Armed Forces who served or performed in identical or similar actions now recognized for an existing award from the period starting with the Revolutionary War to the present;

B. To apply the punitive Stolen Valor Act to any misrepresented or disclaimed award that is deemed ineligible by any authorized governing agency;

C. To require approval for those awards that currently require confirmation of eligibility; the cost/fee of confirming eligibility to be born by the applicant or applicants representative; the non-refundable cost/fee of reviewing eligibility to be established either by Congress or the working agency;

D. To establish that any awards (medals, badges or ribbons) or other hardware associated with an automatic or required-approval award be purchased from a hardware supplier by the applicant or applicant's representative with no issuance or compensation for their cost by any military or other federal, state or local agency.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the RetroActive Recognition Service Award Act of 2010.

SECTION 2. AWARDS/MEDALS AUTHORIZED.

(a) Automatic Authorization. To be awarded under authority of Recipients to be granted automatic authorization pending documentation verifying fulfillment of criteria.

(b) Approval / Authorization Required. Confirmation of eligibility and approval necessary and needed to be determined by appropriate branch of military service.

SECTION 3. LIST OF AWARDS TO BE AUTOMATICALLY AUTHORIZED.

The following is a list of awards created since World War all that are applicable to a limited

Selection of military personnel and veterans but have not been made retroactive to the Revolutionary War because of the enormous costs involved. (This list to be amended).

(a) National Defense Service Medal. Authorization automatic. RetroActive eligibility for any honorable active federal service in the armed forces during any military campaign, expedition or war deemed necessary or vital to protect the interests of the United States.

(b) Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. Automatic authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying fulfillment of criteria for 12 months accumulated active duty on deployed vessels, operating away from their home port for extended periods, or at an overseas duty station.

(c) Overseas Service Deployment Ribbon (All applicable Branches). Automatic authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying fulfillment of criteria to any member of the United States Armed Forces who completes a standard overseas tour of duty (Length of time depends on branch of service) during a consecutive or cumulative period of time.

(d) Arctic Service Medal. Automatic authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying fulfillment of criteria to extend the current Issue Regulations back to the Hall Expedition (1871) and all subsequent Expeditions involving military personnel.

(e) Army Service Ribbon. Automatic authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying Army, Army National Guard or Army Reserve Status for successful completion of initial-entry training depending on enlisted or officer classification.

(f) Non-Commissioned Officer Training/academy Ribbon. Automatic Authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying Army, Army National Guard or Army Reserve Status and to extend back to the establishment of the first NCO training course for successfully completing a designated Noncommissioned Officer professional development course.

(g) Cold War Service Medal. Automatic authorization. To approve the pending medal design for wear on the U.S. Military Uniform. Automatic authorization pending documentation verifying any honorable active duty in the Armed Forces during the Cold War Period.

(h) Prisoner of War. Automatic authorization. RetroActive eligibility pending documentation verifying POW status to any person who was taken prisoner of war and held captive while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States during any of the wars, conflicts or campaigns or involving military operations with an opposing force or friendly forces engaged in armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

(i) Global War on Terrorism Service and Expeditionary Medals. Automatic authorization. Recipients to be granted automatic authorization pending personal documentation verifying fulfillment of criteria. To retroactively authorize both medals for domestic or foreign service involving responses to the following terrorist attacks:

1. Overtaking of the cruise ship Achille Lauro, 1985 2. Bombing of the La Belle Disco, 1986 3. Attack on the world Trade Center, 1993 4. Attack on the USS Cole, 2000

SECTION 4 LIST OF AWARDS TO BE APPROVED UPON CONFORMATION OF ELIGIBILITY.

(a) Combat Action Ribbon. ( Navy, Marine and Coast Guard) Approval/Authorization required. To retroactively extend this ribbon back to the Revolutionary War for active participation in ground or air combat during specifically listed (All wars, campaigns, conflicts, expeditions ) military operations.

(b) Combat Action Medal. To establish a medal corresponding to the Combat Action Ribbon and extend retroactively this ribbon back to the Revolutionary War period. Approval/Authorization required. ( Proposed medal design)

(Proposed medal design place here)

(c) Army Combat Infantry Badge. To retroactively extend this badge to the Revolutionary War. Approval/Authorization required. KIA authorization is automatic. Awarded to any soldier in an infantry unit or special forces unit when the unit was engaged in active ground combat.

(d) Army Combat Action Badge. To retroactively extend this badge to the Revolutionary War. Approval/Authorization required. KIA authorization is automatic. Awarded to any soldier while performing assigned duties where hostile fire or imminent danger exists and is actively engaging or being engaged by the enemy.

(e)(1)Army Combat Medical Badge. To retroactively extend this badge back to World War l. Approval/Authorization required. KIA authorization automatic. To be awarded to any member of a military medical department (regardless of branch of service) who is attached to an infantry unit during any period that unit is engaged in actual ground combat. The infantry unit must have been in contact with the enemy.

(e)(2) To apply the WW2 authorization of the Bronze Star Medal to recipients of the Combat Medical Badge who served in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq or Afghanistan.

(f) Air Force Combat Action Medal. To retroactively extend this medal back to World War l. Approval/authorization required. KIA authorization automatic. Awarded for actively being engaged in ground or air combat with the enemy.

(g)Air Assault Badge. To retroactively extend this badge back to 1951, the Korean War which began helicopter air mobility. Approval/authorization required. Awarded to army personnel for successful completion of the Air Assault Training Course/School.

(h) Navy Surface Warfare Pin/Badge. Approval/authorization required. To retroactively extend this pin/badge back to the Revolutionary War. To be awarded to any naval personnel, while stationed aboard a navy afloat craft, who during any war, conflict, campaign or battle and assigned to any navy vessel and actively engages with the enemy under extreme combat conditions likely to produce in death or great bodily harm and has training, knowledge and expertise in his prospective field of combat. (Ex. The US Navy in the War of 1812, Admiral Dewey in the Philippines, Convoy Escorts and the 6th Battle Squadron of WW1 or the Pacific Sea Battles of WW11.

(i) Navy Expeditionary Warfare Pin/Badge. Approval/authorization required. To retroactively extend this pin/badge back to any enlisted navy personnel who actively participated in any maritime security role or maritime combat related role while stationed aboard a military ocean vessel and who demonstrates specific knowledge in various security roles such as weapons expertise and maintenance in marksmanship skills and/or land navigation and/or communication and/or expeditionary camp deployment. The qualifications to be based on time period and technology available during a particular incident or period of time. (Ex. Gallipoli in WW 1, the PT boats of WW2 or Riverine and Navy Coastal Patrol in Vietnam)

(j) Navy Seabee Combat Warfare Badge. Approval/authorization required. To retroactively extend this badge back to WW2, January 05, 1942 and its beginning. To authorize this badge to any navy personnel who, while attached to the navy, was assigned to a navy construction battalion or who was later transferred to a construction battalion and performed his craftsmen trade while in hostile enemy territory or while under combat conditions against an enemy aggressor.

(k) Coast Guard Cutterman's Insignia/badge. Approval/authorization required. To retroactively extend this badge back to the Coast Guard's creation in 1790. To authorize this badge to any coast guard personnel who served on a cutter of 65 ft. or larger or on any patrol craft, cutter or warship assigned to the US Coast Guard during any war, conflict, campaign, battle or any situation deemed to be a threat against the interests of the United States while pursuing or performing a seagoing career and who performs his assigned duties in a professional and above average manner. Temporary or permanent status will depend upon length of time personnel are assigned to sea duty with a minimum of at least six months sea duty.