Hubbard Act Ensures Benefits and Bonuses For Sole-Surviving Soldiers

The 1998 movie "Saving Private Ryan" told the story of a World War II platoon sent to find Private Ryan, whose brothers had been killed in action, making him the last surviving child in his family.

The plot was inspired in part by the true story of Fritz Niland, one of four brothers from New York whose two brothers were killed on D-Day, while another was missing in action in Burma and presumed dead. Fritz was located in Normandy by an Army chaplain, Reverend Francis Sampson, and was removed from the combat zone and sent back to the United States to complete his service.

But when history tried to repeat itself in 2008 as the Army honorably discharged Jason Hubbard of Clovis, California after his two younger brothers died in the Iraq war, Jason Hubbard lost his health insurance and other veterans' benefits - all because he left before the end of his contract.

And that was not a happy Hollywood ending for Hubbard. In fact, it was not the end at all; it was just the beginning of a battle Hubbard eventually won, and not just for himself, but for all sole-surviving soldiers.

Enlisting Legislative Action for Army Spc. Hubbard
Forced to leave the combat zone after his two brothers died in the Iraq war, a technical legal loophole stated that Army Spc. Jason Hubbard was no longer entitled to military benefits. But this just didn't seem right to Hubbard.
Hubbard petitioned his local congressman, Rep Devin Nunes, who began advocating to restore those benefits for the former soldier soon after hearing the Army was also demanding that he repay $6,000 from his enlistment bonus as well as denying Hubbard up to $40,000 in educational benefits under the GI bill.
Nunes joined three other lawmakers in introducing The Hubbard Bill to ensure basic benefits to all soldiers who are discharged under an Army policy governing sole surviving siblings and children of soldiers killed in combat.

THE HUBBARD BILL IS PASSED

Today, the Hubbard Bill - co-sponsored by Rep. Jim Costa, D-Calif., Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Sen. Saxby Chambliss R-Ga. - waives payback of enlistment bonuses, allows participation in G.I. educational programs, and offers separation pay and access to transitional health care for those soldiers who are forced to leave the service before their contract is up.

H.R. 6580:Hubbard Act: To ensure the fair treatment of a member of the Armed Forces who is discharged from the Armed Forces, at the request of the member, pursuant to the Department of Defense policy permitting the early discharge of a member who is the only surviving child in a family in which the father or mother, or one or more siblings, served in the Armed Forces and, because of hazards incident to such service, was killed, died as a result of wounds, accident, or disease, is in a captured or missing in action status, or is permanently disabled, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the dollar limitation on contributions to funeral trusts, and for other purposes.

President Bush signed the Hubbard Act into law, which forever secures the benefits of "sole survivor" veterans who are honorably discharged after the death of a parent or sibling also serving in the military.