The problem the bill is meant to fix
Combat-injured veterans medically retired before 20 years of service are denied their full retired pay because they also receive VA disability compensation. Retired pay is earned by service. VA disability compensation is for the injury. Veterans who serve 20 years and have a VA rating of 50% or higher can generally receive both in full, through Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP). Those forced out early by combat injuries can’t receive both in full.
Supporters call that reduction the wounded veteran tax. How the offset works.
2020: first introduced
The Major Richard Star Act was first introduced in February 2020, as H.R. 5995 in the 116th Congress. It has been reintroduced in every Congress since.
Sources: Wounded Warrior Project interview with Tonya Star · Coffee or Die
2021: the man it’s named for
Maj. Richard Star was a U.S. Army Reserve combat engineer who served in Desert Storm, Afghanistan, and Iraq. He was exposed to burn pits, was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in 2018, and was medically retired short of 20 years, so his own retired pay was offset. He spent his final months advocating on Capitol Hill for the bill that now bears his name. He died on February 13, 2021, at 51.
His wife, Tonya Star, was his caregiver and carried on the advocacy after his death. She died in August 2024. Read more about Maj. Star.
Sources: MOAA obituary · Military Times, Feb. 13, 2021 · Wounded Warrior Project interview with Tonya Star
2025: H.R. 2102 and S. 1032
In the current Congress (the 119th), the bill was introduced in the House on March 14, 2025, as H.R. 2102, led by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA). The Senate companion, S. 1032, was announced on March 18, 2025, led by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Rick Scott (R-FL).
Support grew to about 340 House cosponsors and about 80 Senate cosponsors, from both parties. In the Senate, requests to pass the bill by unanimous consent were blocked by objection on October 8, 2025, and again in 2026. No Senate floor vote on the bill has ever taken place.
Sources: GovInfo: H.R. 2102 text · Sen. Blumenthal press release · MOAA SITREP
2026: a package, a petition, and a vote
In April 2026, Defense Secretary Hegseth told a Senate hearing that the Department supports the Star Act. On April 30, H.Res. 1247 was introduced to bring the clean, standalone Star Act to the House floor, and on May 21, Reps. Mark Takano (D-CA) and Raul Ruiz (D-CA) filed Discharge Petition No. 22.
In June, a 62-bill veterans package with its own Star Act section, the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act (H.R. 9237), was introduced. On July 16, House leaders pulled it just before a final vote. Our view: we oppose the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act (H.R. 9237). It pays for its narrower version of the Star Act by cutting disability compensation for future veterans. Fixing one injustice by creating another isn’t a fix. Pass the clean, standalone Star Act.
On September 15, 2026, the discharge petition reached 218 signatures, a majority of the House. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) provided the final signature. The next day, the House left for its pre-election recess.
On October 27, 2026, the Congressional Budget Office published its cost estimate for the clean, standalone version: about $13 billion in direct spending over 2027–2036, with affected retirees receiving about $1,450 more a month on average.
On November 9, after the House returned, Rep. Takano gave notice that he would call up the motion. On November 11, Veterans Day, the House voted 245–175 to discharge H.Res. 1247. After an hour of debate on the resolution, a voice vote went against it, Rep. Takano demanded a recorded vote, and the House postponed it. The same afternoon, the House passed the 62-bill package by voice vote.
Sources: Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee · GovInfo: H.Res. 1247 text · House Clerk: Discharge Petition No. 22 · Stars and Stripes, July 16, 2026 · Stars and Stripes, Sept. 16, 2026 · CBO estimate for H.R. 2102 as modified by H.Res. 1247 (Oct. 27, 2026) · Stars and Stripes, Nov. 9, 2026 · House Clerk: Roll Call 320, Nov. 11, 2026 · House Clerk: floor proceedings, Nov. 11, 2026
What happens next
On November 11, the House voted 245–175 to discharge H.Res. 1247, the resolution that brings the clean, standalone Star Act to the floor. After debate, a voice vote on the resolution went against it, a recorded vote was demanded, and the House postponed that vote. If the House adopts the resolution, it then debates and votes on the bill.
Next, the House takes a recorded vote on H.Res. 1247. If it’s adopted, the House debates and votes on H.R. 2102 itself. If the House passes the bill, the Senate has to pass it too.
If Congress hasn’t passed it and sent it to the President by the time this Congress ends on January 3, 2027, it dies and must be reintroduced.
Where it stands now · Where your lawmakers stand
Source: MOAA, Sept. 2026