Senators Hassan, Cramer Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Further Protect Service Members from Unfair Telecom Contracts

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to help protect service members and their families from unfair telecommunication contracts, allowing them to cancel TV, phone, or internet service providers without penalty if a global emergency, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, prevents them from moving and using their planned service provider.

The bipartisan Emergency Relief for Servicemembers Act will help ensure that service members who are ordered to move due to their military service and enter into a telecommunications contract are able to terminate that contact without penalty after receiving a stop movement order in response to an emergency. The bill would be retroactive to March 1, 2020. A companion bill was introduced in the House by Representatives Mike Levin (D-CA) and Mike Garcia (R-CA) and was included in the National Defense Authorization Act that passed the House in September. 

“Through no fault of their own, members of our military are being forced to pay for telecommunication contracts that they no longer need after their Permanent Change of Station order was put on hold because of the pandemic,” Senator Hassan said. “Many of us have had the experience of waiting on hold with a service provider, trying to navigate the fine print of our telecom contract only to be told there is no flexibility. For our service members and military families, that’s inexcusable. I am glad to team up with Senator Cramer to push for this bill to be included in the NDAA, and I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting this important measure.”

“Our military members and their families are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for our nation and for freedom across the world, so the least we could do is make their relocation moves easier. If a service member receives an order to relocate, obviously they should be able to terminate a telephone, television, or internet contract if the company does not service their new address or if their move is suddenly halted because of an emergency situation,” said Senator Cramer. “Our bill would ensure our service members are not financially burdened by unnecessary contracts or fees while answering the call to serve our great country and stand in the gap for freedom.”

Text of the legislation can be found here. 

Senator Hassan is working across the aisle to help ensure that veterans, service members, and their families have the support that they need to thrive. The Senator recently introduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) help reduce the disparity in out-of-pocket costs for military uniforms for women service members, who often pay more for uniform items than their male counterparts. Furthermore, Senators Hassan and Marco Rubio (R-FL) led successful bipartisan efforts to push the Department of Education to ensure that more service members can utilize the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Additionally, President Biden recently signed into law a bipartisan bill cosponsored by Senator Hassan to automatically provide cost-of-living increases to Veterans Affairs benefits for certain veterans with disabilities and dependent survivors.

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