Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Two bills supporting military families move forward

HB 1054 and HB 1058 pass Senate

DENVER— Two important bills to protect the rights of military families unanimously passed the Senate and will head to the Governor’s desk soon. Senator John Morse (D-Colorado Springs) is the Senate sponsor of HB 1054 which gives unemployment insurance to the surviving spouse of anyone who has been killed in combat while on active duty. He is also the Senate sponsor of HB 1058 which protects the abandoned remains of veterans of the armed forces.

HB 1054 ensures if someone’s spouse is killed in combat, that person would be eligible for unemployment insurance even if he or she has left a job to move to a new place after the death. HB 1058 allows veterans groups to claim abandoned remains of any veteran and give it a proper military funeral.

“It is too easy to forget,” said Senator Morse. “We need to honor the service of our veterans no matter how long ago their service. Today, we took a giant step to do just that.”

HB 1054 will head to the Governor’s desk to be signed. HB 1058 will go back to the House for consideration.

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