WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense – introduced bipartisan legislation to support military mothers by making certain that women serving in the National Guard and Reserve can take maternity leave without worrying about how it will affect their creditable military service. The Mothers of Military Service (MOMS) Leave Act would allow women servicemembers of the Reserve Component to receive pay and points towards retirement while on maternity leave.

In 2016, the Department of Defense established new policies that authorized 12 weeks of fully-paid maternity leave after pregnancy and childbirth for active-duty servicemembers. But under current law, women serving in the National Guard and Reserve can lose out on credit for their military service and points towards retirement while they are on maternity leave. Members of the Reserve Component in inactive duty training status are still required to attend unit training assembles – or weekend drill – in order to receive points toward creditable military service. And if the woman service member misses drill, she is in jeopardy of not receiving credit toward retirement.

This bipartisan legislation would make certain that women serving in the Reserve Component receive pay and points for 12 pay periods (equal to six drill weekends) towards retirement after pregnancy and childbirth, thereby guaranteeing paid maternity leave for approximately 150,000 women currently serving in the National Guard and Reserve.

“Women who serve our country should not be inadvertently penalized for having a child, nor should they be expected to return to drill duties in the weeks following childbirth,” said Sen. Moran. “This bipartisan, sensible legislation would support new mothers in our National Guard and Reserve by making certain that they receive the same paid maternity leave benefits as their active duty counterparts. This proposal is an important step forward in ensuring that women can both serve our nation and build their families without having to sacrifice their pay or credits.”

Full bill text can be found here.

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