Bill Overview
Title: To amend title 10, United States Code, to establish the Department of Defense Military Housing Readiness Council, and for other purposes.
Description: This bill establishes the Department of Defense Military Housing Readiness Council to review and make recommendations to the Department of Defense (DOD) regarding policies for privatized military housing. The council must also monitor compliance by DOD with statutory improvements to policies for privatized military housing and make recommendations to improve collaboration, awareness, and promotion of accurate and timely information about privatized military housing, accommodations available through the Exceptional Family Member Program, and other support services among policymakers, service providers, and targeted beneficiaries. The council must make all documents publicly available until the council ceases to exist.
Sponsors: Rep. Jacobs, Sara [D-CA-53]
Target Audience
Population: People residing in or associated with privatized military housing worldwide
Estimated Size: 2000000
- The bill targets individuals living in or related to those living in privatized military housing.
- The U.S. Department of Defense has over 1.3 million active-duty service members.
- Many service members utilize privatized military housing, along with their families.
- The bill aims to improve housing conditions for service members, impacting both service members and their families.
Reasoning
- The policy primarily impacts military service members and their families who utilize privatized military housing, aiming to improve their living conditions and support services.
- The target population for this policy is around 2 million individuals in the United States, considering service members living in privatized housing and their families.
- Budget constraints ensure that the policy implementation is efficient and impactful without exceeding $35,000,000 in year 1 and $350,000,000 over 10 years.
- Since the council aims to improve housing standards and transparency of information, it is expected that wellbeing improvements will directly correlate with enhanced housing conditions and support services.
Simulated Interviews
Active Duty Soldier (Fort Bragg, North Carolina)
Age: 26 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 6
Duration of Impact: 10.0 years
Commonness: 15/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I really hope this council can make some change. Our current housing is decent, but it could be better, especially with maintenance issues.
- Transparency on what improvements are being made and having a say in the process would be nice, things feel quite opaque at the moment.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 5 | 9 | 6 |
| Year 10 | 9 | 5 |
| Year 20 | 9 | 5 |
Military Spouse (San Diego, California)
Age: 34 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 5
Duration of Impact: 7.0 years
Commonness: 12/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I'm glad they're reviewing housing policies. It often feels like our voice isn't heard, and changes take forever.
- Better coordination with the Exceptional Family Member Program would significantly lift a burden off my shoulders.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 6 | 5 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 5 |
Defense Civilian Contractor (Fort Hood, Texas)
Age: 45 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 10.0 years
Commonness: 10/20
Statement of Opinion:
- It'll be interesting to see if this policy really makes a difference in housing conditions.
- In my experience, the problems are known but change is sometimes slow or non-existent.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 7 |
Military Support Program Coordinator (Virginia Beach, Virginia)
Age: 38 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 8
Duration of Impact: 8.0 years
Commonness: 8/20
Statement of Opinion:
- The council's emphasis on public documents will be beneficial for transparency and trust.
- If they can really make the system more efficient and responsive, it will significantly aid in serving military families better.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 3 | 9 | 8 |
| Year 5 | 9 | 8 |
| Year 10 | 9 | 8 |
| Year 20 | 9 | 8 |
Nonprofit Organization Worker (El Paso, Texas)
Age: 30 | Gender: other
Wellbeing Before Policy: 6
Duration of Impact: 5.0 years
Commonness: 7/20
Statement of Opinion:
- Greater collaboration suggested by this bill sounds promising, but I've seen many proposed changes stall due to bureaucracy.
- Families need assurance that these changes will positively impact their daily lives.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 6 |
Active Duty Soldier (Okinawa, Japan)
Age: 29 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 10.0 years
Commonness: 6/20
Statement of Opinion:
- Even being stationed overseas, we face similar issues with privatized housing.
- Hopefully, this policy will also help us abroad, since often overseas locations are left behind.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 7 |
Policy Analyst (Washington D.C.)
Age: 50 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 9
Duration of Impact: 20.0 years
Commonness: 5/20
Statement of Opinion:
- It's crucial to have a body that reviews and recommends improvements for military housing regularly.
- This policy might lead to better strategic planning and resource allocation in the long run.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 2 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 3 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 5 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 10 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 20 | 9 | 9 |
Veteran, currently a civilian (Colorado Springs, Colorado)
Age: 32 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 5.0 years
Commonness: 10/20
Statement of Opinion:
- During my service, housing was a constant issue; glad to see there's effort to review and improve it now.
- Transparency can go a long way in providing comfort and ensuring quality.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 6 |
Military Command Support Staff (Honolulu, Hawaii)
Age: 40 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 6
Duration of Impact: 6.0 years
Commonness: 9/20
Statement of Opinion:
- A formal council that can push for real changes and improvements is much needed.
- Hope to see fast and effective implementation addressing our local housing issues.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 5 |
Military Support Unit Member (Anchorage, Alaska)
Age: 23 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 5
Duration of Impact: 10.0 years
Commonness: 7/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I’m still new, but I hear about the housing struggles from colleagues; this seems like a step in the right direction.
- Having a clearer and more responsive system would really help everyone trying to manage these expectations.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 6 | 5 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 5 |
Cost Estimates
Year 1: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Year 2: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Year 3: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Year 5: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Year 10: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Year 100: $35000000 (Low: $30000000, High: $40000000)
Key Considerations
- The policy targets a very specific group, which may limit broad economic or fiscal impacts.
- While costs will largely be administrative, their effectiveness depends on the council's ability to enact meaningful changes in policy and practice around military housing.
- There are potential savings from improved housing policy implementation over time, though not immediately realizable.