Interstate Compact on Ed. Opp. for Military Children and other good news for military families

November 25, 1:04 PMDC Military Families ExaminerKaren Klasi

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School House Rock

Often, I've grouched about the price our children pay for the service of their parents.  I've been heard to say, "This.  This is what people don't get when they talk about our health benefits or our annual leave or our tour overseas."  They don't get that our kids have to move all the time, that they leave friends regularly, that the quality and the requirements of their education change with every state, that we can't get the continuity of medical care that others take for granted.

Well, the winds of change are blowing, and I have good news for you. 

Many of the sacrifices our children make will remain the facts of their lives, and we will continue to do our best as parents to hold things like moving and starting over and distance from grandparents in a positive light.  We will do our utmost to help them focus on the benefits that come from traveling around the world, the joys of making and keeping many friends, and the pride they should have in the work their parent(s) are doing while deployed.  When they see us facing our challenges head-on, and making proverbial lemonade out of the lemons we've been dealt, their own challenges will become opportunities to grow.

Having said that, I am happy to report that we now have a greater variety in our beverage choices, with more on the horizon.

-At least 11 states have signed the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, which allows for the policies concerning such things as graduation requirements, Advanced Placements (AP), and age of student enrollment to be transferred from the state where the student was last enrolled to the state of their new residence.  It appears that more states are considering signing this compact, so take some time to write and encourage your congressmen and women to get on board.

In a Nov. 23 Baltimore Sun Op/Ed, Kate Sylvester writes about the headway being made by various states on our behalf:

-Texas offers free preschool for military families.

-Illinois has a grace period for military families to reinstate their conventional health insurance after leaving the military.

-Indiana offers in-state tuition for military families.

-Georgia used evidence that payday lenders were taking advantage of soldiers to get a tough payday lending law passed in that state.

-Virginia allows child-support payments to be transferred to individuals who care for military children when their parents are deployed.

One of the most exciting changes I see on the horizon is House Bill HR 6225, which would give spouses the same residency rights as their military sponsors.  The ramifications of this bill are enormous, including:

-the right to maintain the same state of residence, regardless of how many times we move;  

-allowing us to simplify the paying of state and local income taxes;

-saving us endless hours at the DMV by allowing us to keep our driver's license and vehicle registration;

-allowing us to continue voting in our hometowns;

-giving us freedom to have our names on property and auto titles, without fear of being penalized by taxes in a state in which we never intended to live.

As we who are "living the dream," so to speak, know, there is so much more that can and needs to be done.  This week, let's give thanks for the efforts already made on our behalf.  Next week, let's send a barrage of letters and emails to our Senators, encouraging them to vote this bill into law.