By Michael Schindler

We’ve all read the headlines that highlight a tragic story of one of our heroes coming home only to face challenges that stem from unemployment or foreclosure. The numbers of veterans facing foreclosure continues to climb, despite measures in place designed to prevent such, and the unemployment among our Post 9/11 veterans exceeds that of their civilian counterparts. A few days ago, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, put her foot down and introduced the Servicemembers Rights Enforcement Improvement Act of 2012.

Currently, many of the protections put in place to help shield our nation’s heroes—specifically the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) — have been violated in a disturbing number of cases within the past several years. So, several Senators are stepping up to put more teeth in the bite. Co-sponsoring Chairman Murray’s legislation are Senators Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Mark Begich (D-AK), Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).

The Servicemembers Rights Enforcement Improvement Act, which includes a significant number of proposals provided to the Congress by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), would strengthen DoJ’s ability to enforce these laws on behalf of servicemembers and veterans.

“Our men and women in uniform serve with tremendous dignity on the battlefield,” said Chairman Murray. “Our nation owes it to them to guarantee protection under the law when they return home. The Servicemembers Rights Enforcement Act will help force the hand of those who have failed to follow the law when it comes to providing our nation’s heroes with the basic safeguards they deserve.”

USERRA secures servicemembers’ employment rights during periods of military service and prohibits employer discrimination based upon military service or obligation.

With regard to foreclosures, over the past year, it has come to light that several banks improperly overcharged and foreclosed upon deployed servicemembers in violation of the SCRA. Failure to comply with SCRA protections is unacceptable.

This bill strengthens the statutory protections of SCRA as well as the mechanisms used to enforce them.

If you want more info on this bill, contact Senator Murray’s office at 202-224-2834.

Michael Schindler, Navy veteran, and president of Edmonds-based Operation Military Family, is a guest writer for several national publications, author of the book “Operation Military Family” and “The Military Wire” blog. He is also a popular keynote and workshop speaker who reaches thousands of service members and their families every year through workshops and seminars that include  “How to Battle-Ready Your Relationship” or “What Your Mother-in-Law Didn’t Tell You.”  He received the 2010 Outstanding Patriotic Service Award from the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs.