WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Pete Aguilar today issued the following statement in response to the House of Representatives passing the bipartisan Guard and Reserve GI Parity Bill of 2021:

“Members of the National Guard and Reserve Component risked their lives to defend the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 and have been integral in providing aid in communities across the country throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Servicemembers from the Active and Reserve Component regularly train alongside each other and are deployed together, yet do not receive equal benefits. The men and women who risk their lives to protect our country deserve to be fairly compensated for their work. I was proud to join a strong, bipartisan majority of my colleagues to ensure the men and women who serve in the Guard and Reserve Component receive the same GI benefits their Active-Duty counterparts receive. This new law ensures that every day in uniform counts.”

The Guard and Reserve GI Parity Bill of 2021 expands eligibility for the Post-9/11 GI Bill to count every day that a servicemember is paid and in uniform toward their benefits. In 2020, the National Guard was utilized more and for longer than any time period since World War II. 

Rep. Aguilar serves as Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus and is a member of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capitol.

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