When the Commander-in-Chief makes the difficult decision to send our troops into harm''s way, we hope and pray each and every one of them will come back home unharmed. While we know this will not be possible, that knowledge does not lessen our shock and our sadness when we learn of the loss of lives. In the initial days of the war, two Marines with ties to Maine made the ultimate sacrifice. Captain Jay Aubin and Corporal Brian Kennedy, who have parents living in Maine, perished in a helicopter crash in the Kuwaiti desert. When I learned the news, I spoke on the Senate floor to express my condolences to their families and declare my commitment to ensuring that their sacrifice is remembered.
When we send a young man or woman into harm''s way, our nation has in return a sacred obligation to them and to their families. We must ensure they go forth with the utter and complete confidence that, should the worst happen, their country will care for their families and honor their service.
I am very pleased that Congress has taken an important and tangible step to repay this debt to the families of our fallen troops. Last week, the Senate voted unanimously to pass a bill I introduced with Senators John McCain and John Warner to provide greater support for the families of men and women in the armed forces who make the ultimate sacrifice. My bill raises the amount paid to the families of military personnel killed on active duty from $6,000 to $12,000, and it makes this increase retroactive to September 11, 2001, so the families of troops killed in Afghanistan will also be eligible.
The death gratuity, as this benefit is known, is a small token, but it assists the grieving families with their immediate financial needs. It is paid in addition to the primary death benefits a service member is due, such as the service member's group life insurance, VA dependents indemnity compensation, and the survivors benefits plan compensation. The death gratuity is commonly provided within 72 hours to the family of the service member who is killed while on active duty. While a variety of other programs provide for longer term support, these funds help to alleviate monetary concerns in the initial hours and days after a family has endured such a terrible loss.
The last time the death gratuity was raised was in 1991, during the Persian Gulf War, when it was doubled from $3,000 to $6,000. Raising this sum again, more than a decade later, is the least we can do to honor the sacrifice of those who are today fighting in Operation Iraqi Freedom and in the war against terrorism. I offered this legislation in tribute to the families of those whose loved ones are today engaged in combat in the Persian Gulf. Too often we forget the sacrifices they make so that their husband, wife, father, mother, brother, or sister can serve our nation. They are asked to accept long deployments and frequent moves, while at the same time providing the support our military personnel need to do their jobs. Truly, what these families do is heroic. My bill to increase the death gratuity sends a clear and strong message to them that we are grateful for their sacrifice.
Our thoughts are with our troops as they fight in the battles in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and in the war against terrorism, and we pray they will soon return home. We can never fully repay the debt of our nation to those who have laid down their lives for us. For them, the best we can do is honor their memory, ensure that their sacrifice is not in vain, and help provide for their families, and I am glad that this week the Senate took action to do so.