,,ii  #aahth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,s4 #chcg  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,february #bi1 
#bjbd,mrs4 ,murray 7for herself and ,mr4
 ,schmitt7 introduced the following     
bill2 which was read twice and referred 
to the ,committee on ,armed ,services   
,a ,,bill  ,to improve financial        
literacy training for members of the    
,armed ,forces4  #a4 ,short title ,this 
,act may be cited as the ,service       
,members ,are ,ready ,to ,save ,act of  
#bjbd or the ,,smart ,save ,act of      
#bjbd4  #b4 ,improvements to financial  
literacy training  7a7 ,in general      
,subsection 7a7 of section #iib of title
 #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 is         
amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#b77;,c71  
by striking grade ,e-#d and inserting   
grade ,e-#f2  7#b7 by adding at the end 
the following new paragraph3  7#e7 ,in  
carrying out the program to provide     
training under this subsection1 the     
,secretary concerned shall-- 7,a7 use a 
curriculum across all military          

departments for such training that-- 7i7
 focuses on ensuring that members of the
 armed forces who receive such training 
develop proficiency in financial        
literacy rather than focusing on        
completion of training modules2  7ii7 is
 based on best practices of the         
,financial ,literacy ,education         
,commission established under section   
#eac of the ,financial ,literacy and    
,education ,improvement ,act 7#bj       
,u4,s4,c4 #igjb72 and  7iii7 is designed
 to address the needs of members and    
their families2  7,b7 ensure that such  
training-- 7i7 is conducted by a        
financial services counselor who is     
qualified as described in paragraph 7#c7
 of subsection 7b7 or by other means as 
described in paragraph 7#b77;,a77ii7 of 
that subsection2  7ii7 is provided1 to  
the extent practicable and in a manner  
that does not harm mission readiness--  
7,i7 in a class held in person with     
fewer than #ajj attendees2 or  7,,ii7   
one-on-one between the member and a     

financial services counselor or a       
qualified representative described in   
subsection 7b77#b77;,a77ii77,,iii72 and 
7iii7 is provided using computer-based  
methods only if methods described in    
clause 7ii7 are impractical or          
unavailable2  7,c7 ensure that-- 7i7 an 
in-person class described in            
subparagraph 7,b77i77,i7 is available to
 the spouse of a member2 and  7ii7 if a 
spouse of a member is unable to attend  
such a class in person-- 7,i7 training  
is available to the spouse through an   
online program managed by the           
,department of ,defense2 and  7,,ii7 the
 member is informed during the in-person
 training of the member under           
subparagraph 7,b77i7 with respect to how
 the member's spouse can access the     
training2 and  7,d7 ensure that such    
training1 and all documents and         
materials provided in relation to such  
training1 are presented or written in   
manner that the ,secretary determines   
can be understood by the average        

enlisted member4  4  7b7 ,provision of  
retirement information ,such section is 
further amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating 
subsections 7d7 and 7e7 as subsections  
7e7 and 7g71 respectively2 and  7#b7 by 
inserting after subsection 7c7 the      
following new subsection 7d73  7d7      
,provision of retirement information ,in
 each training under subsection 7a7 and 
in each meeting to provide counseling   
under subsection 7b71 a member of the   
armed forces shall be provided with--   
7#a7 all forms relating to retirement   
that are relevant to the member1        
including with respect to the ,thrift   
,savings ,plan2  7#b7 information with  
respect to how to find additional       
information2 and  7#c7 contact          
information for counselors provided     
through the ,personal ,financial        
,counselor program1 the ,personal       
,financial ,management program1 or      
online programs managed by the          
,department of ,defense4  4  7c7 ,report
 on effectiveness of financial services 

counseling  7#a7 ,in general ,not later 
than #c years after the date of the     
enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary  
of ,defense shall submit to the         
congressional defense committees a      
report on financial literacy training   
and financial services counseling       
provided under section #iib of title    
#aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 as amended  
by this section1 that assesses-- 7,a7   
the effectiveness of such training and  
counseling1 which shall be determined   
using actual localized data similar to  
the ,unit ,risk ,inventory ,survey of   
the ,army2 and  7,b7 whether additional 
training or counseling is necessary for 
enlisted members of the ,armed ,forces  
or for officers4  7#b7 ,follow-on report
 ,not later than #f years after the date
 of the enactment of this ,act1 the     
,secretary shall submit to the          
congressional defense committees a      
report on the efforts of the ,department
 of ,defense to address any concerns    
raised in the report required by        

paragraph 7#a74  7#c7 ,congressional    
defense committees defined ,in this     
subsection1 the term congressional      
defense committees has the meaning given
 that term in section #aja of title #aj1
 ,united ,states ,code4  7d7            
,regulations ,the ,secretary of ,defense
 may prescribe such regulations as are  
necessary to carry out the amendments   
made by this section4