Washington, DC – Today, President Donald Trump signed into law Senator Sheldon Whitehouse’s (D-RI) bill to extend vital foreclosure protection to servicemembers, veterans, and their families. Whitehouse’s legislation, which was included as an amendment in the 2018 defense authorization bill, extends through 2019 the one-year grace period protecting servicemembers leaving active duty from foreclosure.
“The men and women of our armed forces ought to have a shot to regain their financial footing when they return home,” said Whitehouse. “Extending this important protection recognizes their noble service to our country. I’m proud my legislation was signed into law today.”
Senator Whitehouse has been fighting for years to ensure that those who have served our country and their families are protected from foreclosure as they transition from active-duty service to civilian life. In 2012, Whitehouse fought successfully to extend the period of foreclosure protection to one year. Since then, Whitehouse has succeeded in continuing that protection on a temporary basis, while fighting to make it permanent. The 2016 extension of these protections expires at the end of 2017.
“Senator Whitehouse’s bill is particularly important in Rhode Island because we have one of the most deployed National Guard forces in the country,” said Erik Wallin, Executive Director of Operation Stand Down Rhode Island. “This bill provides servicemen and women with the relief they need as they transition from periods of active duty back into civilian life.”
In 2008, Congress first extended the period of foreclosure protection under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act from 90 days to nine months in response to a report by the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves. The report found that “the threat of foreclosure is a stressor that need not be placed on members of the armed forces during the first months of their return to civilian life.”
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