August 8, 2007 Survey Identifies 68 State Legislators Who Currently Serve in the U.S. Military "Military Legislators" Serve Both Country and States BOSTON – A newly published survey has identified 68 state legislators who serve in the U.S. military as members of their states’ National Guard or Reserve units. The survey found that of the 68 state legislators who also serve in the military, 23 have been deployed or are currently on deployments. All 23 of these legislators have been on at least one deployment while also serving in their respective legislatures. Not surprisingly, many of the deployments of state legislators have been to the Middle East and have occurred within the last four years. Arizona State Rep. Jonathan Paton returned from deployment in March 2007 after serving as a military intelligence officer in Iraq for five months. Paton, a second-term legislator missed both the 2006 primary and general elections. In May 2007, Rep. Jim Watson from Illinois joined the Marine Corps Reserves. Watson was a member of the Marine Corps and Marine Corps Reserves from 1985-1991. He served in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm from 1990-1991. “We are at an important point in our nation’s history,” Watson said. “There is a general sense of duty that does not end when you take the uniform off. For some time now, I have felt the call to again serve my country,” he added when he enlisted in May 2007. Most of the legislators currently serving in the military were reservists prior to running for office. Six legislators including Watson joined the National Guard or Reserves after getting into elected office (i.e., Rep. Mitch Holmes (Kansas); Rep. Harold Naughton, Jr. (Massachusetts); Rep. Edward Pitts (South Carolina); Rep. K. Mark Takai (Hawaii); and Rep. John Mark Windle (Tennessee)) “I commend Rep. Watson for joining the Marine Corps Reserves,” Takai said. “A decision to serve our country in the military while also serving as state legislators is not an easy one. However, we all bring a unique perspective and some very compelling experiences gained through our experiences in the National Guard or Reserves.” Hawaii State Rep. K. Mark Takai initiated the task of surveying all state legislative leaders after being released from active duty in November 2005. Takai is a Captain in the Hawaii Army National Guard and serves as the Company Commander for the Medical Company of the 29th Brigade Combat Team. He was activated as the Deputy State Surgeon from May to November 2005. “There are significant challenges facing those legislators who are also in the military,” said Takai, who did the first survey in 2006 and coordinated another survey in 2007. Takai will present the survey results today to participants at a meeting of the National Network of Legislators in the Military (NNLM) at the Annual Meeting and Exhibition of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) in Boston, Massachusetts. “This survey brings to light the impressive backgrounds of these state legislators throughout the nation,” said Bill Pound, NCSL’s Executive Director. “They not only have to deal with the challenges facing all military service members, but they also have the responsibility of serving their constituents in their home states.” The analysis identified four legislators who have been deployed more than once during their legislative careers. Legislators across the country have also been activated for long-term duty (period lasting for more than 139 days). Fifteen legislators surveyed have said that they have served on extended activations. The survey found that states elected eight new legislators who are current reservists in the 2006 elections. Of the eight new “military legislators,” four are Republicans and four are Democrats. The survey also found that a majority of state legislatures (34 of them) currently have at least one member serving in the military. South Carolina leads with six legislators serving in the military; Iowa has five legislators serving in the military; while Massachusetts and Texas both have four. One of the immediate successes of the survey has been the discussion between these unique legislators. After Arizona’s Paton found out that he was being deployed, he contacted Takai. “Rep. Paton and I discussed some of the challenges he was going to be facing during his deployment,” Takai said. “Despite missing both his primary and general elections, I assured him that he could continue to be a state legislator and a candidate throughout the duration of his deployment.” Takai is very familiar with the federal law after completing exhaustive research in 2004 when he thought that he was being deployed with Hawaii’s 29th Brigade Combat Team. He found that although there are no federal laws that prohibit state lawmakers from serving on active duty with the military, there are specific requirements for lawmakers who are activated and/or deployed. The much-quoted Department of Defense Directive 1344.10 generally prohibits a military service member on active duty from holding or exercising the functions of civil office in state government. However, paragraph 4.3.5.4 of DoDD 1344.10 provides an exception for a reserve soldier serving on active duty under call or ordered to active duty. [1] “Rep. Takai should be commended for taking the initiative to identify these very unique military service members,” said John Deegan, CEO of the National Military Impacted Schools Association. “I’m sure that this survey and Rep. Takai’s work with these legislators should open up numerous possibilities to enhance the experiences for military personnel and their families,” Deegan added. The analysis also broke down these legislators by the branch of service that they are serving. The Army has 44 legislators serving in the military, the Air Force has eight, the Marine Corps has eight, and the Navy has seven.
The analysis also looked at which legislators were serving in the National Guard and which ones were serving in the Reserves. A total of 38 legislators are serving in their respective Reserve units, while 30 legislators are serving in their states’ National Guard units. Finally, the analysis also looked at political affiliations. A total of 41 of these legislators are Republicans, while 27 are Democrats. THE NATIONAL NETWORK OF LEGISLATORS IN THE MILITARY
A network called the National Network of Legislators in the Military (NNLM) was launched at the NCSL Annual Meeting last year in Tennessee. Takai serves as the group’s first chairman. Today’s afternoon session will be the very first meeting of the NNLM. “NCSL welcomes the active involvement of the National Network of Legislators in the Military and we look forward to working with this group in the future,” NCSL Pound said. According to Takai, the three purposes of the National Network of Legislators in the Military (NNLM) are (1) to provide information and guidance to those legislators who are or will be activated or deployed; (2) to provide a forum that will allow legislators to share “best practices” and model legislation to support the military in their respective states; and (3) to provide an opportunity to organizations and companies supporting our military to work with the network’s members. # # #
[1] The DOD directive does not permit exercising the functions of the elective office from the first day of active duty. This means that a military service member may not perform any function or take any action as a state officeholder. However, taking an oath of office and occupying a legislative seat do not constitute exercising the functions of the office, according to information that the author obtained from U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye (August 26, 2004). |