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Bipartisan legislation recognizes dangers faced by units on the Sinai Peninsula

WASHINGTON –U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) today introduced the Sinai Service Recognition Act, bipartisan legislation to designate the Sinai Peninsula as a “combat zone”, which will allow troops assigned there to receive the same tax benefits as the rest of the military.

“The men and women who serve overseas put their country before their own lives, often in dangerous situations, and troops stationed in the Sinai are no different,” Sen. Cornyn said. “These men and women serving in this region have been facing life-threatening conditions for years and deserve the same benefits as military deployed in designated combat zones. I hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle can support this bipartisan effort.”

“For decades, Minnesota National Guard and Reserve servicemembers deployed to the Sinai Peninsula have played an important role in maintaining peace and stability in the region,” said Klobuchar. “As terrorist groups like ISIS spread throughout the region, the dangers these servicemembers face has increased. Current rules regarding benefits for those serving in the Sinai do not reflect these new threats. Our legislation rights this wrong and helps to ensure that those serving in harm’s way get the benefits they deserve.”

Background on the Sinai Service Recognition Act:

The U.S. has deployed service members to the Sinai Peninsula since 1982 to perform a peacekeeping function. The U.S. contingent is now roughly 725 service members, the last increase being September 2015.

The Department of Defense designated the Sinai Peninsula as a “Qualified Hazardous Duty Area” on June 9, 2015, due to the dangerous conditions. Since then, U.S. troops there have received Hostile Fire/ imminent Danger Pay (IDP) and Hazardous Duty Pay-Location (HDP-L). However, the President has not designated the Sinai Peninsula as a “Combat Zone,” and the Defense Department has resisted such a move. Therefore, for troops assigned to the Sinai Peninsula, their pay is not excluded from their income taxes as it is for troops serving in designated combat zones such as Iraq or Afghanistan.

Since September 2016, six troops (four Americans) have been wounded during patrols. There have been occasions of air incidents, arms fire, and suspected rocket fire. Since June of 2015, the Sinai Peninsula has seen significant increases in hostile force activity, including attacks by the ISIS affiliate in the Sinai.

This bill provides for the Sinai Peninsula to be “treated in the same manner as if it were a combat zone”, granting troops deployed there the same tax-free treatment as those who are deployed to designated combat zones.