S. 5068: Service Academy Parity Act

This bill would change how cadets are nominated and appointed to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, starting with the 2029 academic year.

What it changes

• It renames the current Coast Guard Academy appointment section to cover both nominations and appointments.
• It sets out who can nominate candidates for Coast Guard Academy appointments.
• It creates a competitive selection system for nominated candidates, based on merit.

Who could be nominated

The bill says a person can only be nominated for a competitive appointment if they are a U.S. citizen or national and meet minimum requirements set by the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Nominations could come from:

• The Vice President or, if there is no Vice President, the President pro tempore of the Senate, for at-large nominations
• Senators, for residents of their states
• Representatives, for residents of their districts
• Delegates from Washington, D.C., the territories, and American Samoa, for residents of their jurisdictions
• The Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, for residents of Puerto Rico
• The Commandant of the Coast Guard, for enlisted members of the Coast Guard or Coast Guard Reserve

How the slots would be divided

Beginning in the 2029 academic year, the bill would require yearly allocation of Academy appointment positions in several categories, including:

• 3 slots for certain children of military members who were killed in action, are missing, or have qualifying service-connected disabilities, and children of certain missing civilian federal employees
• 1 at-large slot nominated by the Vice President or President pro tempore
• 230 slots for state-based congressional nominations, divided among the states based on congressional representation
• 1 slot each for nominees from the District of Columbia, Virgin Islands, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa
• 2 slots for nominees from Puerto Rico
• 20 slots for enlisted Coast Guard or Coast Guard Reserve members nominated by the Commandant

How selection would work

The Secretary would have to create a competitive system to rank nominees using things like:

• Competitive examinations
• Academic background
• Other signs of motivation and likelihood of completing Academy training successfully

For each jurisdiction, appointments would go to the highest-ranked nominees first. If any allocated positions are still unfilled, the Secretary could fill them from the remaining nominees nationwide, in order of merit.

Notification and transparency

• If a Senator, Representative, or Delegate’s nominee is selected, that lawmaker must be notified at least 48 hours before the appointment is officially announced.
• The Superintendent of the Coast Guard Academy would have to identify, on written request, which nominating authority was responsible for a named or identified applicant.

Relevant Companies

None found