This bill would repeal the Military Selective Service Act and abolish the Selective Service draft.
Currently, American men (and male non-citizens living in the US) between the ages of 18 and 25 are required to register with the Selective Service System. This provides the United States with a backup plan if the U.S. military were ever to experience a shortage of volunteer soldiers. If that happened, Congress could pass (and the President could sign) legislation to reinstate the draft, and young men would be selected at random to enter the armed forces.
This bill would abolish the Selective Service System and end the registration requirement. In addition, men who failed to register in the past could no longer be penalized with the loss of any “right, privilege, benefit, or employment position,” such as access to federal student loans.
The draft has not been used since 1973, during the Vietnam War. After Vietnam, registration was disbanded entirely until 1980, when President Jimmy Carter reintroduced the system in response to the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan.
Registration has been a requirement for young men even since, although the draft has not been needed or used in the Gulf War, War in Afghanistan, or Iraq War.
This legislation would give the Selective Service System 180 days to shut down and turn over any “assets, contracts, property, and records” to the Administrator of General Services. Current employees would receive assistance transferring to other positions in the executive branch.
Defense
Military
Government
War
