# Gold Star Families Benefits Protection Act

When a service member dies, their surviving family members receive a gold star lapel button as a symbol of their sacrifice. This bill gives those Gold Star family members a meaningful benefit: the ability to shop at military commissaries and use military recreation facilities, just like active-duty soldiers, sailors, and airmen can.

Specifically, the bill allows adult children of deceased service members who have received a gold star lapel button to access commissary stores and military morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) facilities. Commissaries are military grocery stores that offer discounted prices compared to civilian supermarkets, and MWR facilities include things like gyms, recreation centers, and retail shops on military bases. This is a practical way to honor Gold Star families by giving them access to the same cost-saving benefits that active-duty military personnel enjoy.

The eligibility is straightforward: you need to be an adult child of a service member who died, and you need to have received either a gold star lapel button or a next of kin deceased personnel lapel button. The bill essentially says these family members should be treated the same as active-duty military personnel when it comes to using these military shopping and recreation resources. It's a recognition that Gold Star families have made a significant sacrifice for the country, and this benefit provides them with some tangible support and access to military community resources.

Gold Star Families Benefits Protection Act

Espaillat, Adriano

Gold Star Families Benefits Protection Act This bill authorizes specified individuals to use commissary stores and MWR retail facilities (e.g., exchange stores) on the same basis as an active duty service member. Specifically, the bill authorizes an adult individual who (1) is the surviving child of a service member, and (2) who has received a Gold Star Lapel Button or Next of Kin Deceased Personnel Lapel Button.