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Tinian, Rota reservists denied COLA
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Posted on Oct 03 2004
The House of Representatives adopted a joint resolution Friday requesting the U.S. Department of Defense to extend overseas cost of living allowance benefits for Tinian and Rota reservists.
This developed after the department, which grants COLA benefits to reservists on active duty, reportedly denied such assistance for Tinian and Rota reservists. Yet, it “has prescribed a COLA for NMI residents from Saipan.”
The Tinian and Rota reservists on active duty “are treated differently and denied COLA benefits based on residence, notwithstanding the fact that they are also residents from NMI serving their country in this time of war,” part of the resolution said.
The lawmakers, voting unanimously on the resolution, said there is no real distinction between the residents of Saipan, Tinian, and Rota “except they reside on different islands.”
“However, for political and social purposes, the people on all three islands are called NMI residents,” the resolution, authored by Rep. Claudio Norita said. “ We hereby join the people of Northern Mariana Islands in respectfully requesting that the Department of Defense prescribe an overseas COLA for NMI-Other, so that Army reservists from Tinian and Rota may apply and receive the same benefits as their counterparts on Saipan.”
CNMI reservists, who are part of the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry, left the Commonwealth for training last August in preparation for their deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan by February next year.
The Pentagon issued the call-up for reservists nationwide to reinforce depleted U.S. military missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
