View all text of Chapter 80 [§ 1561 - § 1567a]
§ 1563. Consideration of proposals from Members of Congress for honorary promotions: procedures for review and promotion
(a)Review by Secretary Concerned.—Upon request of a Member of Congress, the Secretary concerned shall review a proposal for the honorary promotion (whether or not posthumous) of a former member or retired member of the armed forces that is not otherwise authorized by law. Based upon such review, the Secretary shall make a determination as to the merits of approving the promotion.
(b)Notice of Results of Review.—Upon making a determination under subsection (a) as to the merits of approving the honorary promotion, the Secretary concerned shall submit to the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and to the requesting Member of Congress a detailed discussion of the rationale supporting the determination.
(c)Authority To Make.—
(1) Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Defense may make an honorary promotion (whether or not posthumous) of a former member or retired member of the armed forces to any grade not exceeding the grade of major general or rear admiral (upper half) following the submittal of the determination of the Secretary concerned under subsection (b) in connection with the proposal for the promotion if the determination is to approve the making of the promotion.
(2) The Secretary of Defense may not make an honorary promotion under this subsection until 60 days after the date on which the Secretary concerned submits the determination in connection with the proposal for the promotion under subsection (b), and the detailed rationale supporting the determination as described in that subsection, to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives and the requesting Member in accordance with that subsection.
(3) The authority to make an honorary promotion under this subsection shall apply notwithstanding that the promotion is not otherwise authorized by law.
(4) Any promotion pursuant to this subsection is honorary, and shall not affect the pay, retired pay, or other benefits from the United States to which the former member or retired member concerned is or would have been entitled based upon the military service of such former member or retired member, nor affect any benefits to which any other person may become entitled based on the military service of such former member or retired member.
(d)Definition.—In this section, the term “Member of Congress” means—
(1) a Senator; or
(2) a Representative in, or a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, Congress.
(Added Pub. L. 106–398, § 1 [[div. A], title V, § 542(a)], Oct. 30, 2000, 114 Stat. 1654, 1654A–114; amended Pub. L. 108–136, div. A, title X, § 1031(a)(11), Nov. 24, 2003, 117 Stat. 1597; Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title V, § 523(b), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 3598; Pub. L. 118–31, div. A, title XVII, § 1741(a)(6), Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 680.)