United States 113th Congress Status: Died 1 D cosponsors

S 538 — A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to modify the authorities and responsibilities of convening authorities in taking actions on the findings and sentences of courts-martial.

Last action — Committee on Armed Services. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 113-320.

Track this bill free

No card. One bill, free forever — alerts when it moves.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. Died in session

This bill died with 113th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to require a convening authority (the official acting on the sentence of a court-martial), when taking any action other than approving a sentence, to prepare a written justification of such action which shall be made part of the record of the court-martial. Prohibits a convening authority (or person acting in such capacity) from: (1) dismissing or setting aside a finding of guilty, or (2) reducing a finding of guilty to a finding of guilty to a lesser included offense. Repeals an inconsistent UCMJ provision.

Bill Text

We don't have the full text on file for this bill yet.

Read S 538 on the official United States source →

Action History

  1. Committee on Armed Services. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 113-320.

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services. (consideration: CR S5461)

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 546 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights veterans
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 538 do?
Amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to require a convening authority (the official acting on the sentence of a court-martial), when taking any action other than approving a sentence, to prepare a written justification of such action which shall be made part of the record of the court-martial. Prohibits a convening authority (or person acting in such capacity) from: (1) dismissing or setting aside a finding of guilty, or (2) reducing a finding of guilty to a finding of guilty to a lesser included offense. Repeals an inconsistent UCMJ provision.
Who sponsors S 538?
S 538 is sponsored by Claire McCaskill (D).
What is the current status of S 538?
This bill died with 113th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track S 538?
Track S 538 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on S 538

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of S 538

Last checked for changes about 11 hours ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →