(a) Requirement to Provide Assistance.—The Secretary of Defense shall carry out a program to provide relocation assistance to members of the armed forces and their families as provided in this section. In addition, the Secretary of Defense shall make every effort, consistent with readiness objectives, to stabilize and lengthen tours of duty to minimize the adverse effects of relocation.
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(b) Types of Assistance.—(1) The Secretary of each military department, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, shall provide relocation assistance, through military relocation assistance programs described in subsection (c), to members of the armed forces who are ordered to make a change of permanent station which includes a move to a new location (and for dependents of such members who are authorized to move in connection with the change of permanent station).
(2) The relocation assistance provided shall include the following:
(A) Provision of destination area information and preparation (to be provided before the change of permanent station takes effect), with emphasis on information with regard to moving costs, housing costs and availability, child care, spouse employment opportunities, cultural adaptation, and community orientation.
(B) Provision of counseling about financial management, home buying and selling, renting, stress management aimed at intervention and prevention of abuse, property management, and shipment and storage of household goods (including motor vehicles and pets).
(C) Provision of settling-in services, with emphasis on available government living quarters, private housing, child care, spouse employment assistance information, cultural adaptation, and community orientation.
(D) Provision of home finding services, with emphasis on services for locating adequate, affordable temporary and permanent housing.
(c) Military Relocation Assistance Programs.—(1) The Secretary shall provide for the establishment of military relocation assistance programs to provide the relocation assistance described in subsection (b). The Secretary shall establish such a program in each geographic area in which at least 500 members of the armed forces are assigned to or serving at a military installation. A member who is not stationed within a geographic area that contains such a program shall be given access to such a program. The Secretary shall ensure that persons on the staff of each program are trained in the techniques and delivery of professional relocation assistance.
(2) The Secretary shall ensure that information available through each military relocation assistance program shall be managed through a computerized information system that can interact with all other military relocation assistance programs of the military departments, including programs located outside the continental United States.
(3) Duties of each military relocation assistance program shall include assisting personnel offices on the military installation in using the computerized information available through the program to help provide members of the armed forces who are deciding whether to reenlist information on locations of possible future duty assignments.
(d) Director.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish the position of Director of Military Relocation Assistance Programs in the office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Force Management and Personnel). The Director shall oversee development and implementation of the military relocation assistance programs under this section.
(e) Regulations.—This section shall be administered under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense.
(f) Inapplicability to Coast Guard.—This section does not apply to the Coast Guard.
