Measure OK'd by Oklahoma House would set formula for deciding divorced veterans' assets

House Bill 2286 would set the number of years a spouse had been married to a military member to determine the amount of retainer pay the spouse is entitled to, said Rep. Emily Virgin, the measure's author.

“We want to make sure the spouses get something if the court does divide it, but making sure that it's fair to the service member also,” said Virgin, D-Norman. “Right now military retainer pay is treated as joint property in Oklahoma.”

HB 2286 passed the House 57-38. It now heads to the Senate.

Under current law, when a couple divorces, the nonmilitary spouse can seek half of the military retainer pay.

It has been a confusing, complicated debate for several years, mostly because of different opinions of how to handle military retention pay; some consider it a pension and others consider it wages.

The retainer pay is for military members after they have completed 20 years of service, who are subject to recall and must maintain a certain standard of conduct.

“It's not for these spouses that are mad at their exes after being married to them for three years and come back 20 or 30 years later and say, ‘Hey, I want my money,'” said Rep. John Bennett, R-Sallisaw.