Rep. Panetta Co-Leads the Honoring the Sacrifice of Troops in War Act to Ensure Honesty, Integrity, and Transparency From the Pentagon

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Representatives Jimmy Panetta (CA-19) and Pat Ryan (NY-18) led 10 fellow Democratic veterans in introducing legislation to honor the sacrifices made by U.S. troops in the Iran War and prevent the Administration from obscuring the conflict's costs to servicemembers and the American people. The Honoring the Sacrifice of Troops in War Act would prohibit the Secretary of Defense from manipulating casualty records and jeopardizing benefits for servicemembers and public servants.

The bill introduction comes after the Pentagon unprecedentedly recategorized recent casualties suffered in the Iran War, including four killed and over 200 wounded servicemembers, under a separate category outside Operation Epic Fury in an attempt to downplay the damage done and evade accountability to the American people.

"The Pentagon's recategorization of casualties from the Iran War raises serious concerns about transparency, paying the proper respect, and the benefits earned by our servicemembers," said Rep. Panetta. "The military men and women who pay the ultimate sacrifice and their families deserve to be recognized and appreciated appropriately. All of us must be told the truth about the deaths of our servicemembers without politics being involved. That is why there must be complete and accurate accounting of the human cost of this unauthorized war. Our bill would help preserve accurate casualty records, protect hard-earned benefits, and ensure that no Administration can obscure the true cost of war."

"Every Patriot deployed to this war in Iran - the 50,000 still in theater, the hundreds wounded, and especially the 18 killed - are American heroes. They deserve to be honored as such - not swept under the rug by a President and SecDef so humiliated by their failure that they'd rather dishonor the troops than tell the truth," said Rep. Ryan. "It's a total betrayal of our armed forces by the very people that swore to protect and do right by them. I'm proud to lead so many of my fellow veterans in Congress to make it clear we will not stand for the Trump Administration's disgraceful disrespect of American heroes - before, during, or after their deployments."

To ban the Secretary of Defense from hiding the true cost of war, the Honoring the Sacrifice of Troops in War Act specifically:

• Bans Arbitrary, Unjustified Recategorizing of Designated Contingency Operations by prohibiting redesignating an ongoing conflict if the Administration continues to mobilize forces against the same enemy;
• Prevents Manipulation of Casualty Records by prohibiting manipulation of casualty records by falsely redesignating a contingency operation;
• Restores Casualty Records of Our Fallen and Wounded Heroes in the Iran War by requiring restoration of casualty records for Iran-related operations since February 28, 2026, and notification of next of kin about the correction;
• Bans Cutting Hard-Earned Benefits for Troops and Civilian Personnel by prohibiting the modification of eligibility for deployment-related personnel benefits on the basis of falsely redesignating a contingency operation; and
• Restores Benefits to Personnel Supporting the Iran War by retroactively restoring all covered benefits to which members of the Armed Services and civilian employees who have supported Iran-related operations since February 28, 2026, are entitled.

In addition to Reps. Panetta and Ryan, the Honoring the Sacrifice of Troops in War Act is cosponsored by U.S. Representatives Eugene Vindman (VA-07), Maggie Goodlander (NH-02), Chris Deluzio (PA-17), Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), Jason Crow (CO-06), Herb Conaway (NJ-03), Derek T. Tran (CA-45), Mike Thompson (CA-04), Ted W. Lieu (CA-36), and Salud Carbajal (CA-24).

The legislation is endorsed by VoteVets and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).

Following disturbing reports in July that the Department of Defense removed the names of four American troops from the official Iran War death toll, Rep. Panetta joined Rep. Thompson and 13 other fellow Democratic veterans in urging the Administration to accurately and transparently account for U.S. servicemembers killed and wounded in the Iran War.

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