Duties, responsibilities, requirements, and protections for Army chaplains

(a) Chaplains Section 7073 of title 10, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; and (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph: (2) the Deputy Chief of Chaplains; (3) the Deputy Chief of Chaplains for the Army Reserve; (4) the Deputy Chief of Chaplains for the Army National Guard;; (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (f); (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following new subsections: (b) The Chief of Chaplains shall serve as a principal advisor to the Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Staff of the Army. (c) The Deputy Chief of Chaplains shall serve under the authority, direction, and control of the Chief of Chaplains. (d) Under the authority, direction, and control of the Chief of Chaplains, the Deputy Chief of Chaplains for the Army Reserve shall serve as a principal advisor to the Chief of the Army Reserve. (e) Under the authority, direction, and control of the Chief of Chaplains, the Deputy Chief of Chaplains for the Army National Guard shall serve as a principal advisor to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau.; and (4) adding at the end the following new subsection: (g) The Deputy Chiefs of Chaplains, while so serving, hold the grade of brigadier general.. (b) Chiefs of branches: appointment; duties Section 7036 of title 10, United States Code, is amended— (1) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h); and (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the following new subsection (g): (g) The Chief of Chaplains serves as the principal advisor to the Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Staff of the Army on chaplaincy matters and the provision of religious support in the Army, including strategic planning and the development of policies that affect religious support or have a nexus with the chaplaincy.. (c) Chaplains Section 7217 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 7217. Duties, responsibilities, requirements, and protections for Army chaplains (a) Duties, responsibilities, and requirements (1) The Army Chaplaincy shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Chaplains of the Army. (2) The Army Chaplaincy shall be overseen by the Chief of Chaplains and shall— (A) serve as principal advisers to commanders on all issues concerning religious practices, spiritual readiness, spiritual care, religious provisions, and religion’s influence on military operations, which shall include, but not be limited to— (i) advising and assisting commanders in discharging their responsibilities to provide for the free exercise of religion in military service, pursuant to the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, section 3 of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb–1), and related statutes and policies; (ii) assisting commanders in managing religious affairs, including the accommodation of religious practices and the development of policies and procedures related to the free exercise of religion; (iii) assisting commanders by serving as advisers with respect to all religious accommodation requests and by providing advice on spiritual readiness and matters concerning religion, morals, ethics, well-being, and morale; and (iv) overseeing education and training programs concerning the accommodation of religious practices for members of the armed forces; (B) meet the religious requirements and care for the spiritual needs of members of the armed forces, other authorized persons, and dependents of members, potentially in isolated or combat environments; (C) have a primary role in providing for the free exercise of religion and other religious requirements associated with the free exercise of religion; (D) facilitate meeting the religious needs and requirements for members of the armed forces to whom an assigned chaplain cannot directly minister; and (E) maintain confidential, sacramental, and privileged communications, including those recognized under applicable laws and policies. (3) The tasks of chaplains in the Army shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (A) Performing religious rites, rituals, services, ordinances, ceremonies, and observances (such as memorials, weddings, retirements, sermons, worship, and burials). (B) Counseling, meeting, advising, and praying with individuals or groups. (C) Providing crisis prevention and response. (D) Providing pastoral and spiritual care, guidance, support, and activities. (E) Advising on religious accommodation requests. (F) Providing religious training and education. (b) Protections (1) A chaplain’s duties, responsibilities, and requirements, as set forth in subsection (a), shall be conducted in a manner consistent with the chaplain’s sincerely held religious beliefs and the manner, form, and tenets of the chaplain’s religious-endorsing organization. (2) A chaplain shall have the right to conduct public worship, provide counseling, teach, deliver sermons, advise, minister, and offer prayer in accordance with the chaplain’s sincerely held religious beliefs and the manner, form, and tenets of the chaplain's religious-endorsing organization. Those activities shall be free from censorship, undue restriction, or fear of retribution. (3) A chaplain shall uphold the chaplain's duty to protect confidential, sacramental, and privileged communications, including communications recognized under applicable laws and policies. (4) No member of the Armed Forces may— (A) require or assign a chaplain to perform any rite, ritual, ceremony, sermon, or speech contrary to the sincerely held religious beliefs of the chaplain or contrary to the manner, form, or tenets of the chaplain’s religious-endorsing organization; (B) require or assign a chaplain to perform any task or action contrary to the sincerely held religious beliefs of the chaplain or contrary to the manner, form, or tenets of the religious-endorsing organization of the chaplain, consistent with section 3 of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb–1); (C) retaliate or discriminate against a chaplain based on the chaplain’s refusal to comply with a requirement prohibited under this subsection, or take, with respect to such a chaplain, any adverse personnel action including— (i) denial of promotion, schooling, training, assignment, or financial recoupment; (ii) issuance of letters of reprimand; or (iii) any other adverse action or entry in the chaplain's record; or (D) preclude a chaplain from conducting an activity described in paragraph (2). (5) A member of the Armed Forces who violates paragraph (4) shall be subject to prosecution under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. (c) Assistance by commanding officers Each officer shall furnish facilities, including necessary transportation, to any chaplain assigned to the command of the officer, to assist the chaplain in performing the duties, responsibilities, and requirements of the chaplain under subsection (a). (d) Definitions In this section: (1) Administrative endorser The term administrative endorser means an organization that was approved to endorse chaplains for service in the armed forces under the requirements of the Department of Defense and the armed force in which those chaplains will serve, as in effect at the time the organization initially began endorsing chaplains, not on its own behalf, but on behalf of one or more external religious organizations that— (A) are religious-endorsing organizations; (B) at the time the organization initially began endorsing chaplains, did not possess the organizational capacity to endorse chaplains directly; and (C) were not members of, nor otherwise affiliated with, a fellowship or other organizational structure meeting the requirements set forth in paragraph (5)(A)(iii) that possessed authority to endorse chaplains. (2) Adverse personnel action The term adverse personnel action means any action taken against a member of the Armed Forces that affects or has the potential to adversely affect the member's current position or career, including— (A) a disciplinary action, transfer, negative performance evaluation, removal, separation, discharge, or mental health evaluation; and (B) a decision not to give the member a promotion, an increase in pay or benefits, an award, training, or relief. (3) Censorship The term censorship means any governmental action taken to suppress or restrict information, ideas, or expression. (4) Confidential, sacramental, and privileged communications The term confidential, sacramental, and privileged communications means any private communication made to a chaplain acting in the chaplain’s capacity as a spiritual advisor. (5) Religious-endorsing organization (A) The term religious-endorsing organization means an entity that— (i) (I) is organized and functions primarily to perform religious ministries to nonmilitary lay members and meets the requirements of the Department of Defense and the armed force in which chaplains endorsed by the entity will serve; and (II) possesses ecclesiastical authority to endorse and withdraw endorsements for chaplains serving under the authority of the entity to conduct religious observances or ceremonies in a military context; or (ii) (I) meets the requirements of the Department of Defense and the armed force in which chaplains endorsed by the entity will serve; (II) is organized and functions primarily to support member religious organizations and religious ministry professionals that function primarily to perform religious ministries to nonmilitary lay members; and (III) performs the function described in clause (i)(II) on behalf of its member religious organizations and religious ministry professionals. (B) An administrative endorser that endorses chaplains before the date of the enactment of this section may continue to endorse chaplains on and after such date of enactment if administrative endorser meets the requirements of the Department of Defense and the armed force in which chaplains endorsed by the administrative endorser will serve to provide documentation verifying that the religious organizations the administrative endorser represents meet the requirements of subclause (I) and (II) of subparagraph (A)(i)..