Republican Rep. Joe Heck and his wife, Lisa, celebrate his election victory at New Nevada Lounge on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014, in Red Rock Resort.
Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014 | 3:33 p.m.
Rep. Joe Heck got a new assignment for next year: Presiding over the military's pay raises.
The Iraq war veteran and brigadier general will take over a House Armed Services Committee panel in January that deals with compensation and benefits for military personnel, including their pay and housing and retirement, he announced Thursday.
"For more than 23 years, I have dedicated my career to protecting the morale and welfare of our troops," he said in a statement.
The move will give Heck significant leverage over a possible battle next Congress on military pay raises, in what The Army Times said "could be one of the dominant military budget storylines next year."
An independent congressional panel is expected to release a report in February reviewing military pay and retirement. Heck has already taken a stand against a defense bill Congress is expected to pass this week that gives a less-than-expected pay raise to members of the military.
"We can't continue to balance the budget on the backs of our men and women in uniform or our retirees," Heck said on the House floor this week.
The Army Times also notes this is the first time an Iraq War veteran will chair the personnel subcommittee. Heck deployed to Iraq in 2008.
He will trade in his old job as chair of the oversight panel on the House Armed Service Committee, where he focused on getting Filipino-American World War II veterans accurate compensation.
Heck is a Republican who just won re-election for a third term to represent Boulder City and Henderson in Nevada's third congressional district.
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