Title 10 — Armed ForcesRelease 119-73
§9281 Service medals: issue; replacement; availability of appropriations
Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle D— - Air Force and Space Force › Part PART II— - PERSONNEL › Chapter CHAPTER 937— - DECORATIONS AND AWARDS › § 9281
Summary
The Secretary must provide free service medals and devices authorized for Air/Space Force after September 26, 1947; items lost, destroyed, or unfit not the owner's fault can be replaced at cost, but replacements are free to Air/Space Force members and may be paid from Air/Space appropriations.
Full Legal Text
Title 10, §9281
Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The Secretary of the Air Force shall procure, and issue without charge to any person entitled thereto, any service medal authorized for members of the Air Force or the Space Force after September 26, 1947, and any ribbon, clasp, star, or similar device prescribed as a part of that medal.
(b)Under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, any medal or other device issued under subsection (a) that is lost, destroyed, or becomes unfit for use without fault or neglect of the owner, may be replaced at cost. However, if the owner is a member of the Air Force or the Space Force, the medal or device may be replaced without charge.
(c)The Secretary may spend, from any appropriation for the support of the Air Force or the Space Force, amounts necessary to provide medals and devices under this section.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised sectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 8751(a) 8751(b) 8751(c)10:1415a (less 21st through 30th words, and less clauses (a) through (n)).10:1415b (less applicability to 10:1415a (clauses (a) through (n))).10:1415c (less applicability to 10:1415a (clauses (a) through (n))).
May 12, 1928, ch. 528, §§ 1 (less 25th through 34th words, and less clauses (a) through (n)), 2 (less applicability to § 1 (clauses (a) through (n))), 3 (less applicability to § 1 (clauses (a) through (n))), 45 Stat. 500. In subsection (a), the words “authorized for members of the Air Force after
September 26, 1947” are substituted for the words “hereafter authorized”, since, under Transfer Order 1, that date was the
Effective Date
of the transfer of personnel from the Army to the Air Force under section 208(e) of the National Security Act of 1947, as amended (5 U.S.C. 626c(e)). 10:1415a (proviso) is omitted as surplusage, since the revised section is not limited to persons who are members of the Air Force at the time of the issue. In subsection (b), the words “member of the Air Force” are substituted for the words “persons in the military service of the United States”. In subsection (c), the last 16 words are substituted for 10:1415c (last 16 words).
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2021—Pub. L. 116–283 inserted “or the Space Force” after “the Air Force” wherever appearing after the first appearance. 2018—Pub. L. 115–232 renumbered section 8751 of this title as this section.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2018 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 115–232 effective Feb. 1, 2019, with provision for the coordination of
Amendments
and special rule for certain redesignations, see section 800 of Pub. L. 115–232, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 9281
Title 10 — Armed Forces
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73