The Senate passed a bill (S-718) Tues. in a voice vote that would...

The Senate passed a bill (S-718) Tues. in a voice vote that would give troops in Iraq and Afghanistan access to free phone service so they could call home. The bill by Senate Commerce Committee Chmn. McCain (R-Ariz.), known as the “Troops Phone Home Free Act,” has been referred to the House Armed Services Committee. The bill would require that troops in Iraq or Afghanistan be give up to $40 worth of free phone service each month. The Defense Dept. would have to make telephones available to the troops. The service would end 60 days after the Defense Secy. determined that Operation Iraqi Freedom had ended. McCain also asked telephone companies not to cut service to family members of soldiers who couldn’t pay their bills because of the cost of calls to the Middle East. He said he had received assurances from ALTS, CompTel and USTA that family members wouldn’t have their services disconnected.