The House could begin debate on the bill 30 JUL. If approved by the House, it would be the first of the 12 annual spending bills. The White House communiqué comes as Democratic leaders have said that they do not intend to finish work on all the spending bills, in part because of Bush’s unwillingness to negotiate on spending levels. Under the $72.7 billion fiscal 2009 Military Construction-VA Appropriations bill, the Veterans Affairs Department would receive $47.7 billion, which is $4.6 billion above the fiscal 2008 funding level and $2.9 billion over Bush’s fiscal 2009 budget request. The overall measure is $3.4 billion more than the $69.3 billion sought by Bush. Congress provided $63.9 billion for the measure in fiscal 2008. “This Congress is dedicated to meeting the needs of our nation’s veterans, no matter the political maneuvering of a callous president,” a Democratic aide to the House Appropriations Committee said. “Veterans are not political bargaining chips.” Bush issued a similar threat last year, but ultimately agreed to increases for the VA. [Source: Congress Daily Humberto Sanchez article 30 Jul 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

A good indication on that likelihood is the number of cosponsors who have signed onto the bill. A cosponsor is a member of Congress who has joined one or more other members in his/her chamber (i.e. House or Senate) to sponsor a bill or amendment. The member who introduces the bill is considered the sponsor. Members subsequently signing on are called cosponsors. Any number of members may cosponsor a bill in the House or Senate. At http://thomas.loc.gov you can also review a copy of each bill’s content, determine its current status, the committee it has been assigned to, and if your legislator is a sponsor or cosponsor of it. To determine what bills, amendments your representative has sponsored, cosponsored, or dropped sponsorship on refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d110/sponlst.html. The key to increasing cosponsorship on veteran related bills and subsequent passage into law is letting our representatives know of veteran’s feelings on issues. At the end of some listed bills is a web link that can be used to do that. Otherwise, you can locate on http://thomas.loc.gov who your representative is and his/her phone number, mailing address, or email/website to communicate with a message or letter of your own making. Refer to http://www.thecapitol.net/FAQ/cong_schedule.html for future times that you can access your representatives on their home turf. [Source: RAO Bulletin Attachment 29 May 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

• H.R.2790, as amended, which passed by voice vote, will establish the position of Director of Physician Assistant Services within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

• H.R.3681, as amended, the Veterans’ Benefits Awareness Act of 2007, which passed by voice vote, will authorize VA to purchase advertising in national media to promote awareness of veterans’ benefits.

• H.R.3889, as amended, which passed by voice vote, will require a longitudinal study of VA vocational rehabilitation programs.

• H.R. 5554, as amended, the Justin Bailey Veterans’ Substance Use Disorders Prevention and Treatment Act of 2008, which passed by a voice vote, will expand and improve VA health care services for substance use disorders.

• H.R. 5664, as amended, which passed by voice vote, will direct VA to update, at least once every six years, plans and specifications for its specially adapted housing program.

• H.R. 5729, as amended, the Spina Bifida Health Care Program Expansion Act, which passed by voice vote, will direct VA to provide comprehensive health care to certain Vietnam veterans’ children born with spina bifida.

• H.R. 6048, which passed by a voice vote, will amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to provide for the protection of child custody arrangements for parents deployed in support of a contingency operation.

Additionally the House unanimously approved the following three bipartisan measures to improve benefits and services for veterans.

• H.R. 3819, the Veterans’ Emergency Care Fairness Act of 2007, which passed the House by a vote of 412-0, will require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reimburse veterans receiving emergency treatment in non-VA facilities for such treatment until transfer to a VA facility is possible.

• H.R. 5826, The Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2008, which passed the House by a vote of 417-0, will increase effective December 1, 2008, the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities, and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled veterans.

• H.R. 5856, the VA Medical Facility Authorization and Lease Act of 2008, which passed the House by a vote of 416-0, will authorize major medical facility projects and major medical facility leases for VA in fiscal year 2009, and will authorize approximately $2.2 billion over the next five years to improve access to healthcare for our nation’s veterans.

[Source: NAUS Weekly Update 23 May 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

His warnings come as the House and Senate are poised to attach S.22 to a wartime supplemental funding bill in an effort to overcome questions about how to pay for the benefits and the administrative costs. Attaching S.22 to the wartime funding bill also would put pressure on the Bush administration to sign onto a generous overhaul of veterans benefits in order to secure funding to continue military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congressional leaders derive an additional benefit from attaching the GI Bill increases to the supplemental — it would attract more votes for the measure at a time when many lawmakers are reluctant to continue funding Iraq operations. The Pentagon, VA and the White House’s Office of Management and Budget oppose S.22, either as a separate bill or combined with the supplemental. But Bush administration opposition — and VA’s warning about implementation problems — do not seem to counter the growing push from veterans’ groups to pass what Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), S.22’s chief sponsor, calls a move to “give first-class futures to the people who serve.”

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the nonpartisan analytical arm of Congress, said in a report 8 MAY that enactment of S.22 could lead to a 16% drop in re-enlistments. The Defense Department could counter that drop only by increasing re-enlistment bonuses. Fully offsetting the draw of a better veterans’ education program would require a $25,000 re-enlistment bonus for every first-term service member, something that would cost the Pentagon about $6.7 billion over five years. However, that cost would be offset by lower recruiting costs, the report predicts. It estimates there would be a 16 percent boost in recruits, which would allow a cut in enlistment bonuses and in other recruiting expenses that would result in $5.6 billion in savings over five years. The combination of better recruiting but weaker re-enlistments would leave the military with a $1.1 billion cost over five years to maintain the current force, the report said. Overall, CBO’s cost estimate is slightly lower than the estimated price tag issued by the Bush administration. Congressional budget analysts predict S.22 would have an overall cost of $680 million in the first full year and $51.8 billion over 10 years. VA officials told the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee on Wednesday that the proposal would cost $64.9 billion over 10 years. Currently, 75% of Army, 70% of Marine, 50% of Navy and 49% of Air Force enlistees who complete their first enlistment term get out of the military,

The House of Representatives could pass a war supplemental soon that includes Webb’s GI Bill proposal, and the Senate plans to take up the bill when they do. In the Senate, Republicans are expected to offer their alternative bill, the Enhancement of Recruitment, Retention and Readjustment through Education Act (S.2983), that pays a little less to veterans and includes a Pentagon-requested provision that would allow career service members to transfer all or part of their benefits to family members, but they do not appear to have the votes to block S.22, which has 57 Senate co-sponsors, including 10 Republicans. Veterans’ groups, who have been pushing for years for an overhaul of the current Montgomery GI Bill, have picked Webb’s bill as their favorite. Carl Blake, national legislative director for Paralyzed Veterans of America, told the Senate committee that S.22 is better because it “accomplishes our goal of returning the GI Bill to the level established following World War II.” Blake also objected to Pentagon criticism that better GI Bill benefits, designed to encourage people to go to college, are bad for the nation. [Source: AirForceTimes Rick Maze articles posted 8 & 9 May 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

At http://thomas.loc.gov you can also review a copy of each bill’s content, determine its current status, the committee it has been assigned to, and if your legislator is a sponsor or cosponsor of it. To determine what bills, amendments your representative has sponsored, cosponsored, or dropped sponsorship on refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d110/sponlst.html.

The key to increasing cosponsorship on veteran related bills and subsequent passage into law is letting our representatives know of veteran’s feelings on issues. At the end of some listed bills is a web link that can be used to do that. Otherwise, you can locate on http://thomas.loc.gov who your representative is and his/her phone number, mailing address, or email/website to communicate with a message or letter of your own making.

Refer to http://www.thecapitol.net/FAQ/cong_schedule.html for future times that you can access your representatives on their home turf. [Source: RAO Bulletin Attachment 29 Apr 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

The "Make Our Veterans Smile Act" (H.R.5595) was co-introduced on 12 MAR by Congressman Kirk and Congressman Chris Carney (D-PA), the U.S. House’s only actively serving U.S. Navy Reserve intelligence officers. Currently, only 100% disabled, homeless or prisoner-of-war veterans are eligible for dental benefits. The bill expands dental coverage to any service-connected disabled veteran, regardless of disability rating starting 1 JAN 09.

This legislation also allows the VA to use contractor facilities if they find it necessary to meet the demands for dental care. The bill was referred to the House committee on Veteran Affairs and has already gained 44 cosponsors.

According to the U.S. Veterans Administration, 258,000 veterans currently are eligible for dental benefits. More than 2.5 million additional disabled veterans would receive coverage under the Kirk-Carney bill. In Illinois, coverage would expand from nearly 5,000 veterans to more than 60,000 veterans, according to the Congressional Research Service. [Source: Rep. Christopher P. Carney Press release 13 Mar 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

If enacted, this bill will improve the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Independent Living (IL) program conducted under the authority of chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code, which serves veterans whose disabilities render them unable to work. VA’s IL Program was first established in 1980 by Public Law 96-466, the Veterans Rehabilitation and Education Amendments of 1980.

Initially, that law provided for the establishment of a four-year pilot program designed to provide independent living services for severely disabled veterans for whom the achievement of a vocational goal was not reasonably feasible.

The number of veterans who could be accepted annually into the pilot program was capped at 500. In 1986, the program was extended through 1989 and then, in 1989, it was made in Public Law 101-237, the Veterans’ Benefits Amendments of 1989. In 2001, the 500 annual cap on enrollees was increased to 2,500.

The VA’s Inspector General found, in a report issued in DEC 07, that the effect of the statutory cap has been to delay IL services to severely disabled veterans. This delay happens because VA has developed a procedure that holds veterans in a planning and evaluation stage when the statutory cap may be in danger of being exceeded. By removing the cap on the number of enrollees in the program and making it an official objective of the program to improve veterans’ quality of life Akaka believes it will lead to bettering program participant’s chances of rehabilitation and future employment. [Source: SCVA Press Release 15 Apr 08 ++]

Bookmark TO:

Gerald Manar, deputy director of the Veteran of Foreign Wars’ national veterans service, said, as he understands the rewrite process, the new plain language code eventually will contain electronic hooks, which will make it easier to search regulations and link from one to another. Manar said he considered the term plain language to be somewhat misleading, because VA regulations are complex and quite hard to understand, although the new regulations may have less legalese. VA could end up with wordier regulations, he said, because it could take longer explanation to make benefits requirements clearer. He drew an analogy between the old and new way of writing regulations, saying trying to understand the rewritten regulations could create a headache treatable with only two aspirin, while trying to comprehend the old regulations may have resulted in a headache that would have required an entire bottle to treat.

Manar predicted that the new regulations would be a boon to lawyers representing veterans who have disputed compensation claims because the lawyers will view new language and definitions as a basis for litigation. The House on 14 APR passed a bill requiring federal agencies to use plain language in commonly-used forms. The legislation covers tax, benefit and Social Security forms, grant applications and other public documents, but not federal regulations. [Source: GOVExec.com Bob Brewin article 15 Apr 08 ++]

Bookmark TO: