It is worth noting that there are parts of our government that are working just fine. One of them is the Veterans Administration.
Subject: Fw: 112th US Congress Veteran Related Legislation: April 2012 Update
Subject: 112th US Congress Veteran Related Legislation: April 2012 Update
The following is for your information and distribution to your members.
Please note that the latest action for each veteran related bill has been highlighted.
As I mentioned in the Legislative Update of 27 March 2012, Congress has been doing very little to advance any legislation in the past several months. Without exception, all veteran related legislation is languishing in Committee. A few bills have gained additional sponsors, but until the bills are brought out of the Committee study groups and are brought to the House or Senate floor for debate, vote, and action, nothing will happen. Congress is rapidly coming to the end of its second session of the 112th Legislature. The House and Senate will be in recess for all of August, and after that, our elected officials will be on the campaign trail leading up to the November elections. Bottom line: there are effectively three months left to see any veteran related legislation become law. By the end of July, the 112th Congress will no longer concentrate on passing bills into law; their focus will be re-election.
If any of these bills are of particular interest to you, I encourage you call or email your Representative and Senators and request their support for the bill, and for them to take positive active to advance the legislation.
Congress remains in a period of legislative inactivity. For the past few weeks the House and Senate have
been meeting in pro forma sessions where no legislative business is conducted. Of the 4272 House and 2241
Senate bills introduced in the 112th Congress as of 28 MAR, the following are of interest to the non-active
duty veteran community. A good indication on the likelihood of a bill of being forwarded to the House or
Senate for passage and subsequently being signed into law by the President is the number of cosponsors who
have signed onto the bill. An alternate way for it to become law is if it is added as an addendum to another
bill such as the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and survives the conference committee
assigned to iron out the difference between the House and Senate bills. At http://thomas.loc.gov you can
review a copy of each bill’s text, determine its current status, the committee it has been assigned to, 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, and if your legislator is a sponsor or cosponsor of it. To separately
determine what bills, amendments your representative has sponsored, cosponsored, or dropped sponsorship
on refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d111/sponlst.html. To review a numerical list of all bills introduced
refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/111search.html.
H.R.178: Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act. A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to repeal
the requirement for reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Benefit Plan for military surviving
spouses to offset the receipt of veterans dependency and indemnity compensation.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 1/5/2011) Cosponsors (188)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/4/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Military Personnel.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=21785541&type=CO or TREA’s
http://www.capwiz.com/trea/issues/bills/?bill=22113586
http://capwiz.com/fra/issues/alert/?alertid=21755506
H.R.186 : Chapter 61 CRDP Eligibility: A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to expand the
eligibility for concurrent receipt of military retired pay and veterans’ disability compensation to include all
members of the uniformed services who are retired under chapter 61 of such title for disability, regardless of
the members’ disability rating percentage.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 1/5/2011) Cosponsors (28)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Budget; House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/18/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=21781506&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id] or TREA’s
http://www.capwiz.com/trea/issues/bills/?bill=22113501
http://capwiz.com/fra/issues/alert/?alertid=21651506
H.R.303 : Retired Pay Restoration Act. A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to permit additional
retired members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability
compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs for their disability and either retired pay by reason of
their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation and to eliminate the phase-in period
under current law with respect to such concurrent receipt.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 1/18/2011) Cosponsors (90)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://www.capwiz.com/trea/issues/bills/?bill=23349501
http://capwiz.com/fra/issues/alert/?alertid=29334506
H.R.333 : The Disabled Veterans Tax Termination Act. A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to
permit retired members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability rated less than 50
percent to receive concurrent payment of both retired pay and veterans’ disability compensation, to eliminate
the phase-in period for concurrent receipt, to extend eligibility for concurrent receipt to chapter 61 disability
retirees with less than 20 years of service, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. [GA-2] (introduced 1/19/2011) Cosponsors (155)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=23493506&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id] or TREA’s
http://www.capwiz.com/trea/issues/bills/?bill=23355556
H.R.812 : Agent Orange Equity Act of 2011: A bill to To amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify
presumptions relating to the exposure of certain veterans who served in the vicinity of the Republic of
Vietnam.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 2/18/2011) Cosponsors (65)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/15/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/fra/issues/alert/?alertid=32082506
H.R.1025 : Reserve Veteran Status: A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to recognize the service in
the reserve components of certain persons by honoring them with status as veterans under law.
Sponsor: Rep Walz, Timothy J. [MN-1] (introduced 3/10/2011) Cosponsors (54)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 10/12/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Received in the Senate and Read
twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/ngaus/mailapp
H.R.1288 : World War II Merchant Mariner Service Act: A bill to direct the Secretary of Homeland
Security to accept additional documentation when considering the application for veterans status of an
individual who performed service in the merchant marines during World War II, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Butterfield, G. K. [NC-1] (introduced 3/31/2011) Cosponsors (114)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 4/15/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
H.R.1407 : Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2011. A bill to to increase,
effective as of December 1, 2011, 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, and
for other purposes by the same percentage as applies to any social Security rate increase.
Sponsor: Rep Runyan, Jon [NJ-3] (introduced 4/6/2011) Cosponsors (8) Related bill S.894
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 5/24/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Received in the Senate and Read twice
and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
H.R.1775 : Stolen Valor Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a criminal
offense relating to fraudulent claims about military service.
Sponsor: Rep Heck, Joseph J. [NV-3] (introduced 5/5/2011) Cosponsors (52) Related Bills: S.1728
Committees: House Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 6/1/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
H.R.1968 : Cold War Service Medal Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to provide
for the award of a military service medal to members of the Armed Forces who served honorably during the
Cold War, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Israel, Steve [NY-2] (introduced 5/24/2011) Cosponsors (16)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 6/24/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Military Personnel.
H.R.1979 : Chapter 61 CRDP + SBP/DIC Offset + Reserve Retired Pay: A bill to amend title 10, United
States Code, to expand eligibility for concurrent receipt of military retired pay and veterans’ disability
compensation to include additional chapter 61 disability retirees, to coordinate eligibility for combat-related
special compensation and concurrent receipt, to eliminate the reduction of SBP survivor annuities by
dependency and indemnity compensation, and to enhance the ability of members of the reserve components
who serve on active duty or perform active service to receive credit for such service in determining eligibility
for early receipt of non-regular service retired pay.
Sponsor: Rep Andrews, Robert E. [NJ-1] (introduced 5/25/2011) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 6/24/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Military Personnel.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=48860506&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]
H.R.2051 : Veterans Missing In America Act of 2011: A bill to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to
assist in the identification of unclaimed and abandoned human remains to determine if any such remains are
eligible for burial in a national cemetery, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Tiberi, Patrick J. [OH-12] (introduced 5/26/2011) Cosponsors (41)
Related Bills: S.2244
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/29/2012 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee hearings held.
H.R.2369 : American Legion Charter Amendment: A bill to amend title 36, United States Code, to
provide for an additional power for the American Legion under its Federal charter.
Sponsor: Rep Altmire, Jason [PA-4] (introduced 6/24/2011) Cosponsors (432)
Committees: House Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 11/3/2011 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee on
Immigration Policy and Enforcement Discharged.
Latest Major Action: 12/5/2011 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 212.
H.R.2559 : Helping Homeless Heroes Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to make
certain improvements in the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs relating to homeless
veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Deutch, Theodore E. [FL-19] (introduced 7/15/2011) Cosponsors (33)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 7/29/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Health.
H.R.2634 : Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2011: A bill to direct the Secretary of State to provide
assistance for certain individuals affected by exposure to Agent Orange and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
to enhance the availability of medical care for descendants of veterans of the Vietnam era, and for other
purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 7/25/2011) Cosponsors (12)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs; House Foreign Affairs; House Energy and Commerce
Latest Major Action: 10/25/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Asia and the Pacific.
H.R.2875 :Wounded Veteran Job Security Act. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide
for the reemployment of certain persons following absences from a position employment for the purpose of
obtaining medical treatment for certain injuries and illnesses, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Doggett, Lloyd [TX-25] (introduced 9/9/2011) Cosponsors (28)
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 9/13/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on
Economic Opportunity.
H.R.3612 : Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 38, United States Code,
to clarify presumptions relating to the exposure of certain veterans who served in the vicinity of the Republic
of Vietnam, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Gibson, Christopher P. [NY-20] (introduced 12/8/2011) Cosponsors (84) Related Bills: S.1629
Committees: House Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 12/8/2011 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on
Veterans’ Affairs.
S.260 : SBP DIC Offset: A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to repeal the requirement for
reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Benefit Plan by veterans’ dependency and indemnity
compensation.
Sponsor: Sen Nelson, Bill [FL] (introduced 2/2/2011) Cosponsors (50)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/2/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/naus/issues/alert/?alertid=25851506
S.277 :Caring for Camp Lejeune Veterans Act of 2011. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to
furnish hospital care, medical services, and nursing home care to veterans who were stationed at Camp
Lejeune, North Carolina, while the water was contaminated at Camp Lejeune, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Burr, Richard [NC] (introduced 2/3/2011) Cosponsors (10)
Committees: Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Senate Reports: 112-42
Latest Major Action: 8/1/2011 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No.
123.
S.325 : Embedded Mental Health Providers for Reserves Act of 2011. A bill to amend title 10, United States
Code, to require the provision of behavioral health services to members of the reserve components of the
Armed Forces necessary to meet pre-deployment and post-deployment readiness and fitness standards, and
for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Murray, Patty [WA] (introduced 2/10/2011) Cosponsors (7) Related bill H.R.948
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/ngaus/issues/alert/?alertid=34823501
S.344 : Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to permit certain
retired members of the uniformed services who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability
compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs for their disability and either retired pay by reason of
their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Reid, Harry [NV] (introduced 2/14/2011) Cosponsors (28)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/14/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=31190506&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]
S.402 : Cold War Service Medal Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to provide for
the award of a military service medal to members of the Armed Forces who served honorably during the Cold
War, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Snowe, Olympia J. [ME] (introduced 2/17/2011) Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/17/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services.
S.411 :Helping Our Homeless Veterans Act of 2011. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to
authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into agreements with States and nonprofit organizations to
collaborate in the provision of case management services associated with certain supported housing programs
for veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Klobuchar, Amy [MN] (introduced 2/17/2011) Cosponsors (18) Related bill: H.R.1133
Committees: Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 6/8/2011 Senate committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Committee on Veterans’
Affairs. Hearings held.
S.894 :Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2011. A bill to amend title 38, United
States Code, to provide for an increase, effective December 1, 2011, in 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, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Murray, Patty [WA] (introduced 5/5/2011) Cosponsors (14) Related bill H.R.1407
Committees: Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Senate Reports: 112-44
Latest Major Action: 11/9/2011 Signed by President. Became Public Law 112-53.
S.951 :Hiring Heroes Act of 2011. A bill to improve the provision of Federal transition, rehabilitation,
vocational, and unemployment benefits to members of the Armed Forces and veterans, and for other
purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Murray, Patty [WA] (introduced 5/11/2011) Cosponsors (40) Related Bills: H.R.1941
Committees: Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Latest Major Action: 7/18/2011 By Senator Murray from Committee on Veterans’ Affairs filed written report.
Report
S.1025 : National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2011. A bill to
amend title 10, United States Code, to enhance the national defense through empowerment of the National
Guard, enhancement of the functions of the National Guard Bureau, and improvement of Federal-State
military coordination in domestic emergency response, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Leahy, Patrick J. [VT] (introduced 5/19/2011) Cosponsors (68)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 5/19/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Armed Services.
To support this bill and/or contact your legislators send a message via
http://capwiz.com/ngaus/issues/alert/?alertid=47545511&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]
S.1629 : Agent Orange Equity Act of 2011. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify
presumptions relating to the exposure of certain veterans who served in the vicinity of the Republic of
Vietnam, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [NY] (introduced 9/23/2011) Cosponsors (12)
Related Bills: H.R.812, H.R.3612
Latest Major Action: 9/23/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
S.1728 : Stolen Valor Act of 2011: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a criminal
offense relating to fraudulent claims about military service.
Sponsor: Sen Brown, Scott P. [MA] (introduced 10/18/2011) Cosponsors (2) Related Bills: H.R.1775
Committees: Senate Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 10/18/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.
S.1806 : Homeless Veterans Assistance Fund: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow
taxpayers to designate overpayments of tax as contributions to the homeless veterans assistance fund.
Sponsor: Sen Boxer, Barbara [CA] (introduced 11/3/2011) Cosponsors (2) Related Bills: H.R.136, H.R.3352
Latest Major Action: 11/3/2011 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
S.2255 : Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day. A bill to amend chapter 1 of title 36, United States Code,
to add Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day as a patriotic and National observance.
Sponsor: Sen Burr, Richard [NC] (introduced 3/29/2012)Cosponsors (6) Related Bills: S.RES.55
Committees: Senate Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 3/29/2012 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.