[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4990 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4990

  To amend title 10, United States Code, to require the Secretary of 
Defense to establish a commission to collect and investigate reports by 
  members of the Armed Forces of illnesses incurred during or shortly 
  following their service in combat zones during a war or contingency 
                               operation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 18, 1994

   Mr. Camp introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 10, United States Code, to require the Secretary of 
Defense to establish a commission to collect and investigate reports by 
  members of the Armed Forces of illnesses incurred during or shortly 
  following their service in combat zones during a war or contingency 
                               operation.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. COMMISSION ON WARTIME ILLNESSES.

    Section 1074 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(a) Establishment of Commission on Wartime Illnesses.--(1) In 
connection with each war or contingency operation in which members of 
the uniformed services participate, the Secretary of Defense shall 
establish an advisory commission to collect and investigate reports 
submitted by members and former members of the uniformed services 
regarding illnesses they believe were incurred as a result of their 
service in a combat zone during that war or contingency operation. The 
Secretary shall select members of each commission in consultation with 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
    ``(2) The administering Secretaries, the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs, and the Secretaries of the military departments shall 
cooperate with each commission established under paragraph (1) in the 
investigation of illness reports by providing information under their 
control relevant to the investigation, such as the service record and 
service locations of the member or former member submitting the report, 
the weapons used by the member or former member or to which the member 
or former member was exposed, and the illnesses known to be associated 
with such weapons. On the basis of such reports and investigations, the 
commission shall prepare a registry of all illnesses reported in 
connection with the war or contingency operation for which the 
commission was established. The Commission shall submit to the 
Secretaries and Congress the registry and a report describing the 
results of the investigations conducted by the Commission.
    ``(3) A commission established under paragraph (1) shall collect 
illness reports until--
            ``(A) the end of the two-year period beginning on the 
        ending date of the war or contingency operation for which the 
        commission was established; or
            ``(B) such earlier date as determined appropriate by the 
        commission.
    ``(4) The Secretary of Defense shall terminate a commission 
established under paragraph (1) six months after submission of the 
report of the commission under paragraph (2). The records of the 
commission shall be preserved by the Secretary of Defense and shall be 
available for public inspection consistent with applicable laws.''.
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