[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2209 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2209

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide an additional program 
  of service disabled veterans' insurance for veterans, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 18, 2002

Mr. Rockfeller introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide an additional program 
  of service disabled veterans' insurance for veterans, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Robert Carey Service Disabled 
Veterans' Insurance Act of 2002''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PROGRAM OF SERVICE DISABLED VETERANS' INSURANCE FOR 
              VETERANS.

    (a) In General.--(1) Subchapter I of chapter 19 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1922A the following 
new section:
``Sec. 1922B. Service disabled veterans' insurance: level premium term 
              insurance
    ``(a) Subject to the provisions of this section, any person 
described in subsection (b) shall, upon payment of premiums as provided 
in subsection (f), be granted insurance by the United States against 
the death of such person occurring while such insurance is in force.
    ``(b) A person described in this subsection is any person as 
follows:
            ``(1) A person insured under section 1922(a) of this title 
        if such person applies for insurance under this section within 
        the times provided for under paragraphs (2) and (3) of 
        subsection (e).
            ``(2) A person (other than a person described in paragraph 
        (1)) who--
                    ``(A) is released from active military, naval, or 
                air service, under other than dishonorable conditions;
                    ``(B) is found by the Secretary to be suffering 
                from a disability or disabilities for which 
                compensation would be payable if 10 percent or more in 
                degree;
                    ``(C) except for the disability or disabilities 
                referred to in subparagraph (B), would be insurable 
                according to standards of good health established by 
                the Secretary; and
                    ``(D) has not attained the age of 65 years as of 
                the date of application for insurance under this 
                section.
    ``(c)(1) Insurance under this section for a person described in 
subsection (b)(1) is in addition to the insurance of such person under 
section 1922(a) of this title and the insurance, if any, of such person 
under section 1922A of this title.
    ``(2) A person deemed insured under section 1922(b) of this title 
is not eligible for or entitled to insurance under this section.
    ``(d)(1)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B) and except as provided in 
paragraph (3), the amount for which a person described by subsection 
(b)(1) is insured under this section shall, at the election of the 
person, be--
            ``(i) $45,000; or
            ``(ii) an amount less than $45,000, but more than $5,000, 
        that is evenly divisible by $5,000.
    ``(B) The amount of insurance elected under this paragraph by a 
person described by subsection (b)(1) may not cause the aggregate 
amount of insurance of the person under this section and sections 
1922(a) and 1922A of this title to exceed $50,000.
    ``(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the amount for which a 
person described by subsection (b)(2) is insured under this section 
shall, at the election of the person, be--
            ``(A) $50,000; or
            ``(B) an amount less than $50,000, but more than $5,000, 
        that is evenly divisible by $5,000.
    ``(3) Upon attaining the age of 70 years, the amount for which a 
person is insured under this section shall be the amount equal to 20 
percent of the amount otherwise elected by the person under paragraph 
(1) or (2), as applicable.
    ``(e)(1) A person seeking insurance under this section shall submit 
to the Secretary an application in writing for such insurance.
    ``(2) The application of a person under paragraph (1) shall be 
submitted not later than 10 years after the date of the release of the 
person from active military, naval, or air service.
    ``(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the application of 
a person under paragraph (1) shall be submitted not later than two 
years after the date on which the Secretary finds the service-
connection for the disability or disabilities of the person on which 
the application is based.
    ``(B) In the case of a person shown by evidence satisfactory to the 
Secretary to have been mentally incompetent during any part of the two-
year period otherwise applicable to the person under subparagraph (A), 
an application for insurance under this section shall be filed not 
later than the earlier of--
            ``(i) two years after a guardian for the person is 
        appointed; or
            ``(ii) two years after the removal of such disability or 
        disabilities, as determined by the Secretary.
    ``(f)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), a person 
insured under this section shall pay premiums for such insurance as 
determined under paragraph (4).
    ``(2) The provisions of section 1912 of this title shall apply with 
respect to payment of premiums for insurance under this section.
    ``(3) A person shall not be required to pay premiums for insurance 
under this section after attaining the age of 70 years.
    ``(4) The premium rates for insurance under this section shall be 
level, and shall be based on the Commissioners 1980 Standard Ordinary 
Basic Table of Mortality and interest at the rate of 5 per cent per 
annum.
    ``(5) All premiums and other collections for insurance under this 
section shall be credited directly to a revolving fund in the Treasury 
established for purposes of this section, and any payments on such 
insurance shall be made directly from such fund.
    ``(g)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, insurance 
under this section shall be issued on the same terms and conditions as 
are contained in standard policies of National Service Life Insurance, 
except that insurance issued under this section shall have no loan 
value or extended values.
    ``(2) All settlements on insurance under this section shall be paid 
in a lump sum.
    ``(h) Insurance under this section may be referred to as `Robert 
Carey Service Disabled Veterans' Insurance'.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 19 of that 
title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1922A 
the following new item:

``1922B. Service disabled veterans' insurance: level premium term 
                            insurance.''.
    (b) Coordination with Current Service Disabled Veterans' Insurance 
Program.--Section 1922 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following 
        new paragraph:
    ``(5) A person deemed insured under this subsection is not eligible 
for or entitled to insurance under section 1922B of this title.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(d) A person insured under subsection (a) may also be eligible 
for insurance under section 1922B of this title in accordance with the 
provisions of that section.''.
    (c) Other Amendments to Current Service Disabled Veterans' 
Insurance Program.--Subsection (a) of such section 1922 is amended by 
striking ``Commissioners 1941 Standard Ordinary Table of Mortality and 
interest at the rate of 2\1/4\ per centum per annum'' each place it 
appears in paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting ``Commissioners 1980 
Standard Ordinary Basic Table of Mortality and interest at the rate of 
5 per cent per annum''.
    (d) Review of Applicability of Mortality Tables.--(1) The Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs shall, from time to time, evaluate the standard 
ordinary table of mortality being used for purposes of service disabled 
veterans' insurance under sections 1922 and 1922B of title 38, United 
States Code, in order to determine whether such table of mortality 
continues to be suitable for such purposes.
    (2) If as the result of an evaluation under paragraph (1) the 
Secretary determines that the standard ordinary table of mortality 
being used for purposes of insurance referred to in that paragraph is 
no longer suitable for such purposes, the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the House of 
Representatives a report setting forth that determination and including 
a recommendation for an alternative standard ordinary table of 
mortality to be used for such purposes.
    (e) Regulations.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe 
regulations for purposes of administering section 1922B of title 38, 
United States Code (as added by subsection (a)), and for purposes of 
administering the amendments to section 1922 of that title made by 
subsections (b) and (c). Such regulations shall take effect on October 
1, 2003.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations for Revolving Fund.--There is 
hereby authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Veterans 
Affairs for the revolving fund established pursuant to subsection 
(f)(5) of section 1922B of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
subsection (a) of this section), such sums as may be necessary for 
purposes of that section.
    (g) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) through 
(c) shall take effect on October 1, 2003.
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