[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1163 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1163

  To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve compensation and 
 specially adapted housing for veterans in certain cases of impairment 
   of vision involving both eyes, and to provide for the use of the 
   National Directory of New Hires for income verification purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 19, 2007

    Mr. Akaka (for himself, Mr. Brown, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Hagel, Mr. 
 Isakson, and Mr. Webb) 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 improve compensation and 
 specially adapted housing for veterans in certain cases of impairment 
   of vision involving both eyes, and to provide for the use of the 
   National Directory of New Hires for income verification 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 ``Blinded Veterans Paired Organ Act of 
2007''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT IN COMPENSATION AND SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING FOR 
              VETERANS IN CERTAIN CASES OF IMPAIRMENT OF VISION 
              INVOLVING BOTH EYES.

    (a) Compensation Benefits.--Section 1160(a)(1) of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``blindness'' both places it appears and 
        inserting ``impairment of vision''; and
            (2) by striking ``misconduct;'' and inserting ``misconduct 
        if--
                    ``(A) the impairment of vision in each eye is rated 
                at a visual acuity of 20/200 or less; or
                    ``(B) the peripheral field of vision for each eye 
                is 20 degrees or less;''.
    (b) Specially Adapted Housing.--Section 2101(b)(2)(A) of such title 
is amended by striking ``eyes with 5/200 visual acuity or less.'' and 
inserting ``eyes--
                    ``(i) with 20/200 visual acuity or less; or
                    ``(ii) with a peripheral field of vision of 20 
                degrees or less.''.

SEC. 3. USE OF NATIONAL DIRECTORY OF NEW HIRES FOR INCOME VERIFICATION 
              PURPOSES FOR CERTAIN VETERANS BENEFITS.

    (a) Use of Information in National Directory of New Hires.--Chapter 
53 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:
``Sec. 5320. Use of National Directory of New Hires for income 
              verification purposes
    ``(a) Information From National Directory of New Hires.--(1) The 
Secretary shall furnish to the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
information in the custody of the Secretary on individuals under the 
age of 65 who are applicants for or recipients of benefits or services 
specified in subsection (d) for comparison with information on such 
individuals in the National Directory of New Hires maintained by the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services pursuant to section 453 of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 653). The Secretary shall furnish the 
information on a quarterly basis or at such other intervals as may be 
determined by the Secretary.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall furnish information under paragraph (1) 
with respect to any individual only if doing so is essential to 
determine the individual's eligibility for benefits and services 
specified in subsection (d) or the amount of benefits specified in 
paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of subsection (d), to which the individual 
is entitled.
    ``(3)(A) The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall, in 
cooperation with the Secretary and in accordance with this subsection--
            ``(i) compare information in the National Directory of New 
        Hires with information furnished pursuant to paragraph (1); and
            ``(ii) disclose information in that directory to the 
        Secretary for the purposes specified in this subsection.
    ``(B) The Secretary of Health and Human Services may make a 
disclosure in accordance with subparagraph (A) only to the extent that 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that such 
disclosure does not interfere with the effective operation of the 
program under part D of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
651 et seq.).
    ``(4) The Secretary may use information resulting from a data match 
pursuant to this subsection only for the purpose of determining 
eligibility for benefits and services specified in subsection (d), and 
the amount of benefits specified in paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of 
that subsection, for indivudals under the age of 65.
    ``(5) The Secretary shall reimburse the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services for the additional costs incurred by that Secretary in 
furnishing information under this subsection. Such reimbursement shall 
be at rates that the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines 
to be reasonable (and shall include payment for the costs of obtaining, 
verifying, maintaining, and comparing the information).
    ``(b) Notification to Beneficiaries.--The Secretary shall notify 
each applicant for, or recipient of, a benefit or service specified in 
subsection (d) that income information furnished by the applicant to 
the Secretary may be compared with information obtained by the 
Secretary from the Secretary of Health and Human Services under 
subsection (a). The Secretary shall periodically transmit to recipients 
of such benefits additional notices under this subsection.
    ``(c) Independent Verification Required.--The Secretary may 
terminate, deny, suspend, or reduce any benefit or service described in 
subsection (d) by reason of information obtained from the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services under subsection (a) only if the Secretary 
takes appropriate steps to verify independently information relating to 
employment and income from employment.
    ``(d) Covered Benefits and Services.--The benefits and services 
specified in this subsection are the following:
            ``(1) Needs-based pension benefits provided under chapter 
        15 of this title or under any other law administered by the 
        Secretary.
            ``(2) Parents' dependency and indemnity compensation 
        provided under section 1315 of this title.
            ``(3) Health-care services furnished under subsections 
        (a)(2)(G), (a)(3), and (b) of section 1710 of this title.
            ``(4) Compensation paid under chapter 11 of this title at 
        the 100 percent rate based solely on unemployability and 
        without regard to the fact that the disability or disabilities 
        are not rated as 100 percent disabling under the rating 
        schedule.
    ``(e) Opportunity To Contest Findings.--The Secretary shall inform 
the individual of the findings made by the Secretary on the basis of 
verified information under subsection (c), and shall give the 
individual an opportunity to contest such findings in the same manner 
as applies to other information and findings relating to eligibility 
for the benefit or service involved.
    ``(f) Source of Funds for Administration of Section.--The Secretary 
shall pay the expenses of carrying out this section from amounts 
available to the Department for the payment of compensation and 
pensions.
    ``(g) Termination of Authority.--The authority of the Secretary to 
obtain information from the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
under subsection (a) expires on September 30, 2012.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``5320. Use of National Directory of New Hires for income verification 
                            purposes.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--Section 5320 of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall take effect 270 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
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