[House Hearing, 113 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON H.R. 2018, H.R. 2088, H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R.
3671, H.R. 3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102, H.R. 4141, AND H.R. 4191
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON DISABILITY ASSISTANCE AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
of the
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26, 2014
__________
Serial No. 113-60
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.fdsys.gov
______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
87-673 WASHINGTON : 2015
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COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
JEFF MILLER, Florida, Chairman
DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado MICHAEL H. MICHAUD, Maine, Ranking
GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida, Vice- Minority Member
Chairman CORRINE BROWN, Florida
DAVID P. ROE, Tennessee MARK TAKANO, California
BILL FLORES, Texas JULIA BROWNLEY, California
JEFF DENHAM, California DINA TITUS, Nevada
JON RUNYAN, New Jersey ANN KIRKPATRICK, Arizona
DAN BENISHEK, Michigan RAUL RUIZ, California
TIM HUELSKAMP, Kansas GLORIA NEGRETE McLEOD, California
MIKE COFFMAN, Colorado ANN M. KUSTER, New Hampshire
BRAD R. WENSTRUP, Ohio BETO O'ROURKE, Texas
PAUL COOK, California TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota
JACKIE WALORSKI, Indiana
DAVID JOLLY, Florida
Jon Towers, Staff Director
Nancy Dolan, Democratic Staff Director
SUBCOMMITTEE ON DISABILITY ASSISTANCE AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
JON RUNYAN, New Jersey Chairman
DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado DINA TITUS, Nevada, Ranking
GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida Minority Member
MARK AMODEI, Nevada BETO O'ROURKE, Texas
PAUL COOK, California RAUL RUIZ, California
DAVID JOLLY, Florida GLORIA NEGRETE McLEOD, California
Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public
hearing records of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs are also
published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the
official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare
both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process
of converting between various electronic formats may introduce
unintentional errors or omissions. Such occurrences are inherent in the
current publication process and should diminish as the process is
further refined.
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Legislative Hearing on H.R. 2018, H.R. 2088, H.R. 2119, H.R.
2529, H.R. 3671, H.R. 3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102, H.R. 4141,
and H.R. 4191.................................................. 1
OPENING STATEMENTS
Hon. Jon Runyan, Chairman of Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs................................ 1
Hon. Dina Titus, Ranking Member.................................. 2
Prepared Statement........................................... 22
Hon. Jeff Miller, Chairman of Committee on Veterans' Affairs..... 3
Hon. Michael Michaud, Ranking Member............................. 4
Hon. Raul Ruiz, U.S. House of Representatives.................... 5
Hon. Al Green, U.S. House of Representatives..................... 6
Prepared Statement........................................... 22
Hon. Timothy Walz, U.S. House of Representatives................. 7
Prepared Statement........................................... 23
Hon. Jeffrey Denham, U.S. House of Representatives............... 9
Prepared Statement........................................... 24
Hon. Ander Crenshaw, U.S. House of Representatives
Prepared Statement........................................... 24
Hon. Steven Stivers, U.S. House of Representatives............... 10
Prepared Statement........................................... 25
WITNESSES
Jeffrey C. Hall, Assistant National Legislative Director,
Disabled American Veterans
Prepared Statement........................................... 26
Alexander Nicholson, Legislative Director, Iraq and Afghanistan
Veterans of America
Prepared Statement........................................... 29
Heather Ansley, Esq., MSW, Vice President of Veterans Policy,
VetsFirst, a Program of United Spinal Association
Prepared Statement........................................... 33
Diane M. Zumatto, National Legislative Director, AMVETS
Prepared Statement........................................... 37
Zachary Hearn, Deputy Director for Claims, Veterans Affairs and
Rehabilitation Commission, The American Legion
Prepared Statement........................................... 39
Anthony A. Wallis, Legislative Director/Director of Government
Affairs, Association of the United States Navy
Prepared Statement........................................... 44
Raymond Kelly, Veterans of Foreign Wars
Prepared Statement........................................... 51
Thomas Murphy, Director, Compensation Service, Veterans Benefits
Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Prepared Statement........................................... 54
Accompanied by:
Patricia Lynch Watts, Director, Legislative and
Regulatory Service, National Cemetery Administration,
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
And
David Barrans, Deputy Assistant General Counsel, U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs
STATEMENT FOR THE RECORD
Congressman Steve Daines......................................... 61
Paralyzed Veterans of America.................................... 61
LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON H.R. 3593, H.R. 4261, H.R. 4281 AND OTHER DRAFT
LEGISLATION
----------
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
U.S. House of Representatives,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial
Affairs,
Washington, D.C.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 3:40 p.m., in
Room 334, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Jon Runyan
[chairman of the subcommittee] presiding.
Present: Representatives Runyan, Lamborn, Bilirakis,
Miller, Titus, O'Rourke, Ruiz, Negrete McLeod, and Michaud.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN JON RUNYAN
Mr. Runyan. Good afternoon. This legislative hearing on
H.R. 2018, H.R. 2088, H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3671, H.R.
3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102, H.R. 4141, and H.R. 4191 will now
come to order.
Today we have a large number of witnesses present due to
the number of bills and a high level of interest in some of
these bills before us. Without any objection, the written
testimony of all appearing today will be made part of the
hearing record.
However, the House also is scheduled for some more votes
this afternoon, so in the interest of time, there will be no
questions for our first panel, which is comprised of Members of
Congress who are here to speak on their bills. Subsequent
panels two, three, and four will not be asked to give an
opening statement today, but we will begin questions and
responses immediately upon their introduction. Each testifier's
full written testimony will be submitted for the record.
Also in the interest of time, I am going to forego a
lengthy opening statement and just briefly touch on one of the
bills on today's agenda, which I am proud to introduce: H.R.
4095, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment, or
COLA, Act of 2014, which provides a cost-of-living adjustment
increase to veterans' disability compensation rates and other
benefits.
The amount of increase will be determined by the Consumer
Price Index, which also controls the cost-of-living adjustment
for Social Security beneficiaries.
As many of us here today know, the cost-of-living increase
is beneficial to the veterans and their families who depend on
VA benefits to make ends meet.
Although I am very supportive of this annual legislation, I
would like to once again state that it is unfortunate that we
have to pass such a bill each year and would encourage our
colleagues in the Senate to pass H.R. 570, the American Heroes
COLA Act legislation, which authorized an annual COLA without
requiring congressional action. This would ensure that the
veterans' COLA is not tied to political action, nor inaction,
in Washington.
I appreciate everyone's attendance here today and will now
call on the ranking member for her opening statement.
[The prepared statement of Jon Runyan appears in the
Appendix]
OPENING STATEMENT OF DINA TITUS, RANKING MEMBER
Ms. Titus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you for
having the hearing.
As you said, we are examining ten bills that pertain to
issues that are of great importance to our nation's veterans
and to those in this room. I support a number of these bills.
First, I would like to say that I am proud to have worked
with the chairman to introduce H.R. 4095 and H.R. 570 which
deals with the veterans' compensation cost-of-living
adjustments for 2014. Like you, I wish we could make this
permanent, but in the short term we certainly need to raise the
compensation for this year. It is simply the right thing to do,
and I thank you for that.
Also on today's agenda is H.R. 2088, which is introduced by
our ranking member of the full committee, Mr. Michaud, and
which would create claims-processing centers of excellence.
With the ranking member here to discuss his bill, I will defer
to him to outline the legislation. But I want to say I fully
support this legislation and believe that it will build on the
VA's successes to date fighting the backlog.
H.R. 2119, the Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act, is
brought forth by Dr. Ruiz, a member of our subcommittee. His
legislation seeks to address the appeals backlog, which we know
is a high priority for this committee. It would allow the Board
of Veterans' Appeals to select the quickest way to schedule
hearings for our veterans. He is here to speak to this.
Also, H.R. 2529, the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act,
would clarify the definition of ``spouse'' for the purpose of
receiving VA benefits. It would include all spouses in any
legally recognized marriage with a veteran in any State of the
United States and its territories and possessions.
The purpose of the legislation is to bring the VA in
compliance with the Department of Defense and other Federal
agencies to ensure that all veterans and their families are
receiving the benefits they have earned throughout their
military service. Unfortunately, current law precludes some
veterans from receiving the benefits that they have earned. I
believe this is a commonsense approach, and I hope we can move
the bill to the floor as quickly as possible.
So I thank all of our members and our colleagues for
bringing forward their thoughtful legislation to help veterans.
I thank our esteemed witnesses who have come today to give us
some insight and answer our questions about this proposed
legislation.
Thank you, and I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Dina Titus appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. I thank the ranking member.
With that, I would like to recognize Chairman Miller of the
full committee for an opening statement.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN JEFF MILLER
Mr. Miller. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for
yielding. I want to make a few remarks on two bills that I have
introduced, H.R. 3671 and H.R. 4102.
First of all, H.R. 3671 expands the eligibility for a
medallion furnished by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, which
would signify that the veteran has veteran status of a deceased
individual upon a private headstone or a marker.
Currently, VA has the authority to furnish, upon request, a
medallion for eligible veterans who died on or about the 1st of
November of 1990. H.R. 3671 would remove the date-of-death
limitation by codifying eligibility for the medallion benefit
regardless of the veteran's date of death.
For nearly 40 years now, VA has administered various
programs to provide headstones or marker options for veterans.
At times there have been allowances for private headstones, and
at times those allowances were not provided for. The programs
have evolved over time, and that evolution is somewhat
confusing for veterans and their loved ones.
Some view the current November 1st, 1990, date as an
arbitrary qualification for the medallion, but, in fact, this
1990 date was not arbitrary at all. It was delineated as a
starting point for the medallion benefits because from November
1st of 1990 through the 1st of September of 2001 VA did not pay
a benefit for the purchase of a private headstone or marker for
a veteran who was qualified for interment in a national or
State veterans cemetery. However, in a 2001 through 2006 pilot
program, VA provided government headstones or markers to
eligible veterans regardless of whether or not they had
privately purchased a headstone, and in 2007 VA actually made
this program permanent.
At that time, VA included a medallion as an alternative
option, retroactive to the 1st of November of 1990. The
medallion has proven to be very much appreciated by veterans
and their families, and VA is supportive of the change to allow
this option for more veterans. Accordingly, I would like to
encourage all of you to support the broadened eligibility that
is contained within H.R. 3671.
And then, additionally, I want to highlight to your
attention H.R. 4102, which I have introduced along with
Representative Walorski to clarify that the estate of a
deceased veteran may receive certain accrued benefits upon the
death of the veteran and for other purposes.
This bill corrects a grave injustice that has resulted from
the tremendous backlogs existing within the Veterans Benefits
Administration and will prevent the occurrence of future
incidents. The fact is that unacceptable wait times at the VBA
regional offices have contributed to tens of thousands of
veterans dying before their benefits are granted.
While VBA currently reports an average days-to-complete
figure of 285 days, I recall that we are not long removed from
the agency's 2-year-old claims initiative, which focused on
rating claims that had been pending for over 700 days.
And, as to appealed claims, while the Board of Veterans'
Appeals chairman's report for fiscal year 2013 has not yet been
approved or provided to Congress, we can anticipate a grim
account, as veterans' appeals continue to rise unresolved for
3, 4, or more years.
Now, under current law, only a veteran's spouse or children
under the age of 18 and dependent parents are eligible to
receive accrued disability benefits in the death of a veteran
claimant's death. H.R. 4102 would provide another option for
payment into the veteran's estate.
To demonstrate the need for this bill, I highlight the
experience of Indianapolis veteran Shelton Hickerson and his
daughter, Sharon Hickerson Thurman. In 2000, Mr. Hickerson
filed a claim for disability benefits. VA denied the claim, and
Mr. Hickerson's appellate process began. Ultimately, on June
27th, 2013, after more than 10 years, VA awarded Mr. Hickerson
a 100 percent disability rating with retroactive pay in excess
of $375,000. But, sadly, Mr. Hickerson passed away the same day
as the payment of the benefit.
Mr. Hickerson was entitled to this compensation, and had he
lived just 1 day--1 day--longer, he would have been able to
deposit that accrued benefit properly into his account.
However, he did not. And his daughter was not eligible to
receive the accrued benefit because she was no longer a
dependent. VA's errant and dilatory processing of Mr.
Hickerson's claim resulted in no benefit to Mr. Hickerson, to
his estate, and, therefore, his family received nothing.
There is no doubt in my mind that VA will make mistakes in
its claims-rating process. However, the party to the
transaction that pays a price for these mistakes should not be
the veteran or the families of those lives who are also
affected by illness or injury caused by their service.
So I want to encourage all of you to support H.R. 4102, a
bill to clarify that the estate of deceased veterans may
receive accrued benefits upon the death of the veteran and to
provide relief in the case of Mr. Shelton Hickerson.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for your time. I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Jeff Miller appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank you, Chairman.
With that, I will recognize the ranking member of the full
committee, Mr. Michaud, for an opening statement.
OPENING STATEMENT OF MICHAEL MICHAUD, RANKING MEMBER
Mr. Michaud. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and Madam
Ranking Member. I am here to testify on H.R. 2088.
Today's veterans are filing the most complex claims in
history, with the trend continuing towards an increase in
complexities. These claims take longer, require more training
and additional oversight to properly adjudicate a TBI claim
than a loss-of-hearing type of claim.
My bill seeks to replicate the success that the VA has had
with specializing claims related to Camp Lejeune and atomic
veterans. VA suggests that the centralization and
specialization of these claims has allowed them to increase
training and mastery of these complex conditions, thereby
increasing timeliness and accuracy of the adjudication.
The VA OIG recently noted in their inspection of VA
regional offices that 31 percent of TBI claims reviewed showed
that staff had made errors. After informing the staff of the
errors and VA taking action, the VA OIG returned and noted that
29 percent of the TBI claims reviewed were still found to be in
error.
I believe that my legislation provides a commonsense
solution that will result in veterans with complex medical
conditions having their complex condition adjudicated at a VA
center of excellence by a specialist who has been trained to
adjudicate these specific claim conditions.
We must continue to work towards and achieve a claims
system that lives up to the service and sacrifice of our
veterans so that no veterans will end up in a situation that
you just heard from Chairman Miller, with that veteran and
their family.
And with that, Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Michael Michaud appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank the gentleman.
I know Mr. Ruiz wants to make a statement. Is there anyone
else that wants to make an opening statement?
So, with that, the chair recognizes Mr. Ruiz for his
statement.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. RAUL RUIZ
Mr. Ruiz. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for holding
this legislative hearing. The bills we will be discussing today
serve as a testament to our committee's dedication to the
honorable men and women who have served our country.
I thank the chairman for including my bill, H.R. 2119, the
Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act, in the legislative
hearing today. My bill seeks to address the appeals backlog by
increasing the use of videoconferencing during an appeals
hearing as a substitute for the veteran being there in person.
This bill intends to relieve the burden on veterans' having
to travel for VA appeal hearings in person. Many times, this
travel comes at a great physical and financial cost to the
veteran. This bill is also focused on making the VA appeals
process as efficient as possible in order to reduce the appeals
backlog and create a more speedy review process.
In working with veterans service organizations, we have
found ways to improve the language of the bill to ensure it
meets its intended purpose. I really do thank the VSOs, my
veterans advisory group, and the veterans in my district for
their input. This is really their creation.
I appreciate the chairman's willingness to include this
bill in today's legislative hearing, and I look forward to
working together to move this legislation forward.
Thank you, and I yield back my time.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
And, at this time, I would like to welcome my colleagues in
the House to the witness table for our first panel.
First, we will hear from the Honorable Al Green from Texas,
who is sponsoring H.R. 3876. Next, we will hear from the
Honorable Tim Walz from Minnesota, who is sponsoring H.R. 4191.
Then, we will hear from the Honorable Jeff Denham from
California, who is an original cosponsor of H.R. 4191. And,
finally, we will hear from the Honorable Steve Stivers from
Ohio, who is sponsoring H.R. 2018.
Additionally, Honorable Ander Crenshaw from Florida is
sponsoring H.R. 4141. He is unable to attend this afternoon, as
he is chairing the Financial Services Subcommittee of
Appropriations currently. Noting that, his full written
testimony will be included in the hearing record.
[The prepared statement of Ander Crenshaw appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. I would like to welcome all of you to this
legislative hearing. All of your complete and written
statements will be entered into the hearing record.
And, with that, Congressman Green, we will start with you,
and you are now recognized for 5 minutes for your testimony.
STATEMENTS OF THE HON. AL GREEN
Mr. Green. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank the ranking
member, as well, the full committee chair, and the full
committee ranking member.
And I am somewhat moved, to be quite candid with you, by
the comments about the Hickerson family, so I have to digress.
It would be unlike me to let this go by and not say something.
It pulls at my heart to know that a family is not in a position
to receive something that has been earned. And I just don't
know how to express my feelings about that other than to say,
you didn't ask me, but that is something that I would support,
this piece of legislation.
All of the legislation that I have heard spoken of appears
to be legislation that would greatly benefit our veterans. I am
just pleased that I came to hear what I have heard so far. So
thank you for this.
I would like to start with a brief vignette that will give
some indication as to why I feel the way I do about our
veterans. I was in another State and lost, looking for a given
venue. When I couldn't find it, I happened to look over my
right shoulder, and there was a VA facility there. And there
was a sign that read, ``Come in and see the price of freedom.''
``Come in and see the price of freedom.'' And you and I know
that the price of freedom is more than gold and silver. It can
be an arm, a leg, or possibly someone not returning home at
all.
This is why we are concerned, and this is why we call to
the attention of this body of H.R. 3876 that deals with burials
with dignity. We want every person who serves our country
honorably to have a dignified memorial service.
My hope is, after having talked to the representative from
the VFW who is here today, that he and I and others will be
able to work out some language that will be acceptable for this
committee to review. Hence, I will not go into a long
dissertation about the intricacies of the bill. I will simply
say that it provides homeless veterans, those who may die with
no money or they may have no relatives to be of assistance to
them, to make sure that they get a decent burial.
Other legislation has addressed this. This is not to say
that our country is not doing a good job. It is only to say
that we believe that we have more to add, so that
transportation will be made available to these veterans. And
there may be some other things that we are going to work out
with the VFW and other friends.
So I want to thank you for allowing me this opportunity to
be heard today. I will not consume more of your time than is
necessary, but I do believe that, given what I have heard and
how I feel, I want to use just a little bit of my time to ask
for a moment of silence for those families who are still having
to endure wars, endure pain and suffering because their loved
ones didn't return to them the way they left.
This is my request, and I would simply lower my head for a
moment of silence.
[Moment of silence observed.]
Mr. Green. Amen.
And thank you.
[The prepared statement of Al Green appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank you, Congressman Green. And I can tell
you, having been on this committee for 4 years working with the
VFW through committee staff, we usually come to a very sensible
agreement--and get a lot of things done around here, believe it
or not, in this committee. So I appreciate your willingness to
chat with them and look forward to working with you to get what
we can done.
Mr. Green. Thank you.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
With that, I will recognize Congressman Walz.
You are recognized now for 5 minutes for your testimony.
STATEMENT OF THE HON. TIMOTHY J. WALZ
Mr. Walz. Well, thank you, Chairman Runyan and Ranking
Member Titus, and to Chairman Miller and Ranking Member Michaud
of the full committee.
I would echo the chairman's comments. It is a singular
honor to serve on this committee, and to testify in front of
you is humbling and an honor.
I am joined today by a group of young citizens from Waseca
High School in Waseca, Minnesota. And I can't imagine a better
place to show them how democracy is supposed to work and how we
are supposed to work towards solving problems than this
committee. So I thank you for that opportunity.
I am also going to be joined and backed up by my friend Mr.
Denham, who has been the staunchest supporter of our Nation's
veterans. We introduced a piece of legislation to tackle one of
the issues. There are so many. As Mr. Green said, so many of
these issues are so good and on it.
This issue of the claims backlog, it is corrosive, it is
wrong. It wears at the soul of this country, wondering why in
the heck we can't deliver these benefits that were earned. And
I know that there are good intentions, and I know that we are
making progress, and I know that the VSOs who will testify
afterwards and the VA officials, that we all want that outcome.
But I think there are some good ideas out there.
And I would argue that Mr. Denham, myself, and we have a
Senate companion version that has been introduced--and you are
going to see support across the board from the VSOs. This is
the right thing to do.
This piece of legislation, it is very simple. Our measure
would simply allow local doctors to conduct disability medical
examinations for veterans. This would conserve VA resources,
cuts back on the long wait time at VA hospitals, enables
quicker diagnosis of disabilities, and eliminates unnecessary
trips to the VA for veterans in rural communities.
Specifically, to further encourage use of private medical
evidence, we are amending title 38, United States Code, section
5125 to provide that when a claimant submits private medical
evidence, including a private medical opinion, that is
competent, credible, probative, and otherwise adequate for
rating purposes, the Secretary will not request a VA medical
examination.
This legislation would require VSRs and RVSRs to document
that private medical evidence was inadequate for rating
purposes before ordering the examination, which many times is
unnecessary, duplicative, and slows the process down.
The legislation requires the Department of Veterans Affairs
to complete two reports for us: a report of 180 days after
passage that tracks the implementation and annual reports that
track the most common reasons and disabilities for which claims
with evidence submitted by non-VA professionals were denied by
VBA.
Our goal, and this is very, simple: uphold the promise we
made to our veterans by ending the backlog and getting the
benefits they earned. We think it is the right way to go. There
are folks out there willing to do it. We have a Senate
companion version.
You are going to hear from all of the folks who process
these on a daily basis--the VSOs, county veteran service
officers. And everyone is going to speak in support of this,
except for the VA. And I want them to talk to you about this,
talk to you about why that is. They know that I am their
staunchest supporter, but I will be their harshest critic.
Today, I think I come as the latter on the backlog.
With that, I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Timothy Walz appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank you, Congressman Walz, for that.
And, with that, I will recognize Congressman Denham for his
testimony.
STATEMENT OF THE HON. JEFF DENHAM
Mr. Denham. Thank you, Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member
Titus, Chairman Miller, and Ranking Member Michaud.
Appreciate, as Mr. Walz said, being on this side of the
dais and addressing a very important issue, the Quicker
Veterans Benefits Delivery Act.
We have talked many times about delivering to veterans and
getting rid of this backlog. It is certainly one of the largest
goals of the VA, but yet we continue to have discussions on why
it is not happening quicker.
This bill is very simple. Just as an example, currently, at
the Oakland Regional office of the Veterans Benefits
Administration, which serves the veterans in my district, there
are over 20,000 pending claims. Twelve thousand of those claims
are 125 days or more. Nationwide, by the VA's own count, there
are more than 638,000 pending claims; 360,000 of those are over
125 days long.
Secretary Shinseki set the goal of eliminating the
disability claim backlog by 2015. And this committee and
Congress responded by providing billions in additional funding
to improve technology, hire additional staff, and reform the
rating process for timelier decisions.
The VSOs were also a vital part of this total effort,
working hand-in-hand with the VA to create fully developed a
claims process to certify claim packets before they are
submitted so they can be swiftly approved.
However, we are skeptical that these initiatives alone will
break the backlog by the 2015 stated goal. Congress needs to do
more to bolster VA's current efforts to modernize its
operations and promote further improvements in order to give
veterans' claims-compensation needs to be settled faster.
With that in mind, Congressman Walz and I worked with the
veterans service organizations, the VSOs, to draft the Quicker
Veterans Benefits Delivery Act. The bill will require the VA to
maximize the use of private medical evidence. The bill would
allow veterans to see their own doctor instead of waiting for
an appointment with VA physicians, who are often overworked or
far away from a veteran's home.
Congressman Walz and I both represent rural veterans, many
of them elderly, and the challenge of traveling long distances
for an appointment is one of the biggest barriers to accessing
their veterans benefits. This bill will help remove that hurdle
from the benefits claims process.
I would also like to thank, in closing, the VFW, the
American Legion, and the Association of United States Navy.
Thank you, and I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Jeff Denham appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank you, Congressman Denham.
And, with that, I will recognize Congressman Stivers for
his testimony.
STATEMENT OF THE HON. STEVE STIVERS
Mr. Stivers. Thank you, Chairman Runyan and Ranking Member
Titus, as well as Chairman of the Full Committee Miller and
Ranking Member Michaud, for holding this hearing today on my
bipartisan legislation, H.R. 2018, the Honor Those Who Served
Act.
I want to thank Representative Beatty and Representative
Tiberi for their help with this bill. The measure before the
committee today will help make it easier to provide a headstone
or marker for veterans who currently do not have a headstone
and lay in an unmarked grave.
You may know in 2009 the Veterans Administration made a
rule change that required notification of next of kin before a
veteran could receive an initial headstone from the agency.
That regulatory barrier of obtaining approval for next of kin
creates an especially high barrier on veterans from much older
conflicts, like the Civil War and the Revolutionary War, as
well as homeless veterans that Congressman Green talked about
earlier.
In my State of Ohio and in many other States, there are
researchers--in Ohio, the Ohio Historical Society is one--that
check the archives, death records, military records, and
genealogical records to identify and determine the identity of
Revolutionary War and Civil War soldiers who are buried in
unmarked graves. These groups can work to identify the next of
kin, but sometimes those people can be removed six and seven
generations from that veteran, and it is hard to identify next
of kin.
I understand the rationale of this VA rule, but it has an
undue burden on homeless veterans as well as identifying and
marking the graves of our veterans from the Civil War and
Revolutionary War who sit in unmarked graves.
Those who served in our military deserve our full support,
especially those who gave their last full measure of devotion
for this great Nation. Our veterans, regardless of their era,
who have served deserve better than to be marked in an unmarked
grave.
And that is why, on May 16th of 2013, a bipartisan group of
legislators introduced this bill. It would stipulate that if a
next of kin cannot be found, the headstone application can be
filed with the VA by a State veteran service agency, military
researchers, local historians, genealogists, or anyone else
familiar with military sources and methods that can identify a
veteran's identity.
You know, President Abraham Lincoln, in his second
inaugural address, called for the country to care for those who
shall have borne the battle and for the widow and orphan,
affirming the government's obligation to honor those who served
our Nation. And in 1959, it became the VA's motto. Those who
have given the final measure of service to our great Nation
deserve a final resting place with a headstone worthy of their
dedication, commitment, and devotion.
As one final point, I did hear that the Veterans
Administration is not supportive of this bill because they
believe they can fix this through a rule. I would note that
they caused this problem through a rule and recognize they can
fix it through a rule but this subcommittee had a hearing on
this bill 6 months ago and the VA has, as of today, done
nothing to move a rule forward to fix this problem.
And I would ask this committee to take this bill to markup
and move this bill forward. While I recognize it can be fixed
by rule, the VA has done nothing to do so. And it is time to
fix this problem for our homeless veterans and our veterans
from previous conflicts who today lay in unmarked graves
because a next of kin cannot be found.
Thank you for your time. Again, I appreciate the chairman
and ranking member for holding this hearing. And thank you for
allowing me to testify today.
I yield back the balance of my time.
[The prepared statement of Steve Stivers appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. Thank you, Congressman Stivers.
And, as noted, we will forego a round of questions with the
first panel. Any questions that anyone has for this panel may
be submitted for the record.
Mr. Runyan. On behalf of the subcommittee, I thank all of
you for your testimony, and you are now excused.
And a vote having being called on the floor--there are four
votes requested--so this committee will stand in recess for
just about an hour.
[Recess.]
Mr. Runyan. The Committee on Disability Assistance and
Memorial Affairs will now come to order.
We welcome our second panel to the witness table.
The second panel consists of Jeffrey Hall, the Assistant
National Legislative Director for Disabled American Veterans;
Alexander Nicholson, the Legislative Director for Iraq and
Afghan Veterans of America; Heather Ansley, Vice President of
Veterans Policy with VetsFirst; and Diane Zumatto, National
Legislative Director for AMVETS.
Thank you all for being here today and thank you for your
patience. Your full and written testimony will be made part of
the record of today's legislative hearing.
[The prepared statements of Jeffrey Hall, Alexander
Nicholson, Heather Ansley, and Diane Zumatto appear in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. As previously noted, we will start with
questions. I would like to start with Mr. Hall and go down the
row.
My first question is about Chairman Miller's bill, H.R.
4102, which would allow benefits to be paid to a veteran's
estate if the veteran passes away while a claim is pending and
the veteran does not have an eligible survivor.
Since most of your organizations have seen situations
similar to that of Shelton Hickerson, which the chairman
highlighted in his opening statement, can you please share with
the committee any additional anecdotes that you may have about
the veteran who passed while awaiting a VA benefits decision?
Mr. Hall.
Mr. Hall. Yes. Actually--thank you for the question--it
reminded me of a story when I was a service officer in Chicago
before I left to go to New York. It was one of the last cases I
had worked on. It was two sisters that had come in for some
assistance.
The sum and substance of the story is that the veteran
waited nearly 2-years to get his claim processed, and when he
did get his claim processed, before they authorized and paid
him the award, he became hospitalized. And while it took months
and months and months for them to authorize the award, he ended
up passing away in the hospital before the payment was actually
made.
So the two daughters, who were no longer dependent children
of him at that time, were not able to receive that benefit. And
it was well over $100,000 that the veteran was owed.
So, therefore, not only did it take them so long to process
the award, then the ability for the veteran to receive that
money or his next of kin was not able to receive that, or his
heirs.
So DAV is fully in support of enactment of H.R. 4102 for
those very reasons.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
Mr. Nicholson.
Mr. Nicholson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Obviously, given our demographic at Iraq and Afghanistan
Veterans of America, we don't have any anecdotes to offer in
terms of deceased claimants. But, to us, this bill is a no-
brainer. We are happy to join our VSO colleagues in supporting
it.
You know, I think we were among those who did not realize
that this was even an issue until, you know, some of the cases
were brought to light in the media, which is a way in which we
learn about a lot of these issues and, you know, come to
support things that need to be changed.
So, for us, this was a no-brainer, and we are happy to
support the change.
Mr. Runyan. Ms. Ansley.
Ms. Ansley. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I would say that if I were to speak with some of our
veteran service officers, they could probably provide some of
those anecdotes. I personally do not have one to share but do
want to align myself with my colleagues, that we certainly
support the bill and the aims that it is hoping to achieve. And
it certainly makes sense that we would do this as quickly as
possible.
Mr. Runyan. Ms. Zumatto.
Ms. Zumatto. I would agree with all the folks that have
spoken before. I don't have any anecdotes to add, but AMVETS
does support the legislation.
Mr. Runyan. I appreciate that.
I don't really have another question. I just want to touch
on what I said in my opening statement. And I think you all
agree with me that a permanent COLA needs to be accomplished. I
see many nods up there. I would appreciate any and all help
that you all can do with that.
Unfortunately, like a lot of things around here, it creates
a lot of uncertainty for our veterans on what, you know, when
you have that lapse in that calendar, is going to bring the
following year. And it is unfortunate that, we put our veterans
through that time and time again, when it is something that is
very bipartisan and it passes every single time. Why do we have
to create that uncertainty?
So I thank you all for your time.
And I will yield to the ranking member for her questions.
Ms. Titus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And I thank all of you, too, for providing the thoughtful
testimony and for your support and help with these bills.
Mr. Hall, I know you highlighted in your testimony some of
your concerns about H.R. 4095. And we heard Mr. Green, the
sponsor of that, say that he was going to be working to come
with some improvements to that bill. So I would ask you to work
with him to see if we can do that. I know you mentioned the
need for maybe a flat rate of payment, something like that. So
we would appreciate having your input if we are going to
consider this bill further.
I would also say to Mr. Nicholson, we had some of your
members in our office earlier today. They are ``storming the
Hill.'' And they talked to us about ``We've Got Your Back''
because the high suicide rate among veterans is just something
that we have to address. We have to do it at a personal level
as well as a societal level. That is the way your suggestions
were, and I thought that was great.
In your statement, you said you support the ranking
member's bill that concerns the centers of excellence. I
wondered if you might elaborate on that a little bit and how
you think that would be helpful as well as what other
suggestions you have for streamlining that claims process.
Mr. Nicholson. Yes, ma'am, we do. We, you know, have seen
efficiencies found, I believe, in processes and innovations
such as this.
And, you know, I would just say, though, that, you know, we
have certainly heard some of the concerns of our colleague VSOs
and, you know, echo those, as well, but we think that those
are--you know, any kinks that they think may result as a result
of this pilot program, and especially an expansion of it, can
certainly be worked out. And we think a pilot is certainly a
smart way to start.
But we believe that innovations like this have proven
useful in other types of situations with other types of claims,
and we think it is worthy of at least a pilot to try it out
with this. Because there is no denying, you know, that there is
an issue still at the VA with handling these claims and with
the backlog still.
I mean, the VA has made enormous progress, you know, since,
I think--like you mentioned, we are storming the Hill this
year. And I think since we stormed the Hill last year at this
time, the backlog is down 40 percent, which is fantastic. And
we commend the VA for that progress. But, you know, we still
have hundreds of thousands of veterans, each one of those an
individual story, an individual life, with a family who was
impacted by this, and so we don't want to let up the pressure.
And we do believe that, you know, we are willing to support
anything that looks like it will work, that has precedence,
that works in analogous situations. And we believe this is one
that is at least worthy of a pilot.
Ms. Titus. Well, thank you.
I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Runyan. I thank the gentle lady for yielding back.
Again, on behalf of this subcommittee, I thank you for your
testimony. This subcommittee looks forward to working with each
of you, as the stakeholders in this, as we perfect this and
bring it to, I believe, a legislative markup in 2 weeks. So I
look forward to it, and you are excused.
And I will ask the third panel to come to the table.
The third panel consists of Mr. Zachary Hearn, deputy
director for claims, Veterans Affairs and Rehabilitation
Commission for American Legion; Mr. Anthony A. Wallis, the
legislative director and director of government affairs, the
Association of the U.S. Navy; and Brendon Gehrke, Senior
Legislative Associate for the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Thank you all for being here today.
[The prepared statements of Zachary Hearn, Anthony Wallis,
and Raymond Kelley appear in the Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. As previously stated, we will go right to
questions. My first question, is pertaining to H.R. 4191, the
Quicker Veterans Benefit Delivery Act.
Can any of you provide specific examples of a case in which
the veteran had sufficient private medical evidence for the
record, yet the VA chose to order an additional exam to
determine the benefit? Obviously we heard some of it from
Congressman Walz earlier, but we would like to get the stories
from you the stakeholders, and your exact experiences with it.
So, Mr. Wallis, any examples of it?
Mr. Wallis. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
At this moment, I do not have any specific examples.
However, I know that our Members Services Department does get a
lot of claims questions and issues that arise, mostly because
we have frustrated members upset that their claims are taking
so long to be answered.
And we do support H.R. 4191, the Quicker Benefits Delivery
Act, as it seeks to help to end the backlog of claims by
conserving VA resources and enabling quicker, more accurate
decisions for veterans, allowing private medical evidence
documentation for such claims.
So I feel like we are comfortable saying that this
legislation would help with streamlining a lot of those claims
and only seeks to benefit the veterans so that physicians in
the field and localized with these veterans in their community
will be better suited to help the VA process these claims.
Mr. Runyan. Let me ask this question, and we will continue
down the line. To you again, do you have any examples,
anecdotes of Chairman Miller's bill, 4102?
Mr. Wallis. 4102.
Mr. Runyan. Yeah.
Mr. Wallis. We do not have any specific anecdotes of that,
as well, but we understand and appreciate the legislation in
and of itself that also helps to answer a question regarding
compensation for claims, as well.
You know, this was a frustrating circumstance with the
individual in Indiana and his family for getting the claims and
compensation processed in a timely fashion. So we are
appreciative of that. We don't have any examples at this time,
but we are appreciative of the legislation.
Mr. Runyan. Mr. Hearn.
Mr. Hearn. Good afternoon, Chairman.
Yes, before I became deputy director, I worked for several
years over at the Board of Veterans' Appeals, and we would
routinely see VA scheduling superfluous examinations where the
evidence was contained within the C-file. I mean, it was self-
evident; it didn't take a rocket scientist to discover it.
When we went out to the Seattle VA Regional Office, I want
to say about 2 months ago now, I can think of one particular
case where the veteran was going through the process of
retiring, I believe. The evidence was contained in the
veteran's military records to say that he had a certain
condition; I believe it was sleep apnea. Despite that fact,
they scheduled an examination.
And it becomes counterproductive with the fully developed
claims process, and it delays a process that is meant to be
expeditious. And so it becomes an unfortunate scenario.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
Mr. Gehrke, do you have any----
Mr. Gehrke. In regards to H.R. 4102, I would like to note
that, last year, 19,500 veterans died while awaiting benefits.
I have heard people joke that veterans who are deceased get
quicker service from the VA than living veterans. That is
obviously not true, but we really have no idea how many
veterans have died before they received benefits, who could not
pass that on to their children.
What is the most frustrating part about that to the
children is they often take care of the veteran while he is
ill, while he is on his death bed. And, really, the veteran's
benefit should be going towards that type of treatment, that
type of hospice care for taking care of that veteran. So that
kind of illustrates the real need for that, because it does
present a financial hardship on the family.
In regards to H.R. 4191, most of the stories that I have
heard regarding this have to do with PTSD treatment. Because of
the nature of PTSD and it being so urgent, veterans will often
seek help from a variety of sources. You know, Military
OneSource will connect veterans with Give an Hour, who will
then give PTSD treatment to the veteran because of their urgent
need of that. So we see that more often than not with them.
This bill is something that all the Independent Budget VSOs
have recognized is an issue and something that we urge the
committee to pass.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
With that, I will yield to the ranking member, Ms. Titus.
Ms. Titus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Again, I would just note that some of you have suggested
problems with Mr. Green's legislation and ask for your
commitment to work with him between now and the markup. And I
think that you have already established that.
I would just ask a little more about H.R. 4191. Maybe, Mr.
Hearn, if you want to comment on that? From all your accredited
service officers nationally who assist veterans with their
claims, how can we and the VA assure the proper use and
acceptance of private medical information?
Mr. Hearn. Just this past--or late last week, actually, the
American Legion held the Department Service Officers School,
and we were able to bring service officers in. And perhaps in
language more direct than drill sergeants at times, they will
express their frustration regarding VA and the review of
medical records from the private sector.
One of the easier ways is for examiners to--or private-
sector physicians to utilize the disability benefits
questionnaires because it is a standard form. I understand that
there is some frustration within the medical community
sometimes with that, because they are taking something and more
or less making it fill in the blanks or something along those
lines. But it has proven to be far more effective because it
makes it a lot easier for raters to review that and say, it
meets this criteria, it meets that criteria, and we can go
ahead and rate it, and then it starts taking some of that gray
area out.
Ms. Titus. Mr. Gehrke.
Mr. Gehrke. I think in history and realizing the acceptance
of private medical evidence, you have to realize that for a
long time VA gave work credit for rating officers who requested
a disability rating examination. So they would get a claim, and
they would get credit just for requesting it, whether they had
the private medical evidence there or not.
Much to VA's credit, they have gotten rid of that credit
system. However, there seems to be somewhat of a culture there,
that, you know, rating officers will automatically do that out
of habit and request that rating examination.
And there is also a little bit of a turf battle, whether VA
wants to do it in house or they fear outsourcing of it. It
really depends on the regional office is what we found. Some
regional offices are better at accepting than others. But we
feel like there should be an entire standard throughout the VA
in accepting private medical evidence.
Secretary Hickey has done a lot of work on this. I believe
she gave a memo saying that all rating officers will accept
private medical evidence if the claim is older than a year. And
the VA can correct me if I am wrong on that. But we would like
to see it for all claims, whether it has been backlogged for a
year or two or whether it is starting now.
Because if it doesn't happen, it takes 180 days just to get
a rating examination, on average--120 to 180, I believe. And
so, that is, I mean, essentially the backlog right there. So
you can eliminate a lot of that with that portion.
Ms. Titus. Well, thank you. That is helpful.
I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Runyan. I thank the gentle lady.
Gentlemen, I thank you for your patience and your testimony
today. With that, this panel is now excused.
I welcome the fourth panel to the table.
On this panel, we will hear from Mr. Thomas Murphy, the
director of compensation service with the U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs. He is accompanied by Patricia Lynch Watts,
the Director for Legislative and Regulatory Service for the
National Cemetery Administration with the U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs and Mr. David Barrans, the Deputy Assistant
General Counsel for U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Thank you all for being here today.
[The prepared statement of Thomas Murphy appears in the
Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. As previously noted, I will now begin the
questioning.
First of all, Mr. Murphy, regarding H.R. 4095, the annual
COLA legislation, do you think veterans would benefit from
having an automatic COLA rather than an annual COLA, as
provided in my previous bill that passed this House, which was
H.R. 570?
Mr. Murphy. Yes, Mr. Chairman, veterans will directly
benefit from this. It keeps the benefits they receive in pace
with inflation, just like is administered at Social Security
today. It makes it easier for VA to plan and implement these.
We know it is coming, it is on a consistent basis, and we are
not waiting on a law to be passed at the last minute. This bill
is just good all around.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
Regarding H.R. 2018, one of my constituents previously
inquired whether it would be feasible to create a special
exemption for veterans who died in the 1935 Labor Day
hurricane. This addition would require the VA to provide group
burial memorials for those men who died while enrolled in a
veterans work program, a federally funded project during the
Great Depression.
Two hundred, forty-four veterans remain buried in two
unmarked mass graves in Florida. Whether by statute or
regulation, would it be physically unfeasible or cost-effective
to provide individual grave markers or a group burial memorial
at these sites?
Mr. Murphy. Sir, I have to defer to Ms. Watts on this one.
Mr. Runyan. Okay.
Ms. Watts.
Ms. Watts. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The specifics of the cost of providing individual stones on
that I would have to take back for the record. I don't have the
information on exactly what those costs would be.
Mr. Runyan. Okay. Will you submit that for the record,
please?
Ms. Watts. Thank you.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
[The attachment appears in the Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. This would also be for Ms. Watts then.
Can you elaborate on VA's strong support of H.R. 3670 and
specifically on your recommendation that the legislation change
the medallion eligibility date to on or after April 6, 1917,
rather than eliminating the date altogether?
Ms. Watts. Yes. Thank you for that question, Mr. Chairman.
We are concerned about preserving the historical integrity
of the headstones and markers from periods earlier than that.
To provide the medallions on headstones for veterans whose
service predates our entering World War I might impede our
ability to preserve the historic integrity of those places. So
we would respectfully ask that we be able to limit the
availability of medallions for service back to the beginning of
World War I.
Mr. Runyan. Okay.
And one more question about H.R. 4141. In the VA's written
testimony, it is noted that the VA believes that the bill
should allow enhanced-use leases on any and all underutilized
and/or vacant VA-controlled properties.
Can you explain how this authority would be beneficial to
the Department? Likewise, can you explain the concerns you have
regarding the language as currently drafted regarding the land
that is unsuitable for burial purposes?
Ms. Watts. Yes, sir. The ability for VA to lease land that
we are not currently using but that is usable land would be
helpful under this enhanced-use authority. However, I believe
the Department is concerned about the language, as you said,
that limits the revised authority just to NCA land that is not
used for burial.
Our concern is that the language specifically requires that
the land not be suitable for burial. And what we would
recommend is that the language be changed so that it is land
that is not going to be utilized for burial for the period of
the lease. That would allow us to use land that possibly is
indeed usable for burial or suitable for burial, but that we
have no plans in the immediate future to use for that reason.
Mr. Runyan. Thank you.
With that, I will yield to the ranking member, Ms. Titus.
Ms. Titus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I would like to thank the VA for your assistance on the
bills that are before us today. I appreciate your working with
us. And we are looking forward to receiving some of the cost
estimates.
I would like to ask you, Mr. Murphy, in your written
statement, you argue that the VA is looking to increase
productivity and decrease wait times through a variety of
initiatives.
Now, the Reno office has struggled to implement many new
systems, and I would give you the example of VBMS. So I wonder
what you are doing to ensure that some of these underperforming
regional offices are going to be able to effectively implement
these initiatives that you are talking about?
Mr. Murphy. We don't have enough time to go into that in-
depth of an answer.
Ms. Titus. We have lots of time. Go ahead.
Mr. Murphy. Okay.
For starters, we had an additional appropriation in 2014 of
$10 million to provide for training in underperforming offices.
And one of the ways we are focusing that is in offices such as
Reno where the individuals are underperforming and it is due to
an individual's performance, lack of training, lack of skills,
much like what we did with the set training in 2013.
The other part of that question is what other things are we
implementing that are going to improve that production, improve
that facility. It is the use of centralized mail, the use of
stakeholder entry portal for veteran service organizations, the
continued use of overtime that you are seeing that goes on
today. There is a myriad of other people, process, technology
improvements that are driving that today.
And while we are driving that and moving forward at the
same time, we have to keep an eye on offices that are
underperforming and not keeping up with the rest of the pack in
the improvements in production and quality that we are seeing.
And thanks to Congress, they have given us the money and the
resources in order to do that during this fiscal year.
Ms. Titus. Well, I appreciate that.
Also, in the testimony that we heard earlier, that we
referred to earlier, from both the American Legion and the VFW,
there were some serious concerns expressed about the
communications between the VA and the VSO's own brokered
claims. And we have experienced this in Nevada, too. Reno has
kind of dealt with its backlog by brokering out about half of
its claims to other places.
And so, I wonder if, as all these initiatives are going in
place and you are brokering more and more of these claims and
you are implementing this national work queue, do you have a
communications strategy in place of working with the VSOs so
they know what is going on and how to track these claims? And
if you don't, can you get one? Can you make one? Or do you have
plans to make one?
Mr. Murphy. Yes, we absolutely have a strategy.
And, look, the communication is the key. If I can have an
early communication with the veteran service organization
representing that veteran, predecisional--which they have the
right to look at that file for 24 hours--it doesn't do me any
good for a power of attorney in Reno to not have access to a
case that is being decided in North Carolina. It is in the
veteran's best interest and the VA's best interest to allow
that VSO the time to take a look at that case.
And the way we have to accomplish that is through the use
of the stakeholder entry portal, by allowing full access to the
VBMS and the file in an electronic environment so that the
power of attorney representing that veteran can give an
accurate assessment of the work that has been done before we
finalize that claim. If I don't provide that, then it simply
just adds up to another appeal that we have to deal with down
the road.
Ms. Titus. Could you share with us that communications
plan, a copy of that plan?
Mr. Murphy. Yes.
Ms. Titus. Okay. Thank you.
I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Runyan. I thank the ranking member.
I have one more question, I believe directed at Mr. Murphy,
pertaining to H.R. 4191.
You have said in your testimony that the authority already
exists for the VA to use private examinations. But I can tell
you, a lot of people, I know on this staff here and in the
stories we hear, don't feel they are given the proper weight
all the time, and it feels like a rater almost defaults back to
the VA automatically.
Is there anything that you can do or have done or training
you have put in to guide them to say, this is a legal process
and we need not to continue to burden our veterans and lengthen
this period of time?
Mr. Murphy. The statute and our regulations don't just
provide for but require the rating of a case when the evidence
is sufficient and meets a very long list of things that need to
be met in order to rate a case.
And the part of the question about what have we done to
provide for that, what we have done is we put out a policy from
the national level that essentially error-proofs a case. So the
individual is not held accountable if they use a DBQ, which is
completed, submitted by the veteran, to rate the case. If that
case later results in an error, that error will not fall back
to that individual. In other words, it is the system's fault
that I need to go back and deal with at a different level, and
there are no repercussions back to the individual for
performance or for quality.
So I have put the right protections in place to put the
right behavior in place on the part of our raters.
Mr. Runyan. Just one last thing. You also note that the VA
does not track the number of claims eligible for ACE that
requires additional evidence obtained through telephone
interviews or whether private medical evidence is sufficient
for rating purposes.
My question is, why isn't a process like that being
tracked?
Mr. Murphy. That is one of the things that we need to be
tracking going forward, but coming from the paper environment
that we have, bringing it into the automated world that we have
today, we don't have all the steps and features in place that I
can get the development detail to that level.
That is certainly something that is on our radar to be put
in place. And what that will do is it will allow me to do, like
several other systems, it provides me an opportunity to look at
the exceptions and find out, is it an individual? Is it a
particular office? Is it a particular process that I need to go
back in and address?
So it is one that we are developing and putting into the
system. It is not there today, however.
Mr. Runyan. And just one more question, a follow-up to what
Ms. Titus had. She asked what the $10 million is used for, as,
arguably, the training regimen was developed already. What is
the significant dollar amount? And while we complete the
support and enhance intelligent training, what does it pay for?
Mr. Murphy. What does it pay for? We are funded today to do
our Challenge Training Program and other training events. This
provides dollars well above and beyond to allow us to pull in
people that would not otherwise be trained in 2014. And we can
target and focus those specific underperforming individuals.
The dollars we have in place today takes care of new
employee training, employees that have been promoted already.
Well, if I am going to go out and make a difference in the
environment on a large scale and pull underperforming employees
in on top of that, that is where this additional funding comes
in place.
Mr. Runyan. Okay.
Ms. Titus, anything further?
Ms. Titus. No, thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Runyan. Well, thank you all for your testimony and
answering the questions. On behalf of the subcommittee, I want
to thank you for your testimony.
As noted, your written testimony will be entered into the
hearing record and will inform the discussion on the
legislation we have heard about today. We look forward to
working with you in the future on these bills as well as a wide
range of challenges facing our Nation's veterans.
You are excused.
I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative
days to revise and extend their remarks and include any
extraneous material.
Hearing no objections, so ordered.
[The attachment appears in the Appendix]
[The prepared statement of the Paralyzed Veterans of
America appears in the Appendix]
Mr. Runyan. I thank the Members for their attendance today.
And this hearing is now adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 5:42 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]
APPENDIX
Prepared Statement of Dina Titus, Ranking Member
Thank you, Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing today on behalf of
our nation's veterans.
Today, we are examining ten bills that pertain to issues of
critical importance to our nation's veterans. I support several of
these bills proposed by our colleagues, and am proud to have worked
with the Chairman to introduce H.R. 4095, the Veterans' Compensation
Cost-of Living Adjustment Act of 2014. This legislation will increase
the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected
disabilities, and those surviving spouses of veterans who receive
dependency and indemnity compensation. This is simply the right thing
to do for our Veterans and survivors.
Also on today's agenda is H.R. 2088, introduced by Ranking Member
Michaud, which would create Claims Processing Centers of Excellence.
With the Ranking Member here to discuss his bill, I will defer to him
to outline this legislation. But, I fully support his legislation and
believe that this will build on VA's successes fighting the backlog.
H.R. 2119, the Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act, is brought
forward by Mr. Ruiz, a member of our Subcommittee. His legislation
seeks to address the appeals backlog, a high priority issue for this
committee, by allowing the Board of Veterans Appeals to select the
quickest way to schedule hearings for veterans.
Lastly, H.R. 2529, the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act, would
clarify the definition of ``spouse'' for the purpose of receiving VA
benefits to include all spouses in any legally recognized marriage with
a veteran in any state of the United States and its territories and
possessions. The purpose of this legislation is to ensure that all
veterans and their families are receiving the benefits they have earned
through their military service. Unfortunately, current law precludes
some veterans from receiving the benefits they have earned.
I believe this is a common sense approach, and I hope we can move
this bill to the Floor as quickly as possible.
I thank all of the Members for their thoughtful legislation. And, I
thank all of our esteemed witnesses for joining us today and look
forward to hearing their testimony.
Thank you and I yield back.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Al Green on H.R. 3876, the Burial With
Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014
Thank you Chairman Runyan and Ranking Member Titus for holding this
hearing today and providing me with the opportunity to testify on H.R.
3876, the Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014.
Many veterans make the ultimate sacrifice for the citizens of
United States of America and this should never be overlooked. Those who
serve their country honorably should be properly memorialized at the
time of their death. Unfortunately, too many homeless veterans are not
presented with such an opportunity. Often, homeless veterans are buried
without a proper funeral service because their families, or lack
thereof, do not have the funding to cover the burial costs.
Currently, the Department of Veterans Affairs provides eligible
homeless veterans with the opening and closing of the gravesite, a
grave liner, a headstone or maker, and a graveside ceremony. However,
the preparation of the body, transportation, clothing, casket and
coordination of the funeral service are necessary services that the VA
is unable to provide. At this time, the National Cemetery
Administration (NCA) does not differentiate between claimed and
unclaimed remains; therefore, there is not a definite way to determine
the number of homeless veterans that are laid to rest each year without
a proper burial.
I, along with my colleague Congresswoman Corrine Brown, have
introduced H.R. 3876, the Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014,
which would amend title 38 of the United States Code to allow the
Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program to make grants to
eligible entities to provide for the cost of burials for eligible
homeless veterans. Outside entities will submit applications to the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs who will determine which entities are
eligible. This practical legislation would help eliminate the
possibility of a hero not receiving a proper military funeral.
H.R. 3876 would provide for an eligible veteran to be laid to rest
in a National Cemetery or a local cemetery. An eligible veteran is a
deceased former service member:
Who is homeless,
Who is eligible to be buried in a National Cemetery,
Who was not convicted of a capital crime,
Who was not dishonorably discharged, and
Who the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines has
no next of kin.
I am confident this legislation will help to ensure that all
homeless veterans receive a burial with dignity.
Our nation's heroes deserve funeral services with military honors.
The Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014 intends to ensure that
all eligible veterans, regardless of their financial status at the time
of their death, will be properly honored, and does so without
appropriating any additional federal dollars.
Thank you again for the opportunity to present my testimony before
this subcommittee.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Tim Walz on H.R. 4191, the Quicker Veterans
Benefits Delivery Act
Thank you, Chairman Runyan and Ranking Member Titus, for your
leadership and for inviting us here today to speak on H.R. 4191, the
Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act.
With the hard-earned experience of two major wars during the last
12 years, Americans have developed a renewed understanding of the need
to support our service members in battle and throughout their active-
duty service.
Unfortunately, our warriors' battles don't always end when they
return home. We've heard from many veterans who have returned bearing
the scars of war--mental and physical disabilities incurred while
protecting our freedoms. All they expect is that, in return for their
service, our nation keeps its promises to them.
With the end of the war in Iraq, and the draw down of troops in
Afghanistan, the number of disabled veterans who need care is
increasing exponentially. Despite the fact the Department of Veterans
Affairs is processing more claims today than at any time in history,
veterans are waiting too long to receive the benefits they have earned,
creating an unnecessary financial hardship for veterans and their
families.
The VA reports 554,105 veterans have been waiting longer than 125
days to have their claim adjudicated. This is unacceptable, and VA
Secretary Eric Shinseki, a retired U.S. Army General who has dedicated
his life to military service and taking care of our brave warriors,
agrees. While the VA is making progress, we believe there are common
sense measures Congress can undertake to bolster the VA's efforts to
ensure our veterans are getting the care they need in a more-timely
manner.
In response to veterans and veterans' organizations who have told
us about the hardships the VA backlog imposes on veterans, we
introduced H.R. 4191 to help speed up the process.
We, along with Senator Franken, have introduced bipartisan measures
in both the House and Senate that will remove several hurdles to
getting claims processed quickly.
Our measure would allow local doctors to conduct disability medical
examinations for veterans. This conserves VA resources, cuts back on
long wait times at VA hospitals, enables quicker diagnoses of
disabilities and eliminates unnecessary trips to the VA for veterans in
rural communities.
Specifically, to further encourage the use of private medical
evidence, we are amending title 38, United States Code, section 5125 to
provide that, when a claimant submits private medical evidence,
including a private medical opinion, that is competent, credible,
probative, and otherwise adequate for rating purposes, the Secretary
shall not request a VA medical examination. This legislative change
would require VSRs and RVSRs to document that private medical evidence
was inadequate for rating purposes before ordering examinations, which
are often unnecessary.
Additionally, the legislation requires the Department of Veterans
Affairs to complete two types of reports on the progress of this
initiative: a report 180-days after passage of the bill that tracks the
bill's implementation and an annual report that tracks the most common
reasons and disabilities for which claims with evidence submitted by
non-VA medical professionals were denied by VBA.
Our goal with this legislation is simple: to uphold the promises
we've made to our veterans by ending the backlog and getting them the
benefits they have earned and deserve. We know there is no silver
bullet to eliminating the backlog, and we understand each step along
the way requires thoughtfulness, analysis and synchronicity. However,
we believe H.R. 4191 to be an integral step along the glide path to
success. It is a common sense solution that will aid in adding
efficiency to a complicated process in order to better serve our
nation's heroes.
Thank you, Chairman Runyan and Ranking Member Titus, for the
opportunity to speak on behalf of this bill.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Jeff Denham on H.R. 4191, the Quicker
Veterans Benefits Delivery Act
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to testify this morning
in regard to the Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act. The bill will
end redundant Department of Veterans Affairs claims processing
practices and allow veterans in my district to receive their benefits
more rapidly.
I do not need to remind the members of this committee of the
struggles faced by veterans trying to receive their disability
compensation. Currently at the Oakland Regional Office of the Veterans
Benefits Administration, which serves the veterans in my district,
there are over 20,000 pending claims. 12,000 of those claims have been
pending for more than 125 days. Nationwide, by the VA's own count there
are more than 638,000 pending claims. 360,000 of these have been
pending for more than 125 days.
Secretary Shinseki set the goal of eliminating the disability
claims backlog by 2015 and this committee and Congress responded by
providing billions in additional funding to improve technology, hire
additional staff and reform the rating process for timelier decisions.
The VSOs were also a vital part of this total effort, working hand in
hand with the VA to create the Fully Developed Claims process to
certify claim packets before they are submitted so that they can be
swiftly approved.
However, while these efforts are important, we are skeptical that
these initiatives alone will break the backlog by the stated goal of
2015. Congress needs to do more to bolster the VA's current efforts to
modernize its operations and promote further improvements in order to
get veterans' claims and compensation needs settled faster.
With that in mind, Congressman Walz and I worked with Veteran
Service organizations to draft the Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery
Act. The bill will require the VA to maximize the use of private
medical evidence. The bill would allow veterans to see their own doctor
instead of waiting for an appointment with VA physicians who are often
overworked or far away from the veteran's home. Congressman Walz and I
both represent rural veterans, many of them elderly, and the challenge
of traveling long distances for an appointment is one of their biggest
barriers to accessing their veterans' benefits. This bill will help
remove that hurdle from the benefits claims process.
Additionally this bill will conserve the VA's resources, allowing
VA physicians to concentrate on patients with immediate needs rather
than spend substantial time filling out disability claims paperwork.
We understand that there isn't one silver bullet that will break
the backlog. However, the Quicker Benefits Delivery Act provides
substantial, innovative, results-oriented measures that work to bolster
the VA's current efforts.
I would like to thank the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American
Legion and the Association of the United States Navy for their support
of this legislation.
Additional Signatures
Prepared Statement of Hon. Ander Crenshaw on H.R. 4141
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Ranking Member Titus and the
subcommittee for allowing me to testify on behalf of the legislation I
have introduced, H.R. 4141, a bill to honor the fallen at national
cemeteries.
The veterans of the United States deserve all recognition we can
provide for their faithful and dedicated service to our Nation. One way
we can recognize these veterans is by allowing veteran organizations to
build and maintain facilities on federal property that can be used to
honor the fallen and pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate
sacrifice.
Passage of H.R. 4141 will authorize the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) to accept organization's requests to use National Cemetery
land for purposes that support the mission of the VA. The use of this
land includes the creation of memorials and pavilions, paid for by
private funds that will honor our fallen and past veterans and provide
space for their loved ones to gather and reflect.
Until 2012, the VA could enter into Enhanced Use Leases (EULs) that
furthered the mission of the Department and enhanced the use of the
property in ways that would result in the improvement of medical care
and services to veterans in the geographic area. The maximum lease term
was 75 years, and the VA was to charge ``fair consideration'' for the
lease, including in-kind payment.
The ability of the VA to offer EULs was changed as part of the
Honoring America's Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act
(P.L. 112-154). In this act, Congress limited the circumstances under
which the VA may enter into EULs to ``the provision of supportive
housing.''
H.R. 4141 does not reduce the requirements or authority of the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or the National Cemetery Administration
(NCA), to determine the proper way to ensure our veterans are honored.
Instead, the legislation provides an additional avenue for the VA to
work with groups to honor our veterans in a way that benefits local
communities at minimal cost to the federal government.
This issue was brought to my attention by a Jacksonville, Florida,
organization that has been working on a project to build a memorial
center since the creation of the Jacksonville National Cemetery in
2007. In 2012, after years of hard work navigating the VA and NCA
bureaucracy, the leaders of the Jacksonville National Cemetery memorial
project were informed that it was no longer possible to obtain an
enhanced use lease because the law had changed, and all their effort
has been for not.
In North Florida, The Jacksonville National Cemetery Memorial
Center would give 7,000 veterans and their families much needed
services that are not provided at any of our current national
cemeteries. It could include a commemorative hall and archive building.
These spaces could provide families of the fallen places to gather and
honor their loved ones, and would provide a place for the general
public to learn more about those who have fought for our great Nation.
The 7,000 veterans I mentioned are in North Florida alone. All over
America, communities will come together to honor their fallen sons and
daughters. These centers could become places for kindred spirits to
gather and recognize the countless men and women who have given so much
to their countries and their communities.
One of the most important features of this legislation is that we
reinforce the reason these cemeteries exist, and that is to inter and
honor our veterans. Future EULs will make it possible for memorials to
be built to honor a community's local heroes, but will be regulated and
overseen by the VA and NCA, and ultimately by this subcommittee and
others with oversight responsibilities. After all, it is essential that
we keep in mind that the cemeteries exist to lay to rest those brave
men and women who have put themselves in harm's way for our Nation.
This legislation provides a way for the American people to honor
our veterans as we move past more than a decade of war. It is also a
way for communities to build memorial halls and pavilions showing
respect for the honor, courage, and commitment of their loved ones.
Additionally, the ability of organizations to build memorials will
enhance the education of generations to come. One of the best ways that
we can pass on a legacy of service and citizenship is by teaching our
children and grandchildren about the sacrifices made by their
forefathers.
Mr. Chairman, again, thank you and this subcommittee for giving me
the opportunity to testify on H.R. 4141. I look forward to discussing
these important issues with you, the distinguished members of the
committee, and the veteran service organizations who continually work
to ensure the American people keep our veterans in the forefront of our
minds.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Steve Stivers
I want to thank Chairman Runyan for holding this important
legislative hearing today on my bipartisan legislation, the Honor Those
Who Served Act. The measure before the committee today will make it
easier to provide headstones or markers for veterans who currently do
not have a headstone and lay in an unmarked grave.
In 2009, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) issued a rule
change that required `Next of Kin' (NOK) be notified before a veteran
received an initial headstone from the VA. Previously, the VA accepted
and processed headstone claims from funeral directors, cemetery
officials, county veterans service officers, researchers and other
civic organizations.
This new regulatory barrier of obtaining the approval from the NOK
to receive a headstone for a deceased veteran is making it more
difficult to honor the sacrifice of our veterans.
There are researchers, like those at the Ohio Historical Society,
who research archives, death records, military records and genealogical
records to determine the identity of Revolutionary and Civil War
soldiers buried in unmarked graves. These groups then work to find the
NOK. But, sometimes this is not possible when today's headstone
applicants are seven generations removed from the Civil War, for
example.
I understand the rational of the rule to make sure family members
are not left out of the decision-making process for obtaining a
headstone, but the current rule is too restrictive and service
members--especially Civil War era African American soldiers are left
with unmarked graves.
Those who served in the military deserve our full-support,
especially those who gave the final measure of devotion to our great
nation. Our veterans, regardless of what era they served in, deserve
better than unmarked or deteriorated graves.
That is why on May 16, 2013, I introduced H.R. 2018 that would
stipulate that if NOK cannot be found then headstone applications may
be filed with the VA by: the state veterans service agency, military
researchers, local historians, genealogists, or others familiar with
research sources or methods needed to prove a veteran's identity.
In his second inaugural speech, President Abraham Lincoln stated,
``To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and
orphan,'' affirming the government's obligation to honor those who
serve our nation. These words of Lincoln's became the VA's motto in
1959.
Those who gave the final measure in their service to our great
nation deserve a final resting place with a headstone worthy of their
dedication, commitment and devotion.
Again, I appreciate the Chairman for allowing me to testify today
and holding this hearing.
Prepared Statement of Jeffrey C. Hall on DAV
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus and Members of the
Subcommittee:
Thank you for inviting DAV (Disabled American Veterans) to testify
at this legislative hearing of the Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs. As you know, DAV is a non-profit
veterans service organization comprised of 1.2 million wartime wounded,
injured and ill veterans and dedicated to a single purpose: empowering
veterans to lead high-quality lives with respect and dignity. DAV is
pleased to be here today to present our views on the bills under
consideration by the Subcommittee.
H.R 2018
H.R. 2018, the Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013, would amend
Title 38, United States Code, to identify those persons who are
eligible to request headstones or grave markers furnished by the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Currently Section 2036 of the law
specifies who may request a headstone or marker from the VA. H.R. 2018
clarifies this issue by expanding the language of Section 2036 to
identify eligible persons as the decedent's next of kin; a person
authorized in writing by the decedent's next of kin to make such
request; a personal representative authorized in writing by the
decedent to make such request; when none of the aforementioned apply, a
state veterans service agency, a military researcher, local historian,
or a genealogist or other person familiar with the research sources and
methods necessary to prove the identity of the decedent; or any person
may make the request if the decedent's active military service preceded
the application for headstone or marker by at least 62 years.
While DAV has no specific resolution to support this particular
matter, we are not opposed to enactment of H.R. 2018.
H.R 2088
H.R. 2088 would direct the VA to establish a pilot program for the
designation of 12 Regional Offices as Centers of Excellence that will
each focus or specialize on claims involving the most complex and time
consuming issues such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD),
traumatic brain injury (TBI), and military sexual trauma (MST), as
designated by the Secretary. While demonstrated progress was achieved
last year in reducing the backlog of claims, other VBA initiatives
similar to the Centers of Excellence, such as a national work queue
model and centralized mail centers, are currently being proposed within
the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA).
Although VBA has not provided detailed information about any
national work queue model, our understanding is that this will allow
all claims to be processed nationally by Veterans Service
Representatives (VSRs) and Rating Veterans Service Representatives
(RVSRs), regardless of their physical location or the origin of the
claim. This is essentially the same approach VBA took last year when
they processed all claims pending more than two years within a short
period. With all claims now becoming virtual once submitted and/or
converted electronically, claims processing can be done by any fully
trained VSR or RVSR regardless of their physical location. This
approach is not unlike the process of brokering claims from one
Regional Office to another when assistance is needed, which VBA has
relied heavily upon over the years. So taking the basic concept of
brokering claims and VBA's ``all hands'' strategy they used last year
to process the oldest claims and applying it to national workload may
have the potential for success; however, we are just learning more
details of how the national work queue model will work.
For the past several years, VBA has discussed the general concept
of establishing Centers of Excellence, wherein specific Regional
Offices would be designated to process specific types of claims for the
entire country. For example, a particular Regional Office would be
designated as a Center of Excellence for claims involving PTSD, TBI,
and MST, and all claims containing such conditions would be processed
by that facility for the entire country.
While Centers of Excellence could relieve the majority of VAROs
from processing some of the more time consuming, complex claims, it
must be done properly, with certain principles guiding such as model.
One key question is would multiple issue claims be split by issues and
processed by multiple centers? What would happen when a VARO receives a
claim for PTSD and an orthopedic condition--would the origin VARO
process the orthopedic condition or would a PTSD Center of Excellence
process all issues? Such questions are crucial and we believe that VBA
must move in a deliberate and thoughtful manner to ensure that Centers
of Excellence are truly ``excellent,'' not just ``centers'' for
complex, time consuming claims. For these reasons, we recommend that
VBA begin with just four Centers of Excellence and that they carefully
study whether or not they are successful before expanding to additional
ROs. In addition, it is important that employees at these Centers of
Excellence receive comprehensive training on their specialty.
Additionally, with the national work queue model being developed
and all claims becoming virtual, is an entire Regional Office being
designated as a Center of Excellence still a viability? Since all
claims are virtual and physical location may be less important now,
maybe it would be more prudent for VBA to designate particular
individuals or teams in every Regional Office who would process certain
issues such as PTSD, TBI and MST instead of an entire Regional Office
being dedicated to those issues. To be clear, DAV is not opposed to the
concept of establishing Centers of Excellence as there are certain
advantages, such as all specialized claims being processed by a select
group of experts. However, given the progress with VBA's technology,
specifically the Veterans Benefits Management System, contemplation
should be given to the alternatives through technology versus
designating an entire Regional Office as a Center of Excellence, which
may very well become a centralized repository of the most backlogged
claims because they are most time consuming and complex.
While we do have questions about establishing Centers of
Excellence, we agree with the principal intent of the legislation,
which is to redirect the most time consuming and complex claims away
from the national workload, possibly reducing the backlog, and into the
hands of select individuals who receive support and training as experts
in particular matters. However, we do request DAV, other veterans
service organizations and interested stakeholders be included in as
much of the deliberation, development, and strategy process as
possible, as well as kept apprised throughout.
H.R 2119
H.R. 2119, the Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act, would allow
the Board of Veterans' Appeals upon receiving a request for hearing to
determine, for the purposes of scheduling the hearing for the earliest
date possible as well as the location of the hearing and the type of
hearing, be it in person or by use of videoconferencing equipment. Once
the appellant is notified of the Board's determination of the type and
location of the hearing, the veteran would be able to request a
different type or location, and if so, the Board may grant such request
while ensuring the hearing is scheduled as soon as possible and without
delay.
While we support the purpose of H.R. 2119 and take no issue with
the Board determining the type and location of a hearing, we do not
agree with the language of the bill where it states ``if so requested,
the Board may grant such request.'' Specifically, this bill as written
would allow the Board to determine the type and location of a hearing
and deny a request from a veteran who prefers to have an in-person
hearing with a Board member rather than a video conference hearing. We
believe the veteran's right to a hearing also includes the right to
choose the type and location, which could be adversely impacted with
this bill as written, so in order to preserve such right, we recommend
the aforementioned sentence be changed to, ``if so requested, the Board
shall grant such request . . . ''
DAV would support enactment of H.R. 2119 if the language is amended
to prevent the Board from overriding a veteran's requested venue for a
hearing.
H.R 2529
H.R. 2529, the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act, would amend
title 38, United States Code, redefine the term ``spouse'' to recognize
new state definitions of such term for the purpose of the laws
administered by the VA.
DAV has no resolution on this particular matter, and has no
position on this bill.
H.R 3671
H.R. 3671 would amend title 38, United States Code, to expand the
eligibility for a medallion furnished by the VA, which is used to
signify the status of a deceased individual as a veteran. Currently,
Section 2306(d)(4) states, ``in lieu of furnishing a headstone or
marker under this subsection, the Secretary may furnish, upon request,
a medallion or other device of a design determined by the Secretary to
signify the deceased's status as a veteran, to be attached to a
headstone or marker furnished at private expense.'' H.R. 3671 would
expand eligibility to persons ``regardless of the date of the death of
individual for whom the medallion or other device is furnished.''
While DAV has no specific resolution on this particular matter, we
are not opposed to enactment of H.R. 3671.
H.R 3876
H.R. 3876, the Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014, would
direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program to make
grants to eligible entities to provide for the cost of burials for
homeless veterans who are eligible to be buried in national cemeteries
and when the Secretary determines the veteran has no next of kin.
Currently, the law allows the surviving spouse, dependent child or
dependent parent to receive a $2,000 burial allowance when the death is
service related, and $300 when the death is not service related. H.R.
3876 does not specify the amount of the intended grant, which would be
payable to an individual who may not even be related to the decedent
homeless veteran. While we certainly agree with the intent of H.R.
3876, we do not believe the amount should exceed the burial allowance
provided to eligible survivors.
While DAV has no specific resolution on this particular matter, we
would not be opposed to its enactment as long as our concerns above are
addressed.
H.R 4095
H.R. 4095, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act
of 2014 would increase, effective December 1, 2014, the rates of
compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the
rates of dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) for the survivors
of certain disabled veterans. A cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) was
passed last year at the modest increase of 1.5%, which did not include
the long standing practice of rounding down to the nearest whole dollar
amount. As you know, many disabled veterans and their families who rely
heavily or solely on VA disability compensation or DIC as their only
means of financial support have struggled during these difficult times.
While the economy has faltered, their personal economic circumstances
have been negatively affected by rising costs of many essential items,
including food, medicines and gasoline. Rising inflation continues to
be a major factor, so it is imperative that veterans and their
dependents receive a timely COLA and DAV supports enactment of H.R.
4095, which is in accordance with our resolution.
However, in keeping with another longstanding resolution, DAV is
adamantly opposed to Section 2(c)(2) of the bill that once again
requires the unacceptable practice of ``rounding down'' COLA increases
to the next lower whole dollar amount, which incrementally reduces the
support to disabled veterans and their families and survivors. The
practice of permanently ``rounding down'' a veteran's COLA to the next
lower whole dollar amount can cause undue hardship for veterans and
their survivors whose only support comes from these programs and it is
time to end this practice, which was only intended to be a temporary
measure more than twenty years ago.
H.R 4102
H.R. 4102 would expand Title 38, United States Code, to include the
estate of a deceased veteran as an eligible recipient of certain
accrued benefits upon the death of the veteran when such benefits would
not be payable to any survivor. Currently, Section 5121 does not allow
accrued benefits payable upon death of the veteran to be paid to any
entity other than eligible survivors, and if there are none,
essentially those benefits, which can be in the hundreds of thousands
of dollars, are lost or forfeited. Enactment of this bill would allow
the deceased veteran's estate to be eligible for such benefits.
This legislation is designed to correct an unfair practice that
currently denies the lawful heirs of a deceased veteran from receiving
these earned funds. Accordingly, DAV supports enactment of H.R. 4102.
H.R 4141
H.R. 4141 would amend Title 38, United States Code, authorizing the
VA to enter into enhanced-use leases for excess property of the
National Cemetery Administration, which has been deemed unsuitable for
burial purposes.
While DAV has no specific resolution on this particular matter, we
are not opposed to enactment of H.R. 4141.
H.R 4191
H.R. 4191, the Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act, would expand
Section 5125 of title 38, United States Code, to improve how private
medical evidence submitted in support of a claim for disability
compensation is treated by the VA.
Currently, Section 5125 states, ``for purposes of establishing any
claim for benefits . . . a report of a medical examination administered
by a private physician that is provided by a claimant in support of a
claim . . . may be accepted without a requirement for confirmation by
an examination by a physician employed by the Veterans Health
Administration if the report is sufficiently complete to be adequate
for the purpose of adjudicating such claim.'' Currently the VA has the
option of accepting such private medical evidence within the present
language of ``may be accepted'' as contained within Section 5125. H.R.
4191 removes such option and replaces ``may'' with ``shall,'' which
will require the VA to accept private medical evidence submitted by the
veteran, while also clarifying the term ``sufficiently complete'' to
mean evidence that is competent, credible, probative, and containing
such information as may be required to make a decision on the claim for
which the evidence is provided.
DAV is very much interested in the VBA reducing the backlog of
pending disability claims, but as we have consistently maintained, not
at the risk of reducing quality. Likewise, DAV has been a longtime
proponent of certain actions VBA could take, which could have a
positive impact on the speed of the claims process. Requiring VBA to
accept private medical evidence submitted by the veteran, so long as it
is adequate for rating purposes, as is the intent of Section 2 of this
bill, is one type of action DAV has strongly advocated for in recent
years.
In accordance with our resolution to improve the claims process,
DAV strongly supports enactment of H.R. 4191.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony and I would be happy to
answer any questions from you or members of the Subcommittee.
Statement of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America
Statement of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America on Pending Disability and Memorial Affairs Legislation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill # Bill name Sponsor Position
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 2018 Honor Those Who Served Rep. Stivers Support
Act of 2013
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 2088 A bill to establish Rep. Michaud Support
centers of excellence
for claims
adjudication of
complex medical
conditions.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 2119 Veteran Access to Rep. Ruiz Support
Speedy Review Act
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 2529 Veteran Spouses Equal Rep. Titus Support
Treatment Act
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 3671 A bill to expand Rep. Miller Support
eligibility for
medallions furnished
by VA to signify
veteran status.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 3876 Burial with Dignity for Rep. Green Support
Heroes Act of 2014
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 4095 Veterans' Compensation Rep. Runyan Support
and Cost-Of-Living
Adjustment Act of 2014.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 4102 A bill to authorize an Rep. Miller Support
estate of a deceased
veteran to receive
accrued benefits upon
death.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 4141 A bill to authorize VA Rep. Crenshaw Support
to enter into enhanced-
use leases for excess
property at NCA.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 4191 Quicker Veterans Rep. Walz Support
Benefits Delivery Act
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus, and Distinguished Members of
the Subcommittee:
On behalf of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), I
would like to extend our gratitude for being given the opportunity to
share with you our views and recommendations regarding this important
legislation that will impact the lives of IAVA's members and all of
America's troops and veterans.
As the nation's first and largest nonprofit, nonpartisan
organization for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, IAVA's
mission is critically important but simple--to improve the lives of
Iraq and Afghanistan veterans and their families. With a steadily
growing base of nearly 270,000 members and supporters, we aim to help
create a society that honors and supports veterans of all generations.
In partnership with other military and veteran service and advocacy
organizations, IAVA has worked tirelessly to see that our members'
needs are appropriately addressed by the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) and by Congress. IAVA appreciates the efforts put forth by this
Subcommittee to address the challenges facing our nation's veterans and
their families, and we are proud to offer our support for the
legislation that is the subject of this hearing today.
H.R 2018
IAVA supports H.R. 2018, the Honor Those Who Served Act, which
would expand the list of individuals eligible to request a headstone
for a veteran. Enabling additional authorized requestors will help
ensure more veterans receive the recognition they deserve. IAVA
supports all veterans receiving such recognition and encourages
Congress to approve the proposed authorization expansion.
H.R 2088
IAVA supports H.R. 2088, which would require the VA to establish a
pilot program for claims processing ``Centers of Excellence'' that
would focus on adjudicating disability compensation claims for certain
types of medical issues.
In order to help facilitate the transition to a 21st century VA,
IAVA supports utilizing practices which streamline and improve the
claims adjudication process. This proposed Center of Excellence pilot
program will allow the VA to develop sets of teams that will be highly
proficient at processing certain types of claims. IAVA believes such
Centers of Excellence hold the potential to help improve the efficiency
of the claims adjudication process, and we encourage the VA to continue
implementing innovative work management solutions.
However, IAVA does share some of the concerns other VSOs have
raised with the potential unintended consequences of brokering claims
work in this manner. While this process can potentially help the VA
adjudicate claims more quickly, there are several important issues that
must also be addressed if the VA plans on expanding this program beyond
the pilot level.
Most importantly, the process of brokering work does not
necessarily address the underlying inefficiencies and issues at under-
performing regional offices. In order to improve the system overall,
the internal processes and management of each regional office must be
reviewed and adjusted if an office continues to be incapable of
managing its own workload. The successful work flow of each and every
regional office will ultimately be critical to not only eliminating the
backlog by 2015, but also preventing a recurrence of the backlog in the
future.
Additionally, our colleague VSOs have raised concerns about the
issue of ``ownership'' with brokered claims. Since the VA typically
processes claims in the same state or region where the claimant
resides, moving claims to different states or regions of the country
potentially removes a sense of ``ownership'' and may have an impact on
the quality of many brokered claims. It is imperative that the VA
address this potential ownership issue before expanding the number
brokered claims.
And finally, the effect that brokering work may have on the
services and support offered by veteran service officers during the
claims process must also be carefully considered. The relationships
these service officers develop with veterans and claims adjudicators
within their respective regional offices is important. When work is
brokered to states or regions far removed from a veteran service
officer, the benefit of that relationship may be lost. The VA must work
with the VSO community to ensure the critical coordination between
veteran service officers and claims adjudicators is protected.
H.R 2119
IAVA supports H.R. 2119, the Veteran Access to Speedy Review Act,
which would authorize the Board of Veterans Appeals to hold hearings at
alternative locations or use videoconferencing technology in order to
schedule hearings at the earliest possible date.
The number of veterans waiting on disability rating appeals
decisions continues to increase. However, veterans should not have to
wait for a hearing due to simple logistical concerns. Efforts to hold
appeals hearings at the earliest possible date is critical to the VA
addressing claims appeals in a timely manner. Additionally, IAVA
supports the right of the veteran to object to alternative locations or
hearing types while still being offered the earliest possible hearing
date.
H.R 2529
IAVA supports H.R. 2529, the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act,
which would amend the definition of ``spouse'' within Title 38 to
recognize all valid marriages for the purposes of receiving all VA
benefits.
The need for equitable access to benefits and VA services for all
veterans and their families is critical to ensuring the VA is providing
the highest level of care and services, and also to making sure that VA
is on par with what DoD is offering to troops. IAVA supports equitable
treatment of all veterans and their families and supports the changes
this legislation seeks to make to Title 38. However, Section 103(c) of
Title 38 must also be amended to make the proposed changes effective.
IAVA encourages this Subcommittee to also amend Section 103(c) of Title
38.
H.R 3671
IAVA supports H.R. 3671, which expands the eligibility for
medallions furnished by the VA to signify the veteran status of a
deceased individual. If a veteran is buried in a private cemetery, the
VA may provide a headstone or marker to signify veteran status. In lieu
of a headstone or marker, the VA may also provide a medallion to
signify veteran status. This legislation amends Title 38 to authorize
these medallions regardless of the date of death of the veteran. IAVA
believes that all veterans deserve proper honor and recognition and,
therefore, we support this change in law.
H.R 3876
IAVA supports H.R. 3876, the Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of
2014, which would provide grants to cover the burial costs of homeless
veterans.
All veterans deserve the dignity and honor earned with military
service, and no veteran should be forgotten simply because of
homelessness. Until veteran homelessness is eradicated, it is
imperative that the VA ensure all veterans are honored with dignity at
burial regardless of their personal situation.
H.R 4095
IAVA supports H.R. 4095, the Veterans' Compensation and Cost-Of-
Living Adjustment Act of 2014, which would provide an increase in the
rates of compensation for veterans with a service-connected disability
and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of
certain veterans.
The rates of service-connected disability compensation and
dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors must be adjusted to
account for inflation. These adjustments are necessary to continue
providing veteran and survivor compensation rates that are adequate for
increased cost-of-living expenses.
As the December 2013 budget deal demonstrated, veterans and their
families are not exempt from budget cuts and fiscal limitations.
However, earned benefits should never be compromised. This proposed
statutory cost-of-living adjustment is needed to safeguard compensation
benefits for veterans and their families. IAVA believes that veterans
and survivors should always be guaranteed fiscal security that is
adjusted to account for a changing economy.
H.R 4102
IAVA supports H.R. 4102, which would authorize the estate of a
deceased veteran to receive accrued benefits upon the death of the
veteran.
The case of Sergeant First Class (SFC) Shelton Hickerson, mentioned
in this legislation, is an unfortunate illustration of the hardship
that long wait times and multiple appeals can place on veterans and
their families. SFC Hickerson was a retired Vietnam veteran who had
multiple strokes, two of which occurred while still on active duty. He
spent over a decade waiting for his disability compensation claim to be
accurately adjudicated, but he passed away one day before receiving his
final adjudication.
Unfortunately, SFC Hickerson's story is not unique. As currently
written, if a veteran does not have a spouse or any children under the
age of 18, the earned benefits remain in with the U.S. Treasury. In
addition to its responsibility to serve and care for the veteran, a
core aspect of VA's mission is also to care for the survivors of
veterans. As a result, it is logical that VA has a responsibility to
grant the estate of a veteran all accrued benefits if a veteran dies
while stuck in the claims process.
H.R 4141
IAVA supports H.R. 4141, which authorizes the VA to enter into
enhanced-use leases for excess property unsuitable for burial within
the domain of the National Cemetery Administration (NCA).
The VA's enhanced-use lease program is considered an innovative
asset management program within the government. It allows the VA to
optimize its asset management capabilities by entering into agreements
with entities that utilize VA facilities to contribute to the overall
mission of the VA. Specifically looking at land owned by the NCA, IAVA
supports land unsuitable for burial should being eligible for enhanced-
use leases in order to maximize the capabilities of the NCA while
effectively managing all assets.
H.R 4191
IAVA supports H.R. 4191, the Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery
Act, which would improve the treatment of medical evidence provided by
non-VA medical professionals in support of disability compensation
claims.
IAVA strongly supports efforts to minimize the burden placed on
veterans when filing disability compensation claims. If a veteran
provides medical evidence from a licensed medical professional that
supports their claim with the VA, the VA should consider this evidence
with the same gravity as medical evidence from VA medical
professionals. As currently written, Title 38 states that the VA may
consider evidence from non-VA medical professionals, but does not
require the VA to consider this type of evidence. Title 38 should be
amended to eliminate this ambiguity.
Mr. Chairman, we at IAVA again appreciate the opportunity to offer
our views on these important pieces of legislation, and we look forward
to continuing to work with each of you, your staff, and this
Subcommittee to improve the lives of veterans and their families.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Bio of Alexander Nicholson, Legislative Director, Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America: Alexander Nicholson serves as the
Legislative Director for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
(IAVA). As one of IAVA's top advocates on Capitol Hill, Mr. Nicholson
helps shape IAVA's legislative strategies and priorities throughout the
year. He is responsible for developing relationships, assisting in
advocacy efforts, and implementing IAVA's Policy Agenda. Prior to
joining IAVA, Mr. Nicholson founded and led the advocacy group
Servicemembers United for the preceding seven years.
Mr. Nicholson holds a Bachelors degree in international affairs
from the University of South Carolina, a Masters degree in public
administration from the University of North Georgia, and is currently
completing the dissertation on his Ph.D. in political science from the
University of South Carolina.
Statement on receipt of Federal Grant or Contract Funds:
Neither Mr. Nicholson nor the organization he represents, Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America, has received federal grant or contract
funds relevant to the subject matter of this testimony during the
current or two previous fiscal years.
Prepared Statement of Heather L. Ansley
Executive Summary of the Testimony of VetsFirst, a program of
United Spinal Association
Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013 (H.R. 2018)
Although we do not typically comment on specific memorial affairs
issues, we support efforts to ensure that veterans receive proper
headstones or makers.
Pilot to Establish Claims Adjudication Centers of Excellence (H.R.
2088)
We believe that efficiencies may be gained from allowing claims
with complex medical conditions to be worked by specialized employees
at centers of excellence. However, we suggest that this legislation be
amended to provide specific reporting requirements to Congress
assessing the pilot's success, including interim reports identifying
any problems in implementing the pilot.
Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act (H.R. 2119)
We would support this legislation if amended to ensure that an
appellant's request for a different location or type of Board of
Veterans' Appeals hearing must be granted.
Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act (H.R. 2529)
We support this legislation which will ensure access to benefits
for same-sex couples with legally recognized marriages.
Furnishing of Medallion to Signify Veteran Status of Deceased
Individual (H.R. 3671)
Although we do not typically comment on specific memorial affairs
issues, we support efforts to ensure that veterans of all eras are able
to receive benefits that acknowledge their military service.
Burial With Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014 (H.R. 3876)
We do not have an official position on this legislation.
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2014 (H.R.
4095)
We support swift passage of this legislation, but urge that the
round down be removed.
Eligibility of Estates of Deceased Veterans to Receive Accrued Benefits
(H.R. 4102)
We urge swift passage of this legislation to protect the accrued
benefits of deceased veterans.
Enhanced-Use Leases for Excess Property of the National Cemetery
Administration (H.R. 4141)
We support enhanced-use lease authority for excess National
Cemetery Administration property.
Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act (H.R. 4191)
We support this legislation to increase the acceptance of private
medical evidence and urge its swift passage.
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus, and other distinguished
members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify
regarding VetsFirst's views on the bills under consideration today.
VetsFirst, a program of United Spinal Association, represents the
culmination of over 65 years of service to veterans and their families.
We advocate for the programs, services, and disability rights that help
all generations of veterans with disabilities remain independent. This
includes access to VA financial and health care benefits, housing,
transportation, and employment services and opportunities. Today, we
are not only a VA-recognized national veterans service organization,
but also a leader in advocacy for all people with disabilities.
Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013 (H.R. 2018)
A VA headstone or maker may be requested by a decedent's next-of-
kin, a decedent's authorized representative, or a next-of-kin's
authorized representative. This legislation would allow organizations
or individuals that do not meet these criteria to apply for headstones
or markers for veterans whose headstones or markers have deteriorated
or are unmarked. VetsFirst does not typically comment on specific
memorial affairs issues. We support efforts, however, to ensure that
all veterans receive the full honors due them, including access to
proper headstones or makers.
To Direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Carry Out a Pilot
Program to Establish Claims Adjudication Centers of Excellence (H.R.
2088)
This legislation would establish a pilot program requiring VA to
designate 12 claims adjudication centers of excellence. These centers
of excellence would focus on adjudicating claims related to one medical
condition selected by the VA Secretary. Conditions selected for the
pilot will be those that are the most complex and time consuming
commonly occurring conditions. Employees adjudicating claims within
these centers of excellence would receive training specifically related
to the types of medical conditions being adjudicated.
VetsFirst believes that efficiencies may be gained from allowing
claims with complex medical conditions to be worked by specialized
employees at centers of excellence. We believe, however, that this
legislation should provide guidelines for assessing whether the pilot
is successful, including interim reporting requirements identifying any
problems in developing and implementing the pilot. In addition, we
believe that VA should be required to evaluate whether the centers
increase quality in the adjudication of the selected conditions and
whether centers have an even distribution of work or whether some are
overwhelmed, potentially creating new backlogs.
As VA moves toward full implementation of electronic claims
processing, VA may seek greater efficiencies through the adjudication
of claims by issue at different regional offices. In the event that
claims are processed in different locations by issue, we believe that
an individual at the regional office having jurisdiction over the
veteran's location should conduct a final review for benefits or
related disabilities that may only be evident if the veteran's claim is
reviewed holistically.
Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act (H.R. 2119)
Appellants to the Board of Veterans' Appeals have the opportunity
to request a personal hearing on their claim and to select the location
and means by which the hearing occurs. This legislation would require
the Board to schedule appeals hearings in the location that would allow
for the earliest possible hearing date. It would also require the Board
to determine whether the appellant is required to appear in person or
through the use of a video conference. An appellant would have the
opportunity to request a different location or type of hearing. This
request may be granted by the Board.
VetsFirst supports efforts to expedite veterans' claims appeal
waiting times. However, we believe that if an appellant makes a request
for a different location or type of hearing that this request should be
granted. Ensuring that appellants have the opportunity to disagree with
the location or type of hearing is a better way to ensure that hearings
occur as quickly as possible while respecting appellants' rights.
We would support legislation that ensures appellants' requests for
a different location or type of hearing must be granted.
Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act (H.R. 2529)
Nearly a year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a provision of
the Defense of Marriage Act defining the terms ``marriage'' and
``spouse'' as used in federal law as applying only to individuals who
are of the opposite sex was unconstitutional. As a result of the
Court's decision, the President directed that VA no longer enforce
prohibitions under Title 38 that would prohibit the receipt of benefits
for otherwise eligible members of same-sex couples who have legally
valid marriages. To facilitate access to all VA benefits available to
legally recognized spouses, this legislation would amend Title 38 to
define the term ``spouse'' based on whether the marriage of the
individual was valid under an applicable state's law.
We support this legislation which will ensure access to VA benefits
for same-sex couples with legally recognized marriages.
To Expand Eligibility for a Medallion Furnished by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to Signify Veteran Status of a Deceased Individual
(H.R. 3671)
Medallions signifying veteran status of a deceased individual are
available for veterans who died on or after November 1, 1990. This
legislation would allow VA to provide a medallion upon request
regardless of when the veteran died. Although VetsFirst does not
typically comment on specific memorial affairs issues, we support
efforts to ensure that veterans of all eras are able to receive
benefits that acknowledge their military service.
Burial With Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014 (H.R. 3876)
To increase access to VA burial benefits for entities or
individuals who provide for the burial of veterans with no next of kin
or other person claiming the body, a provision of Public Law 112-260,
which went into effect on January 10, 2014, provides greater access to
VA burial benefits when a veteran's estate is unable to cover burial
and funeral costs. In recent years, however, the average cost of
funerals has significantly outpaced the benefits available through VA.
Burial benefits range from $2000 for service-connected deaths to as low
as $300 for non-service-connected deaths. The average cost of a funeral
in 2012 was $7,045.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ National Funeral Directors Association, Statistics, http://
nfda.org/about-funeral-service-/trends-and-statistics.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This legislation would provide grants for eligible entities to
provide for the costs of burials for homeless veterans. VetsFirst does
not have an official position on this legislation. However, we believe
that any grants available should take into account any increased access
to benefits that may be available under Public Law 112-260 and the
burden of funeral and burial costs for all veterans due to the limited
benefits available through VA.
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2014 (H.R.
4095)
Disabled veterans and their survivors depend on VA benefits to
provide for themselves and their families. Cost of living adjustments
(COLAs) are an important aspect of ensuring that these benefits are
able to meet beneficiaries' basic needs.
This legislation would ensure that the disabled veterans and their
survivors who receive these benefits are eligible for a COLA on
December 1, 2014. Although the COLA received in 2013 was only 1.5
percent, this small increase is critical for disabled veterans and
their survivors. We would request, however, that any increase not be
rounded down to the next whole dollar amount.
We urge swift passage of this legislation which would ensure that
disabled veterans and their survivors are able to benefit from any COLA
increase.
To Clarify That the Estate of a Deceased Veteran may Receive Certain
Accrued Benefits Upon the Death of the Veteran (H.R. 4102)
If a veteran who has no dependents is owed accrued benefits from VA
but passes away before those benefits are released his or her estate is
not able to receive those benefits. This legislation would ensure that
benefits accrued to a deceased veteran will be payable to a veteran's
estate in the event that he or she has no surviving dependents. This
provision will only apply in those circumstances in which the estate
would not escheat.
The case of Mr. Shelton Hickerson, a Vietnam veteran, highlights
the need for this legislation. Mr. Hickerson spent a number of years
fighting his claim for VA disability compensation. Unfortunately, he
died on the same day that VA awarded him $377,342. Because Mr.
Hickerson had no dependents, the money owed him remains with VA. In
addition to ensuring that the estates of other veterans would be
eligible to receive accrued benefits, this legislation would also right
the wrong suffered by Mr. Hickerson and his family.
We urge swift passage of this legislation to protect the accrued
benefits of veterans like Mr. Hickerson.
To Authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Enter Into Enhanced-
Use Leases for Excess Property of the National Cemetery Administration
That is Unsuitable for Burial Purposes (H.R. 4141)
VA's Enhanced-Use Lease (EUL) program allows VA to benefit from the
lease of its property for non-VA uses that are compatible with its
mission. In 2012, VA's EUL authority was amended to limit EULs to the
provision of supportive housing. This legislation would allow VA to
enter into EULs for excess property of the National Cemetery
Administration (NCA) when that land is deemed unsuitable for burial
purposes.
VetsFirst supports allowing EULs for excess NCA property when that
property can be used to further VA's mission.
Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act (H.R. 4191)
The VA disability claims backlog is a well-documented problem that
continues to persist despite advances by VA in adjudicating older
claims. To streamline claims for benefits, VA has sought to standardize
the receipt of medical information through the use of Disability
Benefits Questionnaires (DBQs). DBQs allow a veteran's physician to
provide VA with the information that VA requires to adjudicate a
veteran's claim for benefits without requiring a VA medical
examination.
Despite efforts to increase acceptance of private medical evidence,
problems persist. This legislation would require VA to accept private
medical evidence that is competent, credible, probative, and contains
the information required to make a decision on a veteran's claim. In
addition, this legislation would require VA to provide a report to
Congress regarding VA's Acceptable Clinical Evidence initiative.
Furthermore, VA would be required to provide an annual report with
information about the number of times veterans who submitted private
medical evidence are scheduled for exams because the evidence is
determined to be unacceptable, the most common reasons why submitted
evidence is deemed unacceptable, and the types of disabilities for
which claims were most commonly denied when private medical evidence
was submitted.
VetsFirst strongly supports efforts to streamline access to VA
benefits by ensuring that proper private medical evidence is accepted
in the determination of benefits. It is unnecessary to force veterans
who submit medical evidence that is sufficient to adjudicate their
claims to be subjected to further delays for redundant VA medical
exams. We believe that this legislation will help to ensure that
private medical evidence is accepted when appropriate.
We are also appreciative of reporting requirements in the
legislation that will help to identify problem areas in the use of
private medical evidence. Providing information about common reasons
why evidence is not accepted will help to pinpoint changes needed to
ensure that deficiencies in private medical evidence are remedied where
possible. We also support the requirement to evaluate correlations
between the rejection of private medical evidence and certain
disabilities. We would suggest, however, that this language be amended
to reflect a need to know when the evidence is rejected for claims by
disability as opposed to by disability when claims that include private
medical evidence are denied.
We support this legislation and urge its swift passage.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify concerning VetsFirst's
views on these important pieces of legislation. We appreciate your
leadership on behalf of our nation's veterans who are living with
disabilities. I would be pleased to answer any questions.
Information Required by Clause 2(g) of Rule XI of the House of
Representatives
Written testimony submitted by Heather L. Ansley, Vice President of
VetsFirst; VetsFirst, a program of United Spinal Association; 1660 L
Street NW., Suite 504; Washington, D.C. 20036. (202) 556-2076, ext.
7702.
This testimony is being submitted on behalf of VetsFirst, a program
of United Spinal Association.
In fiscal year 2012, United Spinal Association served as a
subcontractor to Easter Seals for an amount not to exceed $5000 through
funding Easter Seals received from the U.S. Department of
Transportation. This is the only federal contract or grant, other than
the routine use of office space and associated resources in VA Regional
Offices for Veterans Service Officers that United Spinal Association
has received in the current or previous two fiscal years.
Heather L. Ansley is the Vice President of VetsFirst, which is a
program of United Spinal Association.
Ms. Ansley began her tenure with the organization in December 2009.
Her responsibilities include managing the public policy advocacy,
veterans benefits services, and veterans outreach activities for
VetsFirst. She also works to promote collaboration between disability
organizations and veterans service organizations by serving as a co-
chair of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Veterans and
Military Families Task Force.
Prior to her arrival at VetsFirst, she served as the Director of
Policy and Advocacy for the Lutheran Services in America Disability
Network.
Before arriving in Washington, DC, she served as a Research
Attorney for The Honorable Steve Leben with the Kansas Court of
Appeals. Prior to attending law school, she worked in the office of
former U.S. Representative Kenny Hulshof (R-MO) where she assisted
constituents with problems involving federal agencies. She also served
as the congressional and intergovernmental affairs specialist at the
Federal Emergency Management Agency's Region VII office in Kansas City,
Missouri.
Ms. Ansley is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of
Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Ms.
Ansley also holds a Master of Social Work from the University of
Missouri-Columbia and a Juris Doctorate from the Washburn University
School of Law in Kansas.
She is licensed to practice law in the State of Kansas and before
the United States District Court of Kansas.
Prepared Statement Diane M. Zumatto, Amvets National Legislative
Director On:H.R. 2018, H.R. 2088, H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3671, H.R.
3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102, H.R. 4141 & H.R. 4191
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill # Title/Topic AMVETS Position
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 2018 Honor Those Who Support
Served Act of
2013
H.R. 2088 Claims Support
adjudication
centers of
excellence
H.R. 2119 Veterans Access to Support
Speedy Review Act
H.R. 2529 Veteran Spouses Support
Equal Treatment
Act
H.R. 3671 Expand the Support
eligibility for
veteran
medallions
H.R. 3876 Burial with Support
Dignity for
Heroes Act of
2014
H.R. 4095 Veterans' Support
Compensation COLA
Act of 2014
H.R. 4102 Deceased veteran Support
benefits
H.R. 4141 Enhanced-use Support
leases for NCA
H.R. 4191 Quicker Veterans Support
Benefits Delivery
Act
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus and distinguished members of
the subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to offer our insight
into the legislation being considered today, specifically: H.R. 2018;
H.R. 2088; H.R. 2119; H.R. 2529; H.R. 3671; H.R. 3876; H.R. 4095; H.R.
4102; H.R. 4141; & H.R. 4191.
H.R 2018
Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013--AMVETS supports this bill which
will make it easier to provide headstones for veterans who currently
don't have a headstone, or for those whose headstones have deteriorated
when there is no Next of Kin available by broadening the definition of
those eligible to request a headstone or marker from the VA.
From a preservation or historical point of view, this is a positive
step forward in helping to identify and recognize veterans who lack any
living relatives or whose relatives are unreachable. The placement of
headstones on previously unmarked or illegible veteran graves helps to
honor and preserve the individual stories of the brave American heroes
from our past.
H.R 2088
A bill to direct the VA to carry out a pilot program to establish
claims adjudication centers of excellence--AMVETS supports the concept
of this legislation but would suggest 15, rather than 12, adjudication
centers of excellence. We believe there should be one center for each
of the VA's 15 body systems, which are:
Musculoskeletal;
Organs of Special Sense;
Impairment of Auditory Acuity;
Infectious Diseases, Immune Disorders & Nutritional
Deficiencies;
Respiratory;
Cardiovascular;
Digestive;
Genitourinary;
Gynecological Conditions & Disorders of the Breast
Hemic & Lymphatic;
Skin;
Endocrine;
Neurological Conditions & Convulsive Disorders;
Mental Disorders; and
Dental & Oral Conditions
With the institution of this model, gone will be the days of VA
raters needing to be `jacks-of-all-trades and masters of none'.
Instead, body system `experts' will evaluate all claims based on their
individual area of expertise. Thanks to the capabilities of the VBMS
system (each claim issue is associated with a unique number), claims
could be electronically divided up into individual parts or issues,
forwarded to the appropriate center of excellence, each issue would
then be rated by an expert, after all issues have been rated, the claim
can be reassembled and the veteran notified of the outcome. This should
go a long way to speeding up the entire claims process.
H.R 2119
Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act--AMVETS supports this
legislation which seeks to speed up the veteran appeal process by
providing options for the location/type of hearing, including video
conferencing, conducted by the Board of Veterans' Appeals.
H.R 2529
Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act--AMVETS supports this
legislation because of passage of the Defense of Marriage Act and
because it would bring VA policy in line with DoD's on same sex
marriage. In June of 2013, Sec. Defense Hagel said, ``The Department of
Defense intends to make the same benefits available to all military
spouses--regardless of sexual orientation--as soon as possible. That is
now the law, and it is the right thing to do.''
H.R 3671
A bill to expand the eligibility for a medallion or other device
furnished by the VA to signify veteran status--AMVETS fully supports
this legislation which authorizes the VA to provide a medallion or
other device to signify the veteran status of a deceased individual
regardless of when the decedent passed away. This memorial device
should be available for display on any and all veteran's headstones if
desired.
H.R 3876
Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014--AMVETS whole-heartedly
supports this legislation which will provide grants to eligible
entities to provide for the cost of burials for homeless veterans with
no next-of-kin who are eligible to be buried in national cemeteries.
Anyone who has honorably served their country in the Armed Forces
should be buried with all appropriate honors and respect regardless of
their housing status.
H.R 4095
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2014--
AMVETS supports this legislation which would increase, as of 1 December
2014, the rates of veterans' disability compensation, additional
compensation for eligible dependents, the clothing allowance for
certain disabled veterans and dependency and indemnity compensation for
surviving spouses and children. This country owes an enormous debt of
gratitude to those who have served and sacrificed and it is right and
just to adequately provide for their on-going needs.
H.R 4102
A bill to clarify that the estate of a deceased veteran may receive
certain accrued benefits upon the death of the veteran--AMVETS supports
this legislation.
H.R 4141
A bill to authorize the VA to enter into enhanced-use leases for
excess property of the National Cemetery Administration that is
unsuitable for burial purposes--AMVETS fully supports this legislation
which seeks to extract monetary or in-kind value from unusable, excess
property located within the boundaries of the National Cemetery System.
Careful and creative stewardship of federal resources which encourage
public/private ventures and enhance the ambience of our national
cemeteries should be encouraged. Furthermore, land that would otherwise
serve no purpose would not only bring in revenue while maximizing the
overall usage of the land, but would also contribute to the mission of
the NCA.
H.R 4191
Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act--AMVETS support this
legislation which would improve the treatment of medical evidence
provided by non-VA medical professionals in support of claims for
disability compensation. Appropriate evidence, obtained by from a
medical specialist or expert that is competent, credible and probative,
on a physical or mental health condition should be admissible and
accepted by the VA. This step should help move claims more quickly
through the VA system.
This concludes my testimony and I look forward to answering your
questions.
21 March 2014
The Hon. Jon Runyan, Chairman
U.S. House of Representatives, Veterans' Affairs Committee
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance & Memorial Affairs
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairman Runyan:
Neither AMVETS nor I have received any federal grants or contracts,
during this year or in the last two years, from any agency or program
relevant to the 12 March 2014, House Veterans Affairs Committee hearing
on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Budget Request for Fiscal
Year 2015.
Sincerely,
Diane M. Zumatto,
AMVETS National Legislative Director
Biographical Sketch: Diane M. Zumatto of Spotsylvania, VA joined
AMVETS as their National Legislative Director in August 2011. Ms.
Zumatto, a native New Yorker and the daughter of immigrant parents
decided to follow in her family's footsteps by joining the military.
Ms. Zumatto is a former Women's Army Corps (WAC) member who was
stationed in Germany. Zumatto was married to a CW4 aviator in the
Washington Army National Guard and is the mother of four adult
children. Ms. Zumatto is extremely proud that two of her children have
chosen to follow her footsteps into military service.
Ms. Zumatto has more than 20 years of experience working with a
variety of non-profits in increasingly more challenging positions,
including: the American Museum of Natural History; the National
Federation of Independent Business; the Tacoma-Pierce County Board of
Realtors; the Washington State Association of Fire Chiefs; Saint
Martin's College; the James Monroe Museum; the Friends of the
Wilderness Battlefield and the Enlisted Association of the National
Guard of the United States. Diane's non-profit experience is extremely
well-rounded as she has variously served in both staff and volunteer
positions including as a board member and consultant.
After receiving her B.A. in Historic Preservation from the
University of Mary Washington in 2005, Diane decided to diversify her
experience by spending some time in the `for-profit' community.
Realizing that her creativity, energy and passion were not being
effectively challenged, she left the world of corporate America and
returned to non-profit organization.
AMVETS National Headquarters, 4647 Forbes Boulevard Lanham,
Maryland 20706-4380, Business Phone: (301) 683-4016 [email protected]
Prepared Statement of Zachary Hearn, Deputy Director for Claims of the
Veterans Affairs and Rehabilitation Commission of the American Legion
on Pending Legislation
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus and distinguished Members of
the Subcommittee, on behalf of Commander Dellinger and the 2.4 million
members of The American Legion, I thank you and your colleagues for the
work you do in support of our service members and veterans as well as
their families. The hard work of this Subcommittee in creating
significant legislation has left a positive impact on our military and
veterans' community.
H.R 2018: Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to identify the persons who
are eligible to request headstones or markers furnished by the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and other purposes.
This legislation expands the allowable persons who may request
headstone markers commemorating deceased veterans to indicate their
veteran status to include military researchers, local historians and
the like. In many cases, long removed from the period of service,
veterans from prior wars may not have recognition of their service on
their headstone markers. Concerned citizens may seek to ensure those
veterans receive their proper honors and recognition.
The American Legion has been supportive of ensuring all veterans,
even those who have been forgotten by time, receive the honors due to
them according to their service.\1\ Veterans who have served their
country deserve to be buried with respect and honors. This legislation
would help aid in that recognition.
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\1\ Resolution 24 ``Identify, Honor and Inter Unclaimed Remains of
Veterans'' MAY 2007
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The American Legion supports the passage of this legislation.
H.R 2088
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot
program to establish claims adjudication centers of excellence.
In order to address the backlog of veterans' disability claims and
to prevent future such backlogs, this legislation aims to create
multiple ``Centers of Excellence'' (COEs) as pilot programs throughout
the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Benefits
Administration (VBA). The program would set aside twelve VA Regional
Office (VARO) claims adjudication centers, designated as the three
highest performing VAROs in each of the four areas of the VBA.
Performance in these offices would be based on a measurement of quality
and accuracy as well as average number of days pending.
Each COE would focus on one medical condition selected by the
Secretary, attempting to address conditions that are the most complex
and time consuming, provided they occur commonly enough to support the
work of the centers. One would assume these conditions would include
medical issues such as Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic
Brain Injury (TBI), Gulf War Illnesses, Diabetes, and other multi-
symptomatic disorders. If working these claims did not engulf all of
the employees' time, they would be permitted to adjudicate other
claims.
Employees at the COEs would receive special, targeted training and
undergo examinations to certify expertise.
The aim of improving the quality of decisions, particularly on
complex conditions, is admirable. The American Legion certainly thinks
some of the notions included in this legislation, such as targeted
training for areas of special complexity concurrent with expertise
certifying examinations, have promise for improving VBA's overall
quality in adjudicating claims.
However, The American Legion is deeply concerned that the
consolidation of work at these COEs is the wrong path, as evidenced by
nearly every previous time VA has attempted to improve the system by
consolidating efforts.
In January 2002, VBA consolidated the work of pension into three
Pension Maintenance Centers (PMCs) in St. Paul, Milwaukee and
Philadelphia. Rather than improving speed and accuracy of pension
claims, backlogs have become the norm. American Legion service officers
used to be able to walk upstairs to talk to VBA employees and come to a
quick resolution for pension applicants (who are perhaps the most
vulnerable and financially imperiled of veterans). Once consolidated
into centers, communication became nearly impossible. Even with service
officers co-located in the PMCs, it can be difficult to work through
issues by communicating with VA employees. The problem has only been
compounded by adding death benefits to the work of these centers.
In recent years, the influx of Nehmer claims related to the
addition of new Agent Orange presumptive conditions prompted VBA to
consolidate work on the Nehmer claims. Despite this consolidation, VA
officials came before Congress many times to point out how the entire
system of benefits claims had been set back. The large delays and
increases in the backlog were blamed on the Nehmer claims, even though
they had been consolidated to centralize processing, ostensibly to
alleviate just these concerns.
Time and time again, consolidation has not worked and has not been
beneficial. By reducing the ability of top offices to have these
excellence teams work on claims outside the purview of their specific
medical issue, VBA would be forced to broker more work. Amongst The
American Legion's cadre of over 2,900 accredited service officers,
brokering is universally hailed as one of the worst programs utilized
by VBA to address the backlog. All brokering does is create more
barriers to communication, and throw up more roadblocks in the path of
success.
During the development of the Veterans Benefits Management System
(VBMS) VBA officials assured stakeholders that their service officers
would see improved communications with VA on veterans' claims by
utilizing electronic message systems within VBMS. We were told we could
call out specific notes in a veteran's file and communicate directly
back and forth to address issues. Needless to say, this functionality
is not currently present in the system.
Taking some of the most critical claims out of the VAROs and away
from the strong communication between VA employees and service officers
to resolve difficulties with claims, would be a step back in the move
to improve the claims process.
The American Legion supports efforts to improve the claims
processing system, and applauds the ideas included in this legislation
to develop specialized training on the most complicated issues.
Training, with the critical feedback mechanism of testing for expertise
certification, could benefit not just employees in a few centers of
excellence, but employees in all regional offices. Consolidating these
employees is not a solution The American Legion can support however.
These changes need to be implemented universally across the entire
system.
The American Legion does not support the passage of this
legislation.
H.R 2119: Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to improve the opportunity
for veterans to use video conferencing for hearings before the Board of
Veterans' Appeals.
A veteran who has appealed their disability claim to the Board of
Veterans' Appeals (BVA) is entitled to have their case heard before the
presiding authority, a veterans' law judge (VLJ). These hearings can be
conducted in a variety of manners. They could be a physical, in person
hearing at the BVA in Washington, DC. They could be a traveling Board
hearing, where a VLJ physically travels to a VA Regional Office (VARO)
to conduct a series of hearings. It could also take the form of a
video-teleconference (VTC) hearing. This legislation, in the interest
of improving scheduling times, would allow the BVA to determine what
the speediest option for providing that hearing would be, and allows
veterans to petition BVA for a different type if that is their choice.
If the veteran petitions for a different type, the bill states the BVA
``may'' grant such request.
The American Legion has several concerns about this process. We are
certainly sympathetic to the problems of scheduling, which lead to long
delays. American Legion service officers report that travel board
hearings often take place in a once yearly window, which greatly adds
to delays in the appeals process. It is not always practical for a
veteran to travel to Washington, DC, although that may be an excellent
option for veterans who happen to live on the Eastern seaboard.
For some veterans, especially those of an older generation
including Korean War and World War II veterans, meeting with people
face to face matters. It is perhaps ironic that those veterans, who may
have the least time to wait, often must wait longest for their hearings
to take place. In person hearings can make a difference, especially in
certain cases including mental disorders, certain visible physical
disabilities, and skin disorders may not translate as well to video.
American Legion service officers have noted that despite the roll out
of the Veterans Benefits Management System (VBMS) they do not always
have access to a claims file to review to prepare for accompanying
veterans to the VTC hearings. Conducting a hearing in which a veteran's
advocate does not have full access to the information in the claims
file is not in the best interest of the veteran, nor is it the full due
process to which that veteran is entitled.
Obviously, given time, VA may reach a point with VBMS that
alleviates concerns about access to a veteran's file. They are not at
that point currently. With perhaps further clarification, the provision
of this bill which allows for veterans to appeal for an in person
hearing if they so choose could allow for veterans to get the hearing
that is right for them. As the provision currently states the BVA
``may'' grant such a request, The American Legion is concerned this
review process may be conducted not with the interests of what is best
for the veteran in mind, but what is best for BVA. That cannot be the
aim.
It is the understanding of The American Legion that the bill could
be amended to change the ``may'' language to ``shall'' language. Such a
change would ensure a new system that provides more timeliness to the
process by allowing the BVA to set the fastest default venue for the
veteran's hearing, but fully protect veterans who choose a different
venue with full knowledge that their choice would add time to their
process, but still meet the criteria best suited to that individual
veteran.
The claims system is designed to serve veterans who have been
disabled. While measures that make things easier for VA may ultimately
help veterans, we must always be mindful of putting the needs of the
veterans first. The American Legion agrees there may be ways to improve
speed and provide incentives for veterans to utilize a system that
takes advantage of technology to assist them in a more timely decision
on their appeal. However, the rights of the veteran to receive their
time before a judge, to have a human being hear their words describing
how they came to be disabled in service to this country--that right
must be protected. The American Legion would like to work in concert
with the committee and VA to find a way to implement improvements to
the process, but ensure that this is done in a way mindful of fully
protecting the rights of the veteran appellants.
The American Legion supports the passage of this legislation (with
the noted reservation).
H.R 2529: Veteran Spouse Equal Treatment Act
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to amend the definition of
the term `spouse' to recognize new State definitions of such term for
the purpose of the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs.
The American Legion is a grass roots organization that derives its
operational mandate from resolutions passed by membership. The American
Legion has no resolution addressing this legislation.
The American Legion has no position on this legislation.
H.R 3876: Burial With Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to carry out a grant program to provide burials for
homeless veterans.
This legislation proposes a grant program to provide for the burial
in national cemeteries of homeless veterans with no next of kin. The
American Legion has a long history of ensuring all of our nation's
heroes receive the honors they deserve in burial. Since 2007, The
American Legion has worked with the Missing in America Project (MIAP)
to locate, identify and inter the unclaimed remains of American
veterans through a variety of means. During the past seven years,
veterans have worked with state, local and federal authorities to
ensure no one is left behind.\2\ Furthermore, The American Legion has
been deeply involved in reducing the national scourge of veteran
homelessness, assisting the efforts of VA and other agencies to bring
the numbers down to fewer than 58,000 homeless veterans from figures
totaling more than 75,000 veterans in 2010.
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\2\ Resolution 24 ``Identify, Honor and Inter Unclaimed Remains of
Veterans'' MAY 2007.
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The American Legion has long been supportive of efforts to reach
out to homeless veterans, as well as efforts to provide recognition and
honors to the forgotten fallen.
The American Legion supports the passage of this legislation.
H.R 4095: Veterans Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2014
To increase, effective as of December 1, 2014, 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.
The American Legion strongly supports a periodic cost-of-living
adjustment (COLA) for veterans reflective of increased expenses due to
inflation and other factors. However, there are many factors currently
being considered regarding the calculation of COLA that merit
discussion.
Within The American Legion's Code of Procedures, accredited
representatives are advised under no circumstances should they cause
harm to veterans' claims for benefits. Current provisions contained in
the President's 2014 proposed budget, as well as in amendments to other
bills that have been introduced from time to time, would replace the
current Consumer Price Index (CPI) used to calculate increases to
Social Security COLA with a so-called Chained CPI (C-CPI). Through
chaining VA benefits to the new C-CPI and COLA for Social Security
benefits, the veteran community would indeed be harmed. On December 19,
2012, Dean Stoline, Deputy Director of The American Legion Legislative
Division, stated that a chained CPI is misguided policy and ``would
have significant deleterious effect on the benefits of millions of
veterans''.
There is a long term negative effect upon the veteran community
should Congress mandate a C-CPI approach to determining COLA increases.
According to a press release from Sen. Sanders' office, the proposal
would cut VA disability benefits for a 30-year-old veteran by more than
$13,000 a year by age 45, $1,800 a year by age 55, and $2,260 a year by
age 65. Senior citizens who retire by age 65 would see their Social
Security benefits reduced by about $650 a year by the time they reach
75, and more than $1,000 a year when they turn 85. \3\ These cuts would
certainly place many veterans and their families' economic security in
peril.
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\3\ http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/
statement-by-senator-bernard-sanders-on-the-chained-cpi.
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By resolution \4\ ``The American Legion support[s] legislation to
amend Title 38, United States Code, section 1114, to provide a periodic
COLA increase and to increase the monthly rates of disability
compensation; and . . . oppose[s] any legislative effort to
automatically index such [COLA] adjustments to the [COLA] adjustment
for Social Security recipients, non-service connected disability
recipients and death pension beneficiaries.'' The opposition to direct
and automatic connection to the Social Security policies reflects the
understanding that veterans and specifically disabled veterans
represent a unique subsection of the American community, and their
unique concerns should receive individual consideration when
determining the need for periodic increases for cost of living.
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\4\ Resolution No. 178: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Disability Compensation, AUG 2012.
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The American Legion also raises objection to the practice of
``rounding down'' to the next lower whole dollar amount as noted in
Section 2(c)(2). The American Legion does not support this policy of
shortchanging America's veterans.
The American Legion encourages Congress to seriously examine the
disastrous long term negative consequences of C-CPI for veterans. The
long-term negative effects created through permitting C-CPI for VA
benefits could cause serious financial harm to millions of veterans.
The American Legion supports an increased Cost-of-Living Adjustment
for veterans, but would like to see the legislation amended to ensure
veterans' COLA is protected from being changed to reflect a C-CPI model
to the detriment of disabled veterans.
H.R 4102
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to clarify that the estate
of a deceased veteran may receive certain accrued benefits upon the
death of the veteran, and for other purposes.
This legislation would clarify the process of substitution in the
case of a veteran's claim where the veteran passes away before final
adjudication of the claim. The American Legion is a grass roots
organization that derives its operational mandate from resolutions
passed by membership. The American Legion has no resolution addressing
this legislation.
The American Legion has no position this legislation.
H.R 4141
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs to enter into enhanced-use leases for excess
property of the National Cemetery Administration that is unsuitable for
burial purposes.
The American Legion recognizes there are situations in which land
owned or controlled by the Department of Veterans Affairs is not
suitable for the purposes it was intended for. However, The American
Legion also believes it is important that Congress restrict Enhanced
Use Leasing (EUL) authority to ``a priority list of services that will
meet the needs of the veteran community'' \5\
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\5\ Resolution 129 ``The Department of Veterans Affairs Enhanced-
Use Leasing'' AUG 2012.
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This legislation, affecting only excess property unsuitable for
burial for National Cemetery Administration (NCA) purposes, is
acceptable in that it does not adversely impact capacity of the NCA for
burial.\6\ Section 1(a)(2)(B) amends the EUL authority to include
``other purposes.'' The American Legion would want it noted, in
accordance with Resolution 129 as noted above, that these ``other
purposes'' must adhere to a list of services that meet the needs of the
veterans' community. While EUL is a vital tool and can be helpful to VA
operations overall, it must be in the service of veterans.
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\6\ Resolution 175 ``National Cemetery Administration''
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The American Legion supports (with noted reservation) the passage
of this legislation.
H.R 4191: Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act
To amend Title 38, United States Code, to improve the treatment of
medical evidence provided by non-Department of Veterans Affairs medical
professionals in support of claims for disability compensation under
the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for
other purposes.
This legislation aims to improve how private medical evidence
submitted by veterans is handled within the VA claims system. The bill
provides a better definition of ``sufficient complete'' medical
evidence, and importantly alters VA's authority from the current state
where the VA ``may'' accept the evidence to a state where the VA
``shall'' accept the evidence. The bill also calls for a report on the
progress of the Acceptable Clinical Evidence Initiative.
The American Legion has over 2,900 accredited service officers
nationally assisting veterans with their claims. A large percentage of
those service officers report frustrations as VA routinely ignores
favorable private medical evidence submitted by the veteran and instead
schedules unnecessary exams. These VA exams contribute to the backlog
of claims by causing needless delays. When the medical evidence of
record submitted by the veteran is sufficient to grant a claim, the
veteran shouldn't have to wait through months of backlogged appointment
slots to get an appointment with a doctor who will see her for a brief
exam. Veteran's own physicians spend years treating the veteran and
interacting with them. They provide critical insight into the overall
health picture of the veteran. With the proper use and acceptance of
private medical evidence, VA can reduce much of the necessary waiting
time in the claims process and deliver decisions to veterans utilizing
the private evidence that are more timely and more accurate.
There is one additional item pursuant to private medical evidence
The American Legion believes it is important to raise. Currently, under
VHA Directive 2007-024, if a veteran's primary care provider is a VHA
physician, that physician's assistance is limited to ``recording of
observations on the current medical status of the veteran found in the
medical record, including their current functional status.'' The
American Legion believes private medical opinions are extremely helpful
to the process, and would urge for Directive 2007-024 to be amended to
specifically allow VA primary care physicians to provide supporting
medical opinions, including opinions related to causation of a
condition, when it is medically possible to do so.\7\
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\7\ Resolution 24 ``Medical Opinions Provided by the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) Primary Care Providers'' OCT 2008
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The American Legion supports the passage of this legislation.
Prepared Statement of Mr. Anthony A. Wallis on H.R. 2018, H.R. 2088,
H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3971, H.R. 3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102, H.R.
4141 and H.R. 4191
The Association of the United States Navy (AUSN) continues its
mission as the premier advocate for our nation's Sailors and Veterans
alike. Formerly known as the Naval Reserve Association, which traces
its roots back to 1954, AUSN was established on 19 May 2009 to expand
its focus to the entire Navy. AUSN works for not only its members but
for the Navy and Veteran community overall by promoting the Department
of the Navy's interests, encouraging professional development of
officers and enlisted and educating the public and political bodies
regarding the nation's welfare and security.
AUSN prides itself on personal career assistance to its members and
successful legislative activity on Capitol Hill regarding equipment and
personnel issues. The Association actively represents its members by
participating in the most distinguished groups protecting the rights of
military personnel. AUSN is a member of The Military Coalition (TMC), a
group of 34 associations with a strong history of advocating for the
rights and benefits of military personnel, active and retired. AUSN is
also a member of the National Military Veterans Alliance (NMVA) and an
associate member of the Veterans Day National Committee of the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
The Association's members include Active Duty, Reserve and Veterans
from all 50 states, U.S. Territories, Europe, Asia, South America and
Australia. AUSN has 81 chapters across the country. Of our over 22,000
members, approximately 80% are Veterans. Our National Headquarters is
located at 1619 King Street in Alexandria, Virginia, and we can be
reached at 703-548-5800.
AUSN Leadership Contact Information:
National President: DKCM Charles Bradley, U.S. Navy (Ret.),
[email protected]
National Chairman of the Board: RADM Steve Israel, U.S. Navy
(Ret.), [email protected]
National Vice Chairman of the Board: MCPON Jim Herdt, U.S. Navy
(Ret), [email protected]
Executive Director: VADM John Totushek, U.S. Navy (Ret.),
[email protected]
Legislative Director: Mr. Anthony Wallis, [email protected]
Summary
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus and Members of the House
Veterans' Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and
Memorial Affairs, the Association of the United States Navy (AUSN)
thanks you and your Committee for the work that you do in support of
our Navy, retirees and Veterans, as well as their families. Your
efforts have allowed significant progress in creating legislation that
has left a positive impact on our military and Veteran community.
This Committee has been, and continues to be, the starting point
for legislation that provides appropriate adjustments for Veteran
disability compensation rates. Last year, in April 2013, this Committee
swiftly passed H.R. 569 which was later passed into law as S. 893, the
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2013 (P.L. 113-
52). This regular Veterans' Cost of Living Adjustment Act (COLA), which
increased the rate of Veterans disability compensation and Dependency
and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for surviving spouses and children by
1.5 percent beginning 1 January 2014, was welcomed by AUSN and the
Veteran community.
AUSN is pleased to have the opportunity to speak in support of this
year's bill, H.R. 4095, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living
Adjustment Act of 2014, and many others being discussed in today's
hearing. AUSN's positions on the bills being discussed today are as
follows:
H.R. 2018: The Honor Those Who Served Act
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) furnishes upon request, at
no charge to the applicant, a Government headstone or marker for the
unmarked grave of any deceased eligible Veteran in any cemetery around
the world, regardless of his or her date of death. The VA may also
furnish a headstone or marker for graves that are marked with a private
headstone or marker for Veterans that died on or after 1 November 1990.
For Veterans that served prior to World War I, a grave is considered
marked when a headstone/marker displays the decedents name only or if
the name was historically documented in a related document, such as by
a number that is inscribed on a grave block and is recorded in a burial
ledger. For service during and after World War I, a grave is considered
marked if a headstone/marker displays the decedents name and date of
birth and/or death, even though the Veterans military data is not
shown. When burial or memorialization is in a national cemetery, state
Veterans cemetery or military post/base cemetery, a headstone or marker
will be ordered by the cemetery officials based on inscription
information provided by the next of kin or authorized representative.
Those eligible for a headstone or marker include, but are not
limited to, any deceased Veteran discharged under honorable conditions
and any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who dies on
Active Duty. A copy of the deceased Veterans discharge certificate (DD-
214 Form or equivalent) or a copy of other official document(s)
establishing qualifying military service must be attached.
However, as for those applying for a headstone or marker, in 2012
the VA put into place a new regulatory barrier. Federal regulation
defines ``applicant'' as the decedent's Next-of-Kin (NOK), a person
authorized in writing by the NOK, or a personal representative
authorized in writing by the decedent. Written authorization must be
included with claim. Final approval from the NOK is necessary to
receive a headstone for a deceased Veteran, but this may be difficult
if NOK cannot be determined or is separated in family lineage or by
generations.
On the other hand, there are researchers, like those at various
State Historical Societies, who explore archives, death records,
military records and genealogical records to determine the identity of
Revolutionary and Civil War soldiers buried in unmarked graves. These
groups then will work to find the NOK, but, sometimes, that is not
possible when today's headstone applicants are several generations
removed from past conflicts such as the Civil War.
This bill, H.R. 2018, the Honor Those Who Served Act, introduced by
Representative Steve Stivers (R-OH-15), Representative Pat Tiberi (R-
OH-12) and Representative Joyce Beatty (D-OH-03) would stipulate that
if the NOK cannot be found then headstone applications may be filed
with the VA by: the state Veterans service agency, military
researchers, local historians, genealogists or others familiar with
research sources or methods needed to prove a Veteran's identity.
AUSN supports this legislation, which seeks to help streamline
applications for headstones or markers, especially for those who served
in many past conflicts that helped shape our nation, so they may be
properly honored for their service and not recognized just because of
deterioration of graves or the inability to determine the NOK. Our
Veterans, current and past generations, deserve better than unmarked or
deteriorated graves. AUSN supports this bill which will remedy this
problem through the use of existing quality research institutions and
methods in this country.
H.R. 2088: A Bill to Direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Carry
Out a Pilot Program to Establish Claims Adjudication Centers of
Excellence
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) receives about 1.25 million
claims for Veterans disability benefits per year. As identified by the
VA, for a Veteran to qualify within backlog, the claim must be waiting
125 days or more for the VA to process. As of the most recent 2014
quarterly report of the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), there
are over 636,000 claims pending and over 384,000 in backlog. (http://
www.vba.va.gov/REPORTS/mmwr/#characteristics). It is known, however,
that some of the VA's Regional Offices (ROs) have been better suited at
handling and dealing with Veteran disability claims than others,
whereby some have received complaints that the personnel at these ROs
have been unable to handle or, in some cases, properly file a
disability claim. For instance, last month, at an RO in Seattle,
Washington, VA staff was known to have interfered with an external non-
VA performance review performed by a Veteran Service Organization (VSO)
checking on how well the VA processes disability claims. For these
prearranged visits, VSO representatives ask for a random sampling of
recently processed disability claims for review with VA officials. They
also meet confidentially with non-management staff to discuss any
issues and concerns. However in this instance, the RO was not
cooperative, and the Chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee,
Representative Jeff Miller (R-FL-01), asked for an investigation and
assistance with external reviews. VA Regional Offices need to be
improved, and those that do perform well and are cooperative in the
effort to reduce the claims backlog need their efforts replicated with
those ROs that fail to meet both internal VA and external review
criteria.
H.R. 2088, creating Claims Adjudication Centers of Excellence,
introduced by the Ranking Member of the House Veterans' Affairs
Committee, Representative Michael Michaud (D-ME-02), would require the
VA to boost support for the best performing Regional Offices, in order
to focus additional attention on the most complex and time consuming
medical conditions. In particular, the bill directs the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to carry out a three-year pilot program to establish
12 VA claims adjudication Centers of Excellence by selecting the three
highest performing regional offices in each of the four areas of the
Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), requiring each Center to focus
on adjudicating claims relating to one medical condition selected by
the Secretary. Furthermore, the bill provides for appropriate employee
specialized training with respect to such medical conditions and
prohibits any employee from working concurrently at more than one
center. However, it allows an employee to move from one center to
another, as long as the employee receives the training appropriate for
that center.
AUSN recognizes and appreciates H.R. 2088's intent to establish
this pilot program in order to utilize the highest performing offices
to adjudicate the most difficult medical conditions, such as Post-
Traumatic-Stress-Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). AUSN
also is appreciative of efforts to encourage the VA to specialize
claims processing by condition, reduce the time it takes to adjudicate
these conditions and decrease the error rates on difficult claims
within ROs. By improving the quality and specialization of claims
processing at these ROs and establishing these claims Centers of
Excellence, the VBA will be able to focus and see how these specialized
ROs function. The VBA can then copy and implement these models for ROs
that are failing in their standards and services to process claims for
our Veterans.
However, AUSN believes that this pilot program should not distract
from the overall goal of eliminating the claims backlog or marginalize
existing ROs by shifting quality staff and Full Time Employees (FTEs)
from one RO to these Centers of Excellence. As a result, AUSN believes
further action on this bill should continue to be mindful of the
overall goal of ending the claims backlog and improving all ROs
throughout the country.
H.R. 2119: The Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act
Oftentimes, when a Veteran decides to file an appeal on a claim,
the Veteran must appear before a Board of Appeals to state his or her
case. In certain instances, a significant burden is placed on Veterans
having to travel for appeal hearings in person. Many times, this travel
comes at a great physical and financial cost to the Veteran,
particularly if the Veteran resides a far distance from where the
appeal hearing is being held.
H.R. 2119, the Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act, introduced by
Representative Raul Ruiz (D-CA-36), would require the VA's Board of
Veterans Appeals to offer alternative sites and/or technical modalities
to Veterans for their appeal hearings, if these alternatives allow
earlier scheduling of the hearing than otherwise would be scheduled. In
order to ensure a Veteran can have their appeal at the earliest
possible date, the bill requires the Board of Veterans Appeals to
determine whether to hold the hearing at its principal location or at
another VA facility or other Federal facility and then whether the
Veteran must be present or can attend through the use of
videoconferencing. It also provides the Veteran making the appeal the
freedom to request a different type of hearing or a different time or
location.
AUSN supports H.R. 2119, which seeks to provide more options to
Veterans to ease the process of appealing a claim by making available
additional means by which a Veteran can appear before a Board of
Appeals. This is allowed through the use of expansion of available
locations for such an appeal to occur or through teleconferencing
capabilities. As a result, according to the VA, this legislation would
reduce costs for both the VA and Veterans. In addition, AUSN supports
language changes through an amendment being offered whereby, ``If so
requested, the Board SHALL grant such requests and ensure that the
hearing is scheduled at the earliest possible date without any undue
delay or other prejudice to the appellant,'' thus providing more
flexibility for the Veteran when addressing his or her claims appeal.
H.R. 2529: The Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act
H.R. 2529, the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act, amends the
definition of ``spouse'' for purposes of Veterans benefits provisions
to require an individual to be considered a spouse if the marriage of
the individual is valid in the state or territory in which the marriage
was entered into or, in the case of a marriage entered into outside any
state or territory, if the marriage is valid in the place in which the
marriage was entered into and the marriage could have been entered into
in a state or territory.
AUSN, at this time, does not take a position on H.R. 2529 due to
insufficient feedback from our own membership.
H.R. 3671: Amending Title 38 United States Code (USC) To Expand the
Eligibility for a Medallion Furnished by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to Signify the Veteran Status of a Deceased Individual
Currently, Section 2306(d)(4) of Title 38, United States Code,
provides that, when requested, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs will
provide an appropriate government headstone, marker or medallion at the
expense of the United States for certain Veterans. From 18 October 1978
until 31 October 1990, the VA paid headstone and marker allowances to
surviving families for purchase of private headstones and markers on
behalf of Veterans who were interred in private cemeteries in lieu of
the VA providing a government headstone or marker. This benefit was
eliminated on 1 November 1990; accordingly, from 2 November 1990
through 11 September 2001, whereby the VA paid no assistance in the
purchase of a private headstone or marker for Veterans qualified for
burial in a national or state Veterans' cemetery. Between 2001 and
2006, as a pilot program, the VA provided government headstones and
markers to qualifying Veterans regardless of whether or not they had
privately purchased a headstone. In 2007 the VA made this program
permanent and included a medallion as an alternative option,
retroactive to 1 November 1990 for those Veterans who died on or after
that date to affix the medallion to a grave marker.
Today, many Veterans and their loved ones do not understand why
they do not qualify for the medallion, leaving the 1 November 1990 date
as just an arbitrary starting point for the new medallion affixation
benefit. Accordingly, the VA has submitted a request in the form of a
legislative proposal to remove the 1 November 1990 date as a
requirement for eligibility for a medallion to be requested to be
affixed to an existing headstone or marker.
H.R. 3671, introduced by House Veterans' Affairs Committee
Chairman, Representative Jeff Miller (R-FL-01), which would expand the
eligibility for the medallion to be furnished by the VA for all
Veterans whose families wish to have a medallion recognizing Veteran
status affixed to an existing headstone or marker. This would also
eliminate the 1 November 1990 date which is the current existing
`benchmark' for qualification for the medallion. In an October 2013
briefing with the VA's Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs, Mr. Steve
L. Muro, the eligibility issue for the medallion benefit was further
discussed, including the 1 November 1990 date of eligibility. Under
Secretary Muro reiterated the VA's support for eliminating this date in
order to qualify for this benefit. Accordingly, Chairman Miller's bill,
H.R. 3671, would remedy this situation.
AUSN supports H.R. 3671, which eliminates the 1 November 1990 date
of eligibility and expands the qualifications for affixing a Veteran
status medallion to an existing Veteran headstone or marker. AUSN is
happy to join other Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs), as well as
the VA which has previously expressed support for eliminating the `on
or after' date of 1 November 1990 to qualify for a Veteran status
medallion for a headstone or marker.
H.R. 3876: The Burial With Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has stated that the
nation's homeless Veterans are predominantly male, with roughly 8%
being female. The majority of homeless Veterans are single; live in
urban areas; and suffer from mental illness, alcohol and/or substance
abuse or co-occurring disorders. About 12% of the total adult homeless
population is Veterans. Roughly 40% of all homeless Veterans are
African American or Hispanic, despite only accounting for 10.4% and
3.4% of the U.S. Veteran population, respectively according to the
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. Homeless Veterans are also
younger on average than the total Veteran population, with
approximately 9% between the ages of 18 and 30, and 41% between the
ages of 31 and 50. On the other hand, only 5% of all Veterans are
between the ages of 18 and 30 and less than 23% are between 31 and 50.
How many homeless Veterans are there? Although flawless counts are
impossible to come by, the transient nature of homeless populations
presents a major difficulty. However, the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD) has estimated that 57,849 Veterans are
homeless on any given night. Approximately 12,700 Veterans of Operation
Enduring Freedom (OEF), Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation New
Dawn (OND) were homeless in 2010. In addition, about 1.4 million other
Veterans are considered at risk of homelessness due to poverty, lack of
support networks and dismal living conditions in overcrowded or
substandard housing. As a result of the transient nature of homeless
populations and lack of proper identification or information, it is
difficult to determine next-of-kin (NOK) when a homeless Veteran has
passed. There are institutions, however, that exist to help honor and
recognize the service of deceased homeless Veterans, such as the
Dignity Memorial Homeless Veterans Burial Program (http://
www.dignitymemorial.com/en-us/about-us/one-thousand-veterans-
burial.page). The Dignity Memorial Homeless Veterans Burial Program has
provided military burials and services for homeless and indigent
Veterans since 2000 and has worked with National Veterans Cemeteries
around the country to provide more than 1,000 Veterans with the
recognition and honor they are due.
H.R. 3876, the Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act, introduced by
Representative Al Green (D-TX-09) along with Representative Corrine
Brown (D-FL-5) and Representative John Lewis (D-GA-5), would direct the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program to make grants to
eligible entities to provide for the cost of burials for homeless
Veterans who: (1) Are eligible to be buried in a National Cemetery and
(2) are determined by the Secretary to have no next-of-kin (NOK).
AUSN recognizes and appreciates the intent of H.R. 3876, however,
it remains uncertain as to the impact the legislation would have upon
the VA and its resources, especially in the determination and
availability of grant money to fund the program. Despite this concern,
AUSN is sympathetic to the important issue of providing for proper
burials and memorials for our nation's homeless Veterans and looks
forward to ensuring that those deceased homeless Veterans get the
recognition of their service, sacrifices and honor that they so
deserve. AUSN stands ready to help remedy this problem, as well as the
challenges faced to combat Veteran homelessness.
H.R. 4095: The Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA)
Act of 2014
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) receives about 1.25 million
claims for Veterans disability benefits per year. As it exists today, a
disability rating is assigned a percentage by the VA after a physical
examination for all areas of the body for which the Veteran is claiming
disability. However, a cash benefit is only provided to Veterans with a
rating of 10 percent or more. The basic benefit amount ranges from $127
to $2,769 a month, depending on the disability rating. However, given
the economic situation faced by many of our Veterans, this compensation
may not be adequate to meet their needs, as costs of living continue to
rise. The unique circumstances that arise in the retirement years of a
career servicemember, especially if those servicemembers suffer from
service-connected disabilities or other ailments that require
dependency or indemnity compensation (DIC), often require that their
benefits be adjusted to the ever rising cost-of-living. Annual COLA
increases are necessary to ensure that our nation's servicemembers'
retirement benefits reflect the current fiscal environment.
AUSN was pleased to see S. 893, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-
Living-Adjustment (COLA) Act, companion legislation to H.R. 569, passed
into law (P.L. 113-52), whereby the rates of Veterans disability
compensation was increased by 1.5%, beginning 1 January 2014. Although
this was a great step to continue to improve Veteran benefits, these
annual COLA bills consume a significant amount of Congress' time every
year. Although not specified in this hearing, instead of having to
return to the issue over and over again, AUSN applauds the mission of
H.R. 4096, the American Heroes COLA Act of 2014, formerly H.R. 570,
sponsored by Representative Jon Runyan (R-NJ-06), which would make the
annual adjustments automatic based, on the Consumer Price Index (CPI)
and increases in benefits under the Social Security Act. The rates of
disability compensation for Veterans with service-connected
disabilities and the rates of DIC for survivors of certain service-
connected disabled Veterans would become an automatic increase, which
would save Congress time by alleviating an annual issue that is usually
passed with little to no opposition, and it protects Veteran benefits
from being delayed by possible Congressional delays, which have become
a very real issue in the past few years.
In lieu of a permanent solution, AUSN supports H.R. 4095, the
Veterans' Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Act of 2014, introduced by
Representative Jon Runyan (R-NJ-06) and Representative Dina Titus (D-
NV-01), which would provide for an increase, effective 1 December 2014,
in the rates of compensation for Veterans with service-connected
disabilities and the rates of DIC for the survivors of certain disabled
Veterans. This legislation continues to provide the quality of life
guarantees made to our nation's servicemembers and their dependents.
H.R. 4102: A Bill to Amend Title 38, United States Code, to Clarify
That the Estate of a Deceased Veteran May Receive Certain Accrued
Benefits Upon the Death of the Veteran
Current law states that only a Veteran's spouse or children under
the age of eighteen are entitled to receive retroactive Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) disability benefits compensation in the event of
a claimant's death. Unfortunately, history has shown that 2.6 percent
of Veterans with pending VA disability benefits claims die while
waiting on the completion of the claims process. One example of this
concerning trend is the experience that Indianapolis Veteran, Sgt. 1st
Class Shelton Hickerson, USA (Ret.) had. He initially filed a claim in
2000 but was denied benefits. Mr. Hickerson decided to appeal the
decision. Eventually, after waiting more than 10 years for a decision
regarding his appeal, Mr. Hickerson was awarded his claim for 100%
disability; however, he died the same day his appeal was approved.
Consequently, his daughter, Sharon, was not eligible to receive any
compensation on behalf of her father due to the fact that she was over
18 and not otherwise dependent upon her father.
H.R. 4102, a bill introduced by Representative Jeff Miller (R-FL-
01) and Representative Jackie Walorski (R-IN-02), would allow for a
Veteran's estate to be awarded VA payments consistent with the general
principles of estate law. In addition, the bill would correct the wrong
done to the Hickerson family by directing the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to pay to the estate of Shelton Hickerson the sum of $377,342
representing the amount that the Secretary awarded to Shelton Hickerson
on the date of his death that was not payable to any survivor or his
estate.
AUSN wholeheartedly supports H.R. 4102. It is imperative that
Congress continue to improve upon the ways our Veterans are compensated
for providing such a valuable service to the nation by ensuring this
scenario which happened to the family of Sgt. 1st Class Shelton
Hickerson never happens again. VA claims compensation should continue
to be made on or after the date of the Veteran recipient's death,
payable to their estate and rightful beneficiaries. This legislation is
the least our nation can do to bring some comfort to the families of
Veterans who are laid to rest before their VA claim is finalized.
H.R. 4141: A Bill to Amend Title 38 United States Code (USC) to
Authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Enter Into Enhanced Use
Leases for Excess Property of the National Cemetery Administration That
is Unsuitable for Burial Purposes
Currently, governing Enhanced Use Leases (EULs), long a method for
the VA to make productive use of underutilized property, was changed in
2012 to make homeless Veterans and Veterans at risk of homelessness the
sole beneficiaries of the program. Beginning in 1991, Congress gave the
VA the authority to enter into EULs with outside developers to improve,
maintain and make use of VA property for a period of time. The
arrangement was made possible as part of the Veterans Benefits Programs
Improvement Act (P.L. 102-86). Until 2012, the VA was able to enter
into any lease that furthered the mission of the VA and enhanced the
use of the property or that would result in the improvement of medical
care and services to Veterans in the geographic area. The maximum lease
term was 75 years, and the VA was to charge ``fair consideration'' for
the lease, including in-kind payment. While EULs involved non-housing
purposes (e.g., child care centers, golf courses and parking
facilities), a number of the EULs awarded prior to 2012 involved
housing for homeless Veterans. In 2012, as part of the Honoring
Americas Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act (P.L. 112-
154), Congress limited the circumstances under which the VA may enter
into EULs to ``the provision of supportive housing.'' Supportive
housing is defined as housing combined with supportive services for
Veterans or their families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Among the types of housing that qualify are transitional, permanent and
single room occupancy housing, congregate living, independent living or
assisted living facilities. Leases that were entered into prior to 1
January 2012, will be subject to the law as it previously existed.
While the VA does not have to receive consideration for an EUL under
the amended law, if it does receive consideration, it may only be
``cash at fair value'' and not in-kind payment. Each year, the VA is to
release a report about the consideration received for EULs.
H.R. 4141, introduced by Representative Ander Crenshaw (R-FL-04),
would enable the use of excess property of the National Cemetery
Administration, deemed unsuitable for burials, for the use of building
memorials that support the mission of the VA. It authorizes
organizations to request the use of land on National Cemeteries to
include the creation of memorials and pavilions paid for by private
funds.
AUSN recognizes and appreciates the intent of H.R. 4141,
legislation that will honor our fallen and past Veterans and provide
space for their loved ones to gather and reflect. It is important to
remember our Veterans, as our nation moves past over a decade of war,
and provide their families with opportunities within organizations to
build memorials that show respect for the honor, courage and commitment
of their loved ones. Additionally, the ability of organizations to
build memorials would enhance the education of generations to come on
sacrifies made by their forefathers in service to our nation.
However, it is unclear to AUSN regarding the criteria the National
Cemetery Administration uses to define `unsuitable for burials,' and we
question if it is `unsuitable' for burials, how such land might be
suitable for other purposes. Additionally, AUSN is unclear at this time
whether the bill would impact current EUL language regarding combating
homeless Veterans and the costs to the VA for allowing outside
organizations to enter into lease agreements on land overseen by the
National Cemetery Administration.
H.R. 4191: The Quicker Benefits Delivery Act
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) receives about 1.25 million
claims for Veterans disability benefits per year. As identified by the
VA, for a Veteran to qualify within the claims backlog, they must be
waiting 125 days or more for the VA to process their claim. As of the
most recent 2014 quarterly report of the Veterans Benefits
Administration (VBA), there are over 636,000 claims pending and over
384,000 in backlog. (http://www.vba.va.gov/REPORTS/mmwr/
#characteristics). For example, according to the Center for
Investigative Reporting, the average wait time for Veteran filing a
claim for the first time in a St. Paul, Minnesota regional office is
180 days! Although the VA has stated that it hopes to end the claims
backlog by 2015, the complexity of claims, the high volume of
submissions and the oftentimes inaccurate, incomplete or insufficient
medical records or evidence that the VA has to determine is valid and
sufficient for a Fully Developed Claim (FDC) results in delays and adds
to the backlog. Veterans file an FDC for an injury, disability or
condition believed to have occurred or been aggravated by military
service or a condition caused or aggravated by an existing service-
related condition. The VA, however, oftentimes requires that the
Veteran go into a VA hospital to get evaluated in order to submit a
disability claim, for an FDC for example, whereby the Veteran will
oftentimes experience long wait times, delaying the final claims
process even further.
H.R. 4191, the Quicker Benefits Delivery Act, builds off of last
year's bill, H.R. 1980, both introduced by Representative Tim Walz (D-
MN-01), which would amend Title 38, United States Code (USC), to
improve the treatment of medical evidence provided by non-Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) medical professionals in support of claims for
disability compensation under the laws administered by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs. The bill, in the form of H.R. 4191, would enable
those who have medical evidence of their ailment from a non-VA medical
professional that is deemed `sufficiently complete' to have their
claims reviewed by the VA regarding their full disability compensation
under the Acceptable Clinical Evidence initiative. In the bill, the VA
is also directed to accept private medical evidence for the completion
of disability claim, whereby such evidence shall be used for a
`sufficiently complete' claim that is competent, credible, probative
and containing such information as may be required to make a decision
on the claim. Finally, the bill requires a report by the VA on the
progress of the Acceptable Clinical Evidence initiative and the number
of claims eligible for the initiative by each fiscal year, further
improving Congressional oversight of the VA.
AUSN supports H.R. 4191, since it seeks to help end the backlog of
claims by conserving VA resources and enabling quicker, more accurate
decisions for Veterans by allowing private medical evidence
documentation that is competent, credible, probative and otherwise
adequate for rating purposes to be used when supporting a claim. This
legislation removes bureaucratic red tape by allowing Veterans to see
local doctors for their initial diagnosis and avoid long wait times at
VA hospitals.
AUSN continues its efforts to support legislation that seeks to
help end the claims backlog by streamlining efforts within the VA. It
is important that every reasonable action by the VA and Congress be
taken to ensure that Veterans receive the benefits they have earned
through their sacrifices in a timely and effective manner. AUSN
continues to make this a top priority, and we will continue to push,
pressure, publicize and prioritize the disability claims backlog issue
until there is a successful conclusion to ending the VA claims backlog.
Conclusion
We firmly believe that many of these bills will benefit our
nation's Veterans and honor their commitment and service to this
country. In addition, we look forward to hearing of their future
success and consideration during this session of Congress and we are
available to help answer any and all questions. AUSN stands ready to be
the Voice for America's Sailors, abroad and upon their return home, and
looks forward to working with Congress and the VA on serving our
Veterans.
Thank you.
AUSN Executive Summary of Written Testimony
The following are AUSN's positions on the bills H.R. 2018, H.R.
2088, H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3971, H.R. 3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102,
H.R. 4141, and H.R. 4191;
AUSN supports H.R. 2018, the Honor Those Who Served Act, which
seeks to help streamline applications for headstones or markers,
especially for those who served in many past conflicts that helped
shape our nation, so they may be properly honored for their service who
are currently not recognized just because of deterioration of graves or
the inability to determine Next-of-Kin (NOK).
AUSN recognizes and appreciates H.R. 2088's intent to establish
this pilot program in order to utilize the highest performing offices
to adjudicate the most difficult medical conditions, however, AUSN
believes that this pilot program should not distract from the overall
goal of eliminating the claims backlog or marginalize existing Regional
Offices (RO's).
AUSN supports H.R. 2119, Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act,
providing options to Veterans to ease the process of appealing a claim,
making available additional means a Veteran can appear before a Board
of Appeals.
AUSN, at this time, does not take a position on H.R. 2529 due to
insufficient feedback from our own membership.
AUSN supports H.R. 3671, which eliminates the 1 November 1990 date
of eligibility and expands the qualifications for affixing a Veteran
status medallion to an existing Veteran headstone or marker.
AUSN recognizes and appreciates the intent of H.R. 3876, Burial
With Dignity for Heroes Act, however remains uncertain as to the impact
the legislation would have upon the VA and its resources, especially in
the determination and availability of grant money to fund the program.
AUSN supports H.R. 4095, the Veterans' Cost-of-Living Adjustment
(COLA) Act of 2014, which would provide for an increase, effective 1
December 2014, in the rates of compensation for Veterans with service-
connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity
compensation (DIC) for the survivors of certain disabled Veterans.
AUSN wholeheartedly supports H.R. 4102. It is imperative that
Congress continues to improve upon the ways our Veterans are
compensated for providing such a valuable service to the nation by
ensuring this scenario which happened to the family of Sgt. 1st Class
Shelton Hickerson never happens again.
AUSN recognizes and appreciates the intent of H.R. 4141,
legislation that will honor our fallen and past Veterans and provide
space for their loved ones to gather and reflect, however, it is
unclear to AUSN regarding the criteria the National Cemetery
Administration uses to define `unsuitable for burials' and, how might
such land be suitable for other purposes, as well as if the bill would
impact current Enhanced Use Leases (EUL) language regarding combating
homeless Veterans and what costs, if any, would be incurred on the VA
for allowing organizations to enter into lease agreements.
AUSN supports H.R. 4191, Quicker Benefits Delivery Act, as it seeks
to help end the backlog of claims by conserving VA resources and
enabling quicker, more accurate decisions for Veterans by allowing
private medical evidence documentation that is competent, credible,
probative, and otherwise adequate for rating purposes, to be used when
supporting a claim.
Prepared Statement of Raymond C. Kelley, Director, on H.R. 2018, H.R.
2088, H.R. 2119, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3671, H.R. 3876, H.R. 4095, H.R. 4102,
H.R. 4141, and H.R. 4191
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
On behalf of the men and women of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of
the United States (VFW) and our Auxiliaries, I would like to thank you
for the opportunity to testify on today's pending legislation.
The VFW supports H.R. 2018, with recommendations:
The VFW supports revising 38 CFR 38.632 to allow agencies outside a
veteran's or descendant's next-of-kin (NOK) to request a headstone or
grave marker from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to
commemorate an eligible veteran. The VFW encourages the Committee to
ensure federal policy properly balances the desires of the veteran's
family and those who seek to appropriately memorialize those who
served, with the religious beliefs of the veteran.
On July 1, 2009, the VA redefined who may apply for a government-
furnished headstone or marker for an eligible veteran or family member.
The VA's newest definition limits eligibility to apply for a headstone
or marker to the NOK or a descendant of the NOK. The VFW appreciates
the intent behind the regulation, which ensures that family members are
included in the decision-making process for memorializing loved ones.
However, the VFW also believes that deceased veterans deserve marked
and well-maintained grave sites in the absence of NOK or descendants.
To balance these two notions, the VFW recommends the Committee make two
changes to the bill's language:
First, the VFW suggests language should be included that affords
the descendants of veterans who served during WWI or in previous wars
the right to have a headstone or marker removed or replaced if it was
not requested by NOK. As written, the legislation provides that ``any
person'' may request a headstone or marker for a veteran who served on
active duty 62 years prior to the request date for a marker. This
language would permit an historian to request a headstone for a veteran
who dies in 2014, but who served in Korea 63 years ago, without the
consent of the veteran's family. The VFW believes it is safe to presume
that those who served during WWII and after still have living children
or grandchildren who should be consulted before a marker is ordered.
However, an outside agent should be permitted to request a headstone or
marker for any veteran if the applicant can prove the veteran has no
direct living descendants.
Second, the VFW urges the committee to ensure the legislation does
not imply that an ``emblem of belief'' is required to be included on a
headstone or marker. Currently, the legislation reads that ``in the
case of a request for a headstone or marker under this section for a
decedent for whom insufficient information exists regarding the
religious beliefs of the individual . . . the person requesting the
headstone or marker may request a headstone or marker without an emblem
of belief'' (EOB). The VFW believes that any outside agency must prove
that the veteran desired an EOB on his or her headstone or marker
before a request for an EOB is granted, unless otherwise approved by a
descendant of the veteran. This change will ensure the religious
freedoms of the veteran are honored.
The VFW supports the intent of H.R. 2088, but has concerns:
The VFW appreciates the idea to boost support for the best
performing regional offices in order to focus additional attention on
the most complex and time-consuming medical conditions, which is
intended to reduce processing times and error rates of disability
claims. However, the VFW is concerned that the pilot may have
unintended consequences, mainly the adverse effect it could have on
Veterans Service Organization's (VSO) representation activities.
The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) now has the
technological tools to assess the capacity of offices to handle more
work and move work to those locations. The VBA is already increasingly
transferring cases from offices with high workloads to those more
capable of processing the work more quickly--as would occur under this
legislation. It makes sense that as the VA ``brokers'' more claims or
parts of claims, they identify specific regional offices to adjudicate
complicated medical conditions, as this legislation seeks to achieve.
However, we know that shifting claims away from the veterans'
geographic area has unintended consequences. Brokering can interfere
with VSO representational activity, which benefits from the close
proximity between service officers and VA personnel. Such proximity
allows for problems to be fixed quickly and informally, helping
veterans avoid unnecessary appeals and receive benefits quicker.
Currently, service officers have no ability to identify which cases
have been brokered or the status of those cases unless they search
cases one by one. We urge Congress to develop policies which mitigate
the negative effects of brokering.
Before this or a similar pilot moves forward, VA must devise
adequate workload management tools for VSOs. VSOs need to receive
electronic notification of work performed on claims, and unfettered
access to electronic claim files, and access to the VA personnel
handling the brokered work. It is critical that the pilot does not
leave VSO service officers behind.
The VFW supports H.R. 2119, with recommendations:
The VFW believes that video teleconferencing (VTC) should be the
default method for hearings before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.
Although conducting hearings through VTC will expedite the adjudication
of claims and eliminate substantial travel costs to the veteran and VA,
we feel strongly that veterans should have the opportunity to elect to
attend the hearing in person. We recommend the committee amend the bill
to indicate that the VA must notify the veteran of his or her right to
an in-person hearing and ``shall'' grant such a request.
The VFW supports H.R. 2529, with a recommendation:
The bill amends Title 38 to ensure all veterans have equal access
to VA benefits. We recommend that the Committee amend section 103(c) of
such title by striking ``according to'' and all that follows to the
period at the end and inserting ``in accordance with section 101(31)''
of this amendment title; otherwise, the rest of the legislation is
moot. With this amendment, the VFW supports the bill.
The VFW supports H.R. 3671:
Currently, VA may furnish a medallion on a headstone or marker for
graves that are marked with a private headstone or marker for veterans
who died on or after November 1, 1990. This bill rightfully expands
this honor to all veterans regardless of their date of death. The VFW
fully supports the legislation.
The VFW opposes H.R. 3876:
The VFW believes that all veterans should be buried in an honorable
manner that is reflective of the individual's sacrifice, regardless of
their financial situation. The VFW has provided over a thousand
qualified homeless veterans with honorable burials in VA or state
cemeteries free of charge, with assistance from Dignity Memorial's
Homeless Veterans Burial Program.
The VFW appreciates the intent of H.R. 3876, which seeks to ensure
homeless veterans are buried with honor by establishing a grant program
within the VA for burial of homeless veterans. This bill would allow
private companies to be reimbursed for all interment costs of eligible
homeless veterans, including the preparation of the body,
transportation, clothing, casket and coordination of the funeral
service. The VFW believes this to be unnecessary, and would cause a
disparity in benefits between veterans with no next of kin and those
with families.
Thanks to the work of this committee, VA coordinates interment with
local medical examiners and agencies, to ensure that eligible veterans
with no next-of-kin are laid properly to rest in one of VA's 131
national cemeteries. The VA will partially reimburse families or
funeral homes for burial and funeral costs of any eligible veteran. In
cases where there is no next-of-kin, the VA provides a casket, urn, or
another acceptable burial container. In addition, eligible veterans
receive a gravesite at any national cemetery with available space,
opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a headstone or
marker, a burial flag, and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no
cost. The VFW does not believe the VA should grant additional memorial
benefits to a veteran based on the individual's personal circumstances.
The VFW believes that the current memorial benefits are sufficient
to ensure a dignified burial for any veteran, including homeless
veterans, with one exception. As of January 10, 2014, the VA can no
longer pay the cost of transporting the remains of certain deceased
veterans to State, Tribal, or private cemeteries. The VFW believes the
Committee should expand VA's current authority to pay for the cost of
transporting the remains of certain deceased veterans to the closest
National cemetery for burial to include transportation for burials in a
State or Tribal cemetery, and a private cemetery when appropriate.
The VFW strongly supports H.R. 4095:
Disabled veterans, as well as their surviving spouses and children,
depend on their disability and dependency and indemnity compensation to
bridge the gap of lost earnings and savings that their disability has
caused. Each year, veterans wait anxiously to find out if they will
receive a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). There is no automatic
trigger that increases these forms of compensation for veterans and
their dependents. Annually, veterans wait for Congress to provide the
same adjustment that is automatic to Social Security and other Federal
beneficiaries.
The VFW supports this legislation that will bring parity to VA
disability and survivor recipients' compensation by providing a COLA
beginning December 1, 2014, so long as VA disability, pension, and
survivor benefits continue to be calculated with the currently used
Consumer Price Index-W and not be adjusted to the Chained Consumer
Price Index.
The VFW strongly supports H.R. 4102:
H.R. 4102 will allow payments issued on the date of the veteran's
death to be awarded to the veteran's estate, consistent with general
principles of estate law.
Sometimes, disability claims are not approved by VA until after the
claimant dies. In 2013, the VA paid $437 million in retroactive
benefits to survivors of nearly 19,500 veterans who died while waiting
for benefits. This represents a dramatic increase from 2000, when the
widows, parents, and children of fewer than 6,400 veterans were paid
$7.9 million for claims filed before their loved one's death. Long wait
times are contributing to tens of thousands of veterans being approved
for disability benefits only after they are dead.
To make matters worse, under current law, only a veteran's spouse,
children under the age of 18, and parents are eligible to receive
retroactive VA disability benefits compensation in the event of a
veteran claimant's death. This means veterans who have fought VA until
their death, over benefits they earned with their service, are unable
to pass their benefits to their adult children. In many cases, the
adult children act as the veteran's caregiver, and should be entitled
to the veteran's disability benefit if the veteran dies before ever
receiving compensation from VA.
The VFW supports the intent of H.R. 4141:
Beginning in 1991, Congress authorized VA to enter into Enhanced-
Use Leases (EUL) to better serve our Nation's veterans. Through EUL
cooperative arrangements with other public and private entities, VA
transformed empty and underutilized property into constructive projects
that contribute to VA's mission. However, when Congress extended VA's
EUL authority in 2012, Congress limited VA's leasing authority to only
building supportive housing.
The limited EUL authority impedes VA's capacity to enter into a
wide variety of contracts that would benefit veterans, including the
ability of organizations to build veterans memorials on National
Cemetery Administration (NCA) property. While the VFW agrees that NCA
should have the ability to enter in EULs for the purposes of
constructing memorials, as this legislation would do, the VFW believes
that Congress should give the entire Department the authority to enter
into innovative public or private agreements.
The VFW strongly supports H.R. 4191:
Consistent with the Independent Budget co-authored by the VFW, we
believe Congress should immediately ``pass legislation to require that
private medical evidence be given due deference when it is competent,
credible, probative, and otherwise adequate for rating purposes.''
Undersecretary Hickey has taken significant action in recent years
to ensure VA Regional Offices break down bureaucratic hurdles that
veterans face when applying for benefits, including maximizing the use
of private medical evidence. The VBA eliminated work credit for VA
Rating Specialists who request superfluous compensation medical exams.
For this reason, VA may claim the legislation is ``unnecessary and
duplicative.'' However, we have found that some employees still resist
giving private medical evidence the same weight as VA medical evidence.
To further support efforts to encourage the use of private medical
evidence, Congress should amend title 38, section 5103A(d)(1) to
provide that, when a claimant provides private medical evidence
adequate for rating purposes, the Secretary shall not request a VA
medical examination. This will encourage the VBA to make greater use of
private medical evidence when making claims decisions, which would help
eliminate the months that veterans spend waiting for medical
examinations; and also save the VHA the cost of unnecessary
examinations, and reducing appointment wait times, making this a win-
win for both VA and veterans.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony, and I look forward to
answering any questions you and the subcommittee may have.
Information Required by Rule XI2(g)(4) of the House of
Representatives
Pursuant to Rule XI2(g)(4) of the House of Representatives, VFW has
not received any federal grants in Fiscal Year 2013, nor has it
received any federal grants in the two previous Fiscal Years.
Prepared Statement of Thomas Murphy, and Patricia Lynch Watts
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for
inviting us here today to present our views on several bills that would
affect Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits programs and
services. Accompanying me today are Ms. Patricia Lynch Watts, Director,
Legislative and Regulatory Service, and Mr. David Barrans, Deputy
Assistant General Counsel.
At this time, cost estimates are not available for the following
bills: H.R. 2088, H.R. 2529, H.R. 3671, H.R. 4102, H.R. 4141, and H.R.
4191.
H.R. 2018
Section 2(a) of H.R. 2018, the ``Honor Those Who Served Act of
2013,'' would amend section 2306 of Title 38, United States Code
(U.S.C.), to specify the persons who are eligible to request a
headstone or marker to commemorate an eligible decedent. More
specifically, the bill would make the following individuals eligible to
request a headstone or marker: (1) The decedent's next-of-kin (NOK);
(2) a person authorized in writing by the NOK; (3) a personal
representative authorized in writing by the decedent; (4) when there is
no known NOK or authorized representative, specified persons and
entities familiar with the research sources and methods necessary to
prove the identity of the decedent; or (5) in the case of a Veteran who
served on active duty in the Armed Forces at least 62 years prior to
the date on which the headstone or marker is requested, any person.
Section (2)(a) of the bill would also specify that, under certain
circumstances, a person requesting a headstone or marker may request
that the headstone or marker be furnished without an emblem of belief.
The amendments made by the bill would apply with respect to a request
for a headstone or marker submitted after the date of enactment of the
bill.
VA does not support H.R. 2018 because we believe the issue would be
better addressed through the regulatory process. We interpret
Congressional intent to be to ensure that there are no unmarked graves
of Veterans. We share that goal and seek to ensure public input into
the revised definition that is achievable through the issuance of a
proposed rule.
VA is in the process of substantially rewriting the regulations
governing the benefits administered by NCA, including the regulation
governing applications for headstones and markers. The current
headstone and marker application process is governed by section 38.632,
title 38, Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.), which defines an
``applicant'' to mean the decedent's NOK, a person authorized in
writing by the NOK, or a personal representative authorized in writing
by the decedent to apply for a headstone or marker. In this way,
section 2(a) of the bill would codify the definition of ``applicant''
at 38 C.F.R. Sec. 38.632(b)(1) but add two new classes of persons and
entities eligible to apply for headstones and markers. VA promulgated
the existing definition of an applicant to ensure that family members
are not left out of the decision-making process for memorializing loved
ones, a very personal matter. However, VA understands the concerns with
the current regulatory definition of applicant, is in the process of
drafting a proposed rule to amend the definition of applicant to
address those concerns, and will solicit and consider comments from the
public in connection with publication of that proposed rule.
VA's pending regulatory process seeks to provide an effective means
of addressing these concerns with the benefit of input from all
affected and interested parties and will ensure that VA is able to
adapt these policies as needed to address identified issues. We are
concerned that certain aspects of the bill may give rise to operational
concerns that could be avoided through rulemaking. For example, some of
the bill's terms--such as the references to ``a local historian, or a
genealogist or other person familiar with the research sources and
methods necessary to prove the identity of the decedent''--are vague
and may lead to difficulties implementing this legislation. Further,
paragraph (h)(5) of 38 U.S.C. Sec. 2306, as would be added by this
bill, would allow ``any person'' to request a headstone or marker for a
Veteran who served 62 years prior to the date of the request, even if
the Veteran died only recently and there is an NOK. This could lead to
an increased number of competing or conflicting requests concerning the
same Veteran. VA also has a technical concern with the bill language.
Section 2(a) would add at the end of current section 2306 new
subsections (h) and (i). However, section 2306 currently ends with a
subsection (h), which specifically lists certain prohibitions on the
provision of headstones and markers.
VA does not have sufficient data to estimate the costs of this
bill.
H.R. 2088
Section 1(a) of H.R. 2088 would require the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to carry out a 3-year pilot program under which the Secretary
would establish in the Department of Veterans Affairs 12 ``claims
adjudication centers of excellence'' (COE). Section 1(b) of the bill
would direct the Secretary to select as the locations of the COEs the
three highest performing regional offices in each of the four areas of
VBA. The bill would also direct the Secretary to evaluate performance
based upon the quality and accuracy of ratings of each of the regional
offices and the average number of days a claim submitted to each of the
regional offices is pending.
Section 1(c) of the bill would require each of the selected COEs to
focus on adjudicating claims relating to one medical condition selected
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; such conditions would be selected
based on being ``among the most complex and time consuming'' for
adjudication purposes. Section 1(d) would require each employee of a
COE to receive specific training related to the selected medical
condition for his or her COE and focus on that condition to the extent
practicable. Section 1(d)(3) would authorize the Secretary to assign
additional full-time employees to a COE and allow the director of the
regional office from which the employee came to hire an additional
full-time employee at the regional office. Section 1(e) of the bill
would require the Secretary to select the medical conditions not later
than 90 days after the date of enactment of the Act.
Although VA recognizes value in creating COEs, VA does not support
this bill. For COEs to be successful, every aspect of claims processing
must occur electronically. While disability compensation claims are
processed electronically in the Veterans Benefits Management System
(VBMS), functionality to support workload management at the detailed
level that would be required to create COEs as specified in the bill is
not scheduled to be released until fiscal year (FY) 2015. In addition,
VA is concerned about selecting COEs based only on rating accuracy and
the average number of days claims have been pending at a point in time.
These measures vary by reporting period and do not reflect several
other factors that would need to be considered in defining the
``highest performing regional offices'' in each area.
Further, VA is currently in the process of implementing various
initiatives focused on improving claims processing accuracy and
efficiency. VBA is developing the National Work Queue (NWQ), a
paperless workload management initiative designed to improve VBA's
overall production capacity and assist with reaching the Secretary's
goals of completing all claims in 125 days at a 98-percent accuracy
level in 2015. The NWQ is being implemented in a three-phased approach.
The initial Transition Phase is currently underway and builds upon the
success of the workload management strategy employed under VBA's Oldest
Claims Initiative. Starting in FY 2015, as workload management
functionality is deployed in VBMS, VBA will begin the second phase, to
centrally manage and distribute the claims inventory from the national
level. In this phase, VBA will still distribute work to regional
offices at the claim level rather than at the issue level. In the final
phase, following further VBMS development, individual issues will be
routed, nationally, to individual employees, based on the nature of the
claim and the skill set of the particular claims processor.
VBA has also reorganized its workforce into cross-functional teams
that work together on one of three segmented lanes: express, special
operations, and core. These lanes are based on the complexity and
priority of claims. Employees are assigned to lanes based on their
experience and skill levels. Each regional office has a Special
Operations Lane that applies intense focus and case management on
specific categories of claims, such as claims from Veterans who are
homeless, terminally ill, former Prisoners of War, or seriously
injured. Employees in the Special Operations Lane receive specialized
training on these types of claims.
VBA continues to invest in numerous people, process, and technology
initiatives to eliminate the claims backlog and plans to revisit the
concept of a COE pilot in FY 2016. However, creating COEs before this
timeframe would force VBA to redirect vital resources and hinder our
ability to achieve its FY 2015 timeliness and quality goals.
Costs related to this bill are not available at this time.
H.R. 2119
Section 2(1) of H.R. 2119, the ``Veterans Access to Speedy Review
Act,'' would amend section 7107 of title 38, U.S.C., to allow the Board
of Veterans' Appeals (Board) to determine, for purposes of scheduling a
hearing for the earliest possible date, whether the hearing will be
held at the Board's principal location or at an appropriate Federal
facility located within the area served by a regional office of the
Department, and also whether to provide a hearing through the use of
video conferencing. Section 2(1) would also permit the appellant to
request a different location or type of hearing upon notification of
the Board's determination and give the Board discretion to grant such a
request. Section 2(2) of the bill would remove the provision in
paragraph (e)(2) of section 7107 that states that, if an appellant
declines to participate in a hearing through use of electronic means,
the opportunity for a hearing before the Board at its principal
location or at an appropriate Federal facility located within the area
served by a regional office of the Department will not be affected.
VA fully supports H.R. 2119, as this legislation would potentially
decrease hearing wait times for Veterans, enhance efficiency within VA,
and better focus Board resources toward issuing decisions. The Board
has historically been able to schedule video conference hearings, more
quickly than in-person hearings, saving valuable time in the appeals
process. In FY 2013, on average, video conference hearings were held
110 days sooner than in-person hearings. H.R. 2119 would allow both the
Board and Veterans to benefit from these time savings by giving the
Board greater flexibility to schedule video conference hearings than is
possible under the current statutory scheme.
Enactment of H.R. 2119 could also lead to increased productivity at
the Board. Time lost due to travel and time lost in the field due to
appellants failing to appear for their hearing would be greatly
reduced, allowing Veterans Law Judges (VLJ) to better focus their time
and resources on issuing decisions. The time saved for VLJs could
translate into faster issuance of Board decisions for Veterans.
Historical data also shows that there is no statistical difference in
the ultimate disposition of appeals based on the type of hearing held.
Veterans who had video conference hearings had an allowance rate for
their appeals that was virtually the same as Veterans who had in-person
hearings. H.R. 2119 would, however, still afford Veterans who want an
in-person hearing the opportunity to specifically request one.
Finally, major technological upgrades to the Board's video
conference hearing equipment over the past several years makes the
Board well-positioned for the enactment of H.R. 2119. This includes the
purchase of high-definition video equipment and state-of-the art
digital audio recording system, implementation of a virtual hearing
docket, and significantly increased video conference hearing capacity.
Enactment of H.R. 2119 would allow the Board to better leverage these
important technological enhancements.
VA estimates that this bill would result in a reduction in travel
expenses over time. However, without knowing the number of remote
hearings or the reduction in travel Board hearings that would be
provided under the enhanced authority in this bill, VA cannot provide
specific cost estimates.
H.R. 2529
H.R. 2529, the ``Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act,'' would amend
section 101 of title 38, U.S.C., to amend the definitions of
``surviving spouse'' and ``spouse'' for purposes of title 38.
Specifically, the bill would remove from the definition of ``surviving
spouse'' the phrase ``of the opposite sex,'' and amend the definition
of ``spouse'' to provide that ``an individual shall be considered a
`spouse' if the marriage of the individual is valid in the State in
which the marriage was entered into or, in the case of a marriage
entered into outside any State, if the marriage is valid in the place
in which the marriage was entered into and the marriage could have been
entered into in a State.'' The bill would define ``State'' the same as
that term is defined in section 101(20) of title 38, U.S.C., for
purposes of title 38, but include also ``the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands.''
VA generally supports the passage of this bill, but has some
concerns with the bill's language. Current section 101(3) and (31) of
title 38, U.S.C., limit the definitions of ``surviving spouse'' and
``spouse'' for purposes of title 38 to only a person of the opposite
sex of the Veteran. The language in these provisions is substantively
identical to the language in section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act
(DOMA), 1 U.S.C. Sec. 7, which the Supreme Court, in United States v.
Windsor, 133 S. Ct. 2675 (2013), declared to be unconstitutional
because it discriminates against legally-married, same-sex couples. On
September 4, 2013, the United States Attorney General informed Congress
that the President had directed the Executive Branch to cease
enforcement of sections 101(3) and (31) of title 38 to the extent that
those provisions preclude the recognition of legally-valid marriages of
same-sex couples. Pursuant to the President's direction, VA is no
longer enforcing the title 38 provisions to the extent that they
require a ``spouse'' or a ``surviving spouse'' to be a person of the
opposite sex. Therefore, VA supports this bill as a means to amend the
law to be consistent with the Supreme Court's decision and the
President's directive. In particular, VA supports the removal of the
requirement that a ``spouse'' or a ``surviving spouse'' be a person of
the opposite sex from paragraphs (3) and (31) of section 101.
VA supports the general intent of section 2(2) of the bill to
revise the criteria for determining the validity of a marriage.
However, to further the goals of this bill and to avoid ambiguity
regarding the applicable standard, we recommend that the bill also
address section 103(c) of title 38, U.S.C, which provides that, in
determining whether or not a person was a spouse of a Veteran,
``marriage shall be proven as valid for the purposes of all laws
administered by the Secretary according to the law of the place where
the parties resided at the time of the marriage or the law of the place
where the parties resided when the right to benefits accrued.'' Section
103(c) is specific to title 38 and is different than the standard used
by nearly all other Federal agencies, including the Department of
Defense. Further, while VA supports the bill's intent to change to the
current marriage-validity criteria, VA is concerned that the marriage-
validity criteria in section 2(2) of the bill may be overly
restrictive. For example, VA notes that the bill is silent as to the
applicability of tribal law to marriage validity. Under section 103(c),
tribal law would be considered as ``the law of the place where the
parties resided.'' However, under H.R. 2529, VA would only consider the
law of the ``State'' in determining if a marriage is valid for the
purpose of Veterans' benefits. This could lead to the exclusion of some
couples with valid marriages under tribal law. VA welcomes the
opportunity to work with the Committee on this bill.
Costs related to this bill are not available at this time.
H.R. 3671
H.R. 3671 would amend section 2306 of title 38, U.S.C., to extend
eligibility for a medallion furnished by VA in order to signify the
deceased's status as a Veteran regardless of date of death. Public Law
110-157 gave VA authority to ``furnish, upon request, a medallion or
other device of a design determined by the Secretary to signify the
deceased's status as a veteran, to be attached to a headstone or marker
furnished at private expense,'' for eligible Veterans who died on or
after November 1, 1990. H.R. 3671 would remove the date of death
limitation by codifying in statute that eligibility exists regardless
of date of death.
VA strongly supports the concept to expand eligibility for the
medallion benefit, however, VA requests the Committee amend versus
remove the current eligibility date of November 1, 1990. VA would
greatly support an amendment to provide eligibility for individuals who
served ``on active duty on or after April 6, 1917.'' Since VA began
providing the medallion benefit in 2009, the vast majority (91 percent)
of those claims were denied because the otherwise eligible Veteran died
between 1960 and 1990. Additionally, there are more than 4.5 million
deceased Veterans with service prior to April 6, 1917, which is the
date the United States formally entered World War I. These Veterans
could become eligible for the medallion benefit which could
significantly impact the landscape of historic cemeteries and the
historic headstones marking the graves of those who served prior to
this date as well as impact the ability of NCA and other entities to
comply with historic preservation and Federal stewardship statutes and
regulations.
Costs related to this bill are not available at this time.
H.R. 3876
H.R. 3876, the ``Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014,''
would amend Chapter 20 of Title 38, U.S.C., to add a new section 2067,
which would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a
program to make grants to eligible entities to provide for the cost of
burials for homeless Veterans who are eligible to be buried in a
national cemetery and have no NOK, as determined by the Secretary. To
be eligible to receive a grant under this provision, an entity would
submit to the Secretary ``an application containing such information
and assurances as the Secretary determines appropriate.''
VA does not support H.R. 3876 because the bill is unnecessary, and
may be confusing, given existing statutory and regulatory authority. VA
strongly supports the objective of ensuring that those who have earned
the right to burial in a national, state, or tribal Veterans cemetery
are accorded that honor. However, VA has long provided in regulation,
at 38 C.F.R. Sec. 3.1603, for a burial and plot or interment allowance
for unclaimed remains of deceased Veterans. Further, Public Law 112-
260, the ``Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits Improvement
Act of 2012,'' specifically provided the Secretary authority to furnish
a casket or urn for a deceased Veteran when the Secretary is unable to
identify the Veteran's NOK and determines that sufficient resources for
the furnishing of a casket or urn for the burial of the Veteran in a
national cemetery are not otherwise available. It is unclear from the
language of H.R. 3876 the precise intent of the grant program and what
benefits would be provided that are not currently provided by VA.
VA cannot estimate costs at this time given the uncertainty
regarding the specific intent of the grant program with respect to what
benefits would be provided for burial of the unclaimed remains of
Veterans. In addition, without an understanding of the intended scope
of the program, VA cannot estimate the resources and costs potentially
involved in administration of the grant program.
H.R. 4095
H.R. 4095, the ``Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment
Act of 2014,'' would require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to
increase, effective December 1, 2014, the dollar amounts for payment of
disability compensation, the clothing allowance, and dependency and
indemnity compensation. This bill would increase these rates by the
same percentage as the percentage by which Social Security benefits
under title II of the Social Security Act are increased, effective
December 1, 2013. Each dollar amount increased, if not a whole dollar
amount, would be rounded to the next lower whole dollar amount.
Finally, the bill would also require VA to publish the resulting
increased rates in the Federal Register.
VA strongly supports this bill because it would express, in a
tangible way, this Nation's gratitude for the sacrifices made by our
service-disabled Veterans and their surviving spouses and children and
would ensure that the value of their well-deserved benefits will keep
pace with increases in consumer prices.
VA notes it has included in its own legislative proposals for FY
2015 a 5-year extension of the round-down authority referred to above,
which is carried forth for 1 year in H.R. 4095. We also note that prior
bills authorizing cost-of-living adjustments to these benefits have
consistently provided that the increase in VA benefits on December 1
would be an increase from the dollar amounts in effect on November 30
of the same year and correspond to the percent increase in Social
Security benefits taking effect on December 1 of the same year. In
contrast, this bill would provide that the increase in VA benefits on
December 1, 2014, would be an increase from the dollar amounts in
effect on November 30, 2013, and correspond to the increase in Social
Security benefits that took effect on December 1, 2013. In view of the
consistent past practice, we believe the references to ``2013'' in
section (2)(a) and section 2(c)(1) of the bill may be inadvertent and
should be changed to ``2014''.
VA estimates that the rounding provision of the bill would result
in cost-savings of $30 million in 2015, $189.6 million over 5 years,
and $414.5 million over 10 years. VA's cost estimates assume that the
references to 2013 in the bill were inadvertent and therefore, based on
estimated FY 2015 average payments for the subject benefits.
H.R. 4102
Section 1(a) of the draft bill would add the estate of a deceased
claimant to the priority-ordered list of eligible recipients of accrued
benefits under 38 U.S.C. Sec. 5121, as long as the estate would not
escheat. The amendments made by this section would apply to deaths
occurring on or after the date of enactment of the bill.
Section 1(c) of the draft bill would require the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to pay to the estate of Shelton Hickerson $377,342,
representing the benefit awarded to Mr. Hickerson on the date of his
death.
VA does not support H.R. 4102. In 1943, Congress enacted Public Law
78-144 and established, in what would become section 5121, a process by
which certain Survivors could receive some portion of a Veteran's
accrued benefits. Since 1943, Congress has generally limited the
payment of accrued benefits to surviving spouses, dependent children,
and persons who paid for the expenses of the Veteran's last sickness
and burial.
By adding estates to the line of succession, VA would be required,
in effect, to pay Veterans benefits for the benefit of persons or
organizations that were not dependents of the Veteran at the time of
death, such as adult children, charities, and creditors. In addition,
when there is an estate that would not escheat, VA would no longer be
able to reimburse persons who incurred the Veteran's last sickness and
burial expenses because the estate would have priority over a person
who incurred such expenses.
VA regrets that it was unable to pay Mr. Hickerson all of his
benefits before his death. However, VA opposes section 1(c) of the
draft bill requiring that it pay the estate of Mr. Hickerson accrued
benefits because such payment would treat his case differently from
other similarly situated Veterans.
VA also opposes the draft bill as it would potentially expand the
eligibility to substitute under 38 U.S.C. Sec. 5121A, ``Substitution
in case of death of claimant,'' because ``a living person who would be
eligible to receive accrued benefits due to the claimant under section
5121(a)'' may request to substitute for the deceased claimant in a
pending claim or appeal. In this way, the executor of a Veteran's
estate could request to substitute for the Veteran to complete a claim
or appeal pending at the time of the Veteran's death.
Costs related to this bill are not available at this time.
H.R. 4141
H.R. 4141 would amend section 8162 of title 38, U.S.C., to expand
the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into
enhanced-use leases. Presently, enhanced-use lease authority is limited
to leases for the provision of supportive housing. The bill would allow
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into enhanced-use leases
``only if the lease is not inconsistent with and will not adversely
affect the mission of the Department for--(A) the provision of
supportive housing; or (B) other purposes, only in the case of excess
property of the National Cemetery Administration that is unsuitable for
burial purposes.'' The expanded authority would apply to leases entered
into after the date of enactment of the Act.
VA would welcome the opportunity to work with the Committee on this
bill. VA's understands that the goal of the bill is to allow memorial
halls, pavilions, and memorials to be built to show respect for the
honor, courage, and commitment of Veterans. We note that, if one aim of
the bill is to facilitate the placement of memorials or other
enhancements to cemetery grounds paid for by private funds, NCA already
has specific donation authority under current law to accomplish that
end. Specifically, 38 U.S.C. Sec. 2407, titled ``[a]uthority to accept
and maintain suitable memorials,'' allows VA to accept donations ``made
in any manner, which are made for the purpose of beautifying national
cemeteries, or are determined to be beneficial to such cemetery.'' In
addition, our national cemeteries are maintained as national shrines in
honor of all who served our Nation. Thus, the construction of memorial
halls, pavilions, and memorials under enhanced-use lease agreements,
while feasible, needs to consider what would happen to the structures
at the end of such leases.
Moreover, VA believes that the bill should allow for enhanced-use
leases for ``other purposes'' on any and all underutilized and/or
vacant VA-controlled properties. VA proposed such an authority in its
FY 2015 budget, which would allow the Department to pursue enhanced-use
leases for purposes beyond supportive housing, similar to the broader
authority that existed prior to December 2011. To the extent the bill
is not broadened to authorize enhanced-use leases for VA-controlled
properties in addition to NCA property, VA has a concern regarding the
phrase ``unsuitable for burial purposes'' in section 1(a) on page 2,
line 18, of the bill. VA believes that this criterion for use of an
enhanced-use lease would be easier to implement operationally if it
read ``not needed for burial purposes for the duration of the lease.''
Further, VA has a technical concern regarding the bill language
establishing the criteria for entering into an enhanced-use lease. As
noted above, section 1(a)(1) of the bill would provide that the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs may enter into an enhanced-use lease
``only if the lease is not inconsistent with and will not adversely
affect the mission of the Department for--(A) the provision of
supportive housing; or (B) other purposes, only in the case of property
of the National Cemetery Administration that is unsuitable for burial
purposes.'' However, by leading into subparagraphs (A) and (B) with
``for--,'' the language suggests that the lease cannot conflict with
the Department's mission for the purposes listed in those
subparagraphs. For example, read literally, this language might suggest
that VA may enter into any enhanced-use lease that would not conflict
with or adversely affect the mission of the Department for ``the
provision of supportive housing.'' We do not believe that this is the
intent of the bill. To the extent the intent of the bill is to allow
for the use of enhanced-use leases for ``the provision of supportive
housing'' or ``other purposes, only in the case of excess property of
[NCA] that is unsuitable for burial purposes,'' but only if the lease
is not ``inconsistent with and will not adversely affect the mission of
the Department,'' the language of the bill should be revised.
Costs related to this bill are not available at this time.
H.R. 4191
Section 2 of H.R. 4191, the ``Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery
Act,'' would amend section 5125 of title 38, U.S.C., to require VA to
accept a report of medical examination from a non-VA physician provided
by a claimant in support of a claim for benefits if the report is
sufficiently complete to be adequate for the purpose of adjudicating
such claim. Section 2 of the bill would also define the phrase
``sufficiently complete'' to mean ``competent, credible, probative, and
containing such information as may be required to make a decision on
the claim for which the report is provided.'' These amendments would
apply to medical evidence submitted after the date that is 90 days
after the date of enactment of the Act.
Section 3 of the bill would require the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the
Act, to submit a report to Congress regarding the ``Acceptable Clinical
Evidence (ACE) initiative'' of VA ``in reducing the necessity for in-
person disability examinations and other efforts to comply with the
provisions of section 5125 of title 38, U.S.C., as amended by section 2
of the Act. Finally, section 4 of the bill would require the Secretary
to submit to Congress, on an annual basis, a report containing specific
information from each regional office regarding Veteran claims
involving private medical evidence.
VA does not support H.R. 4191. VA appreciates the general intent of
the bill, which seeks to provide benefits to Veterans more
expeditiously. However, as written, the legislation is unnecessary and
would be problematic to implement. Section 2 of the bill would prohibit
VA from requesting a medical examination when evidence submitted is
adequate for rating purposes. Currently, section 5103A(d)(2) of title
38, U.S.C., provides that an examination or opinion is only required
when the record does not contain sufficient medical evidence to make a
decision. Furthermore, 38 U.S.C. Sec. 5125 already explicitly states
that private examinations may be sufficient, without conducting
additional VA examinations, for adjudicating claims. Consistent with
these statutory requirements and VA's implementing regulation at 38
C.F.R Sec. 3.159(c)(4), VA requests medical examinations only if the
record does not contain sufficient medical evidence to decide the
claim. Therefore, this section is unnecessary. VA is already allowed to
adjudicate a claim without an examination if evidence is provided by
the claimant that is adequate for rating purposes.
Regarding sections 3 and 4 of the bill, VA maintains data
concerning the number of examinations in which ACE is used. However, VA
does not track the number of claims eligible for ACE that required
additional evidence obtained through a telephone interview or whether
private medical evidence is sufficient or insufficient for rating
purposes.
No costs are associated with section 2 of the bill as VA already
has this authority in existing law. Costs related to sections 3 and 4
of this bill are not available at this time.
This concludes my statement, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today. I would be happy to answer any
questions you or the other Members of the Subcommittee may have.
Statement for the Record:
Hon. Steve Daines, (Mt-At Large)
As a cosponsor of H.R. 2018, The Honor Those Who Served Act, I
believe it is critical that Congress passes this legislation to ensure
that our veterans are provided with the honor and respect they deserve.
I thank Chairman Runyan and Ranking Member Titus for holding a hearing
on this important legislation.
Last year, some very troubling stories came to my attention from my
state of Montana. At the Yellowstone County Veteran's Cemetery in
Laurel, Montana, four recently buried veterans did not have a grave
marker. In each of these cases all of the proper proof of service was
presented but they were denied. The VA explained that with the
exception of state or national cemeteries, all requests for a headstone
must be signed by the veteran or the veteran's next of kin.
I understand we want to fulfill the wishes of veterans and make
sure their final resting place does not include any markings that the
veteran would not want. But surely we should not have a policy so
inflexible that it essentially prohibits well-meaning veterans groups
and historians from honoring veterans who may be unaware of the rigid
VA requirements.
Furthermore, veteran groups such as Missing in America and The
Patriot Guard Riders stand ready to honor fallen veterans and have done
so in the past. But because of the current VA policy, they can no
longer provide a headstone to help honor the service and sacrifices of
our veterans.
But perhaps most compelling, there are an estimated two hundred
thousand homeless veterans, and the current VA policy is especially
detrimental to those veterans who had no close family members to claim
them when they passed. The Honor Those Who Served Act would be
significant step forward in addressing this wrong and would help ensure
that no veteran is left without an appropriate and respectful headstone
honoring their commitment and service to our country.
While I sincerely appreciate the VA's efforts in resolving the
situation with the four deceased Montana veterans, it does not change
the fact that it took months for the VA to correct these injustices and
that the core flaws of the VA policy remain in place. And although the
VA says it is working to adjust its policy, Congress cannot presume
that any pending VA revisions will either be sufficient or finalized in
a timely manner.
For these reasons, I strongly support The Honor Those Who Served
Act, and I will continue to do everything I can to enact this
commonsense legislation.
STATEMENT FOR THE RECORD
PARALYZED VETERANS OF AMERICA
Chairman Runyan, Ranking Member Titus, and members of the
Subcommittee, Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) would like to thank
you for the opportunity to offer our views on pending legislation
before the Subcommittee.
H.R. 2018, the ``Honor Those Who Severed Act of 2013''
PVA supports H.R. 2018, the ``Honor Those Who Served Act of 2013.''
This legislation expands the list of persons who are eligible to
request headstones or markers furnished by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs (VA) upon the death of a veteran.
H.R. 2088
PVA cautiously supports the intent of H.R. 2088, a bill to direct
the Secretary to carry out a pilot program to establish claims
adjudication centers of excellence. While we recognize that the concept
of this proposal is meant to improve claims adjudication work across
the Veterans Benefits Administration, we have concerns about the
underlying details of the legislation and the potential unintended
consequences that may occur.
In many ways, PVA sees this legislation as a double-edged sword. We
see tremendous advantages in the opportunities veterans service
organizations (VSO) could have in sharing our expertise and knowledge
of certain illnesses helping to train VA staff. The in-depth experience
of VSO service officers with regards to the details of specific
illnesses and injuries and our experience in preparing claims for
adjudication, for example with spinal cord injury or disorder (SCI/D)
and related claims in the case of PVA members, may lead to greater
accuracy on the part of less experienced VA staff.
However, PVA is very concerned about regionalizing certain types of
claims as this has often not proven very efficient. In these cases,
some VA Regional Offices (VARO) won't get exposed to complex claims
under this system. In the long run, this erodes the knowledge base of
the staff as a whole. It may also lead to a single point of failure if
a VARO handling a specific illness is disrupted by a natural or manmade
disaster such as Hurricane Katrina, the 9/11 attack or San Francisco
earthquake.
H.R. 2119, the ``Veterans Access to Speedy Review Act''
PVA supports H.R. 2119, the ``Veterans Access to Speedy Review
Act.'' As long as there is the ability to request an in-person hearing
that the Board would be required to honor, we believe this will benefit
both the claimant and the Board. At veteran service organization forums
held by the Board, there has been an ongoing emphasis on holding video
conferences whenever possible to reduce time lost for no-shows.
Additionally, the grant rate for video versus in-person hearings is the
same. In fact, PVA has encouraged service officers to hold video
conference hearings and the vast majority of PVA hearings are now held
via video conference.
Our only concern with the legislation is Section 2 regarding the
appellant requesting a different location which indicates ``If so
requested, the Board may [emphasis added] grant such request . . . ''
This language may too broadly allow the Board to disallow the
appellant's request. In the case of older veterans, they may feel
uncomfortable with video conferencing, believing it is less valid. The
Board should always defer to the veteran when determining the best
course of action in the appeals process.
H.R. 2529, the ``Veterans Spouses Equal Treatment Act''
PVA has no position on H.R. 2529, the ``Veterans Spouses Equal
Treatment Act.''
H.R. 3671
PVA supports H.R. 3671 to expand the eligibility for a medallion
furnished by the Secretary to signify the veteran status of a deceased
individual. By removing any limitation due to date of death of a
veteran, all those who served will be eligible for the recognition they
earned through their service.
H.R. 3876, the ``Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of 2014''
PVA supports H.R. 3876, the ``Burial with Dignity for Heroes Act of
2014.'' Every veteran deserves the respect and dignity of a proper
burial. Our only concern is with the cost of the program. It is
critical that additional appropriations are identified to provide this
earned benefit for those who served to avoid reducing services for
other equally deserving veterans.
H.R. 4095, the ``Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment
Act of 2014''
PVA fully supports H.R. 4095, the ``Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-
Living Adjustment Act of 2014,'' that would increase, effective as of
December 1, 2014, the rates of compensation for veterans with service-
connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity
compensation (DIC) for the survivors of certain disabled veterans. This
would include increases in wartime disability compensation, additional
compensation for dependents, clothing allowance, and dependency and
indemnity compensation for children.
However, consistent with our position in the past, PVA cannot
support the rounding down of increases in compensation. While our
economy continues to struggle, veterans' personal finances have been
affected by rising costs of essential necessities to live from day to
day and maintain a certain standard of living. Many veterans and their
families depend on their compensation. While this may be a small
amount, any reduction can have a critical impact, especially when
compounded over time, on low income veterans.
H.R. 4102
PVA generally supports H.R. 4102 to clarify that the estate of a
deceased veteran may receive certain accrued benefits upon the death of
the veteran. PVA believes that benefits which would have been due to a
veteran while they were alive are owed to the veteran or to their
estate.
However, PVA has concerns about singling out the estate of Shelton
Hickerson for relief. While we understand the tragedy of Mr. Hickerson
receiving his award on the date of his death, other veterans' families
may have faced similar instances since the date of Mr. Hickerson's
award who will not receive the same consideration. This issue is a
simple matter of fairness. If the legislation is to be in any way
retroactive, it should apply to the estates of all veterans who have
died since the specified date.
H.R. 4141
PVA does not support H.R. 4141 to authorize the Secretary to enter
into enhanced-use leases for excess property of the National Cemetery
Administration that is unsuitable for burial purposes. PVA does not see
the purpose of this legislation and is not aware of significant issues
for the disposition of excess property beyond what is already covered
by Section 2407 of Title 38 as it applies to monuments. Additionally,
draft legislation currently pending before the Health Subcommittee
authorizing medical facility projects for FY 2014 can address issues
for uses such as prayer gardens or rose parks.
H.R. 4191, the ``Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act''
PVA supports H.R. 4191, the ``Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery
Act.'' PVA has consistently recommended that VA accept valid medical
evidence from non-Department medical professionals. The continuing
actions of VA to require Department medical examinations does nothing
to further efforts to reduce the claims backlog and may actually cause
the backlog to increase.
Mr. Chairman, we would like to thank you once again for allowing us
to address these important issues. We continue to look to VA to improve
their services to veterans, but must continually caution VA that
changes should provide greater care and services to veterans, and not
simply increase efficiencies of processes. This is particularly true
when considering those with catastrophic disabilities and complex
claims.
PVA would be pleased to take any questions for the record.
Information Required by rule XI 2(g)(4) of the House of
Representatives
Pursuant to Rule XI 2(g)(4) of the House of Representatives, the
following information is provided regarding federal grants and
contracts.
Fiscal Year 2013
National Council on Disability--Contract for Services--$35,000.
Fiscal Year 2012
No federal grants or contracts received.
Fiscal Year 2011
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, administered by the Legal
Services Corporation--National Veterans Legal Services Program--
$262,787.
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