[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 91 (Wednesday, June 27, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6998-S6999]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SPECTER:
  S. 1113. A bill to amend section 1562 of title 38, United States 
Code, to increase the amount of Medal of Honor Roll special pension, to 
provide for an annual adjustment in the amount of that special pension, 
and for other purposes; to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I have sought recognition at this time to 
comment on legislation that I have introduced today to increase the 
special pension that is available to Medal of Honor recipients, and to 
provide for automatic adjustments in that special pension to reflect 
annual increases in the cost of living. When the Congress enacted the 
Medal of Honor pension, it stated, in the 1916 Senate Report, Report 
No. 240, 64th Congress, accompanying enactment, that the special 
pension was then necessary to serve as a ``recognition of superior 
claims on the gratitude of the country,'' and to ``reward . . . in a 
modest way startling deeds of individual daring and audacious heroism 
in the face of mortal danger when war is on.'' The legislation that I 
have introduced today has the same two purposes: to recognize, and to 
reward, the ``startling deeds of

[[Page S6999]]

individual daring and audacious heroism'' to which every Medal of Honor 
recipient can lay claim.
  No one can question that Medal of Honor recipients deserve the 
Nation's respect and gratitude. And no one could question a limited 
government pension is a proper sign of that respect and gratitude. I am 
concerned that some of the 149 surviving Medal of Honor recipients, 
there are only 149 such people among us, may struggle to make financial 
ends meet, notwithstanding the availability of the pension. The current 
$600 monthly amount is simply too small, in my estimation, to afford a 
minimum standard of living for our Nation's heroes given their 
expenses.
  In 1997, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society suggested that the 
Medal of Honor pension level be set at $1,000 per month and that the 
level of the pension be adjusted thereafter on an annual basis to 
reflect increases in the annual cost of living. At that time, the 
Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, which I then had the privilege 
of chairing, succeeded in securing an increase in the pension from $400 
to $600 per month, but we were not successful in persuading the House 
to approve an ``indexation'' feature. I believe a compelling argument 
could be made then, and still can be made now, to grant the entire 
increase suggested by the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and to 
approve the indexing of the benefit. I am pleased to offer legislation 
to that effect today.
  Many Medal of Honor recipients, out of a sense of duty and 
patriotism, make frequent trips to provide accounts of their act of 
valor and, more importantly, to speak of the lessons learned in battle 
and the vigilance that freedom requires to this day. Countless young 
Americans have benefitted by the example of these most distinguished 
role models. Often, the expenses associated with these excursions are 
borne by the medal of Honor recipients themselves, men who, we must 
remember, emerged from, and, in most cases, returned to, the ordinary 
citizenry from whom America has always drawn her warriors. Testimony 
offered by AMVETS at a Veterans' Affairs Committee hearing on July 25, 
1997, confirmed that the majority of Medal of Honor recipients live 
only on their social security benefits, supplemented by the Medal of 
Honor pension, giving them an average monthly income of only $1,600. It 
is unconscionable to think that we, as a country, can allow them to 
live so close to the poverty line.
  I ask my colleagues to join with me, once again, to show our 
gratitude to the recipients of our Nation's highest honor. Let us show 
them--in this minor way--how grateful America truly is for their 
wonderful example.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1113

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

     SECTION 1. INCREASE AND ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT OF MEDAL OF HONOR 
                   ROLL SPECIAL PENSION.

       (a) Increase in Amount.--Subsection (a) of section 1562 of 
     title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking ``$600'' 
     and inserting ``$1,000, as adjusted from time to time under 
     subsection (e),''.
       (b) Annual Adjustment.--That section is further amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Effective as of December 1 each year, the Secretary 
     shall increase the amount of monthly special pension payable 
     under subsection (a) as of November 30 of such year by the 
     same percentage that benefit amounts payable under title II 
     of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) are 
     increased effective December 1 of such year as a result of a 
     determination under section 215(i) of that Act (42 U.S.C. 
     415(i)).''.
       (c) Effective Date.--(1) Except as provided in paragraph 
     (2), the amendments made by this section shall take effect on 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall apply with 
     respect to months that begin on or after that date.
       (2) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall not make any 
     adjustment under subsection (e) of section 1562 of title 38, 
     United States Code, as added by subsection (b) of this 
     section, in 2001.
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