[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 29 (Thursday, March 14, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E363-E364]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    TRIBUTE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ON THE THIRTEENTH 
           ANNIVERSARY OF THEIR BECOMING A CABINET DEPARTMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 14, 2002

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mark the 
thirteenth anniversary of the Department of Veterans Affairs becoming a 
Cabinet Department. As Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs, I am privileged to work with thousands of dedicated employees 
of the Department to improve the delivery of benefits and services to 
our nation's 25 million veterans and their families.
  On October 25, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the Department of 
Veterans Affairs Act (H.R. 3471 in the 100th Congress), legislation I 
cosponsored and strongly supported. This Act led to the Veterans 
Administration (VA) becoming the 14th federal Department of the 
Executive Branch.
  Subsequently, on March 15th, 1989, thirteen years ago this week, the 
Honorable Edwin Derwinski, was sworn in as the first Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs. Finally, the nation's veterans had a full and 
permanent seat at the President's Cabinet table.

[[Page E364]]

  The Department of Veterans Affairs is the second largest federal 
agency in terms of employees, with over 220,000 dedicated men and women 
providing a range of vital benefits and services for veterans around 
the country. The VA operates the largest integrated health network in 
the world, comprised of 163 medical centers, over 800 Community Based 
Outpatient Clinics, 135 nursing homes, 43 domiciliaries and 73 
comprehensive home-care programs. The VA continues to provide quality 
care to millions of veterans, their families and their survivors.
  In addition, the VA operates one of the most important medical 
research programs in the world, with more than 15,000 research projects 
at 115 VA medical centers. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is 
on the cutting edge of research on matters ranging from brain trauma to 
hepatitis C to Alzheimer's disease. The VHA also pays particular 
attention to the wounds and illnesses of soldiers, sailors, marines and 
airmen, and recently opened two new Centers for the Study of War-
Related Illnesses, one in Washington, DC, and the other in my home 
state of New Jersey.
  The Department of Veterans Affairs maintains a national network of 
veterans' cemeteries for our nation's veterans, consisting of 119 
national cemeteries in 39 states and Puerto Rico and also administers 
six life insurance programs with 2.2 million policies in force having a 
face value of $22 billion.
  The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), created as part of the 
new Department of Veterans Affairs, oversees a myriad of benefits 
programs for veterans, including disability compensation, education and 
training, job placement, home loans, and life insurance. Over 2.7 
million veterans receive disability compensation payments for wounds or 
illnesses resulting from their service to our nation, and an additional 
570,000 widows, children and surviving parents of deceased veterans 
also receive monthly benefit payments.
  Mr. Speaker, the VA also operates the GI Bill program, which has 
provided college education and training to more than 20 million 
veterans since its creation in 1944. This historic program not only 
changed the way America looked at veterans benefits, it also changed 
the nature of higher education and helped to create the modern middle 
class. In addition, the VA operates the veterans home loan program, 
which has helped over 16 million former servicemen and women buy their 
own homes.
  Since the creation of the original Veterans Administration in 1930, 
our nation has recognized the unique contributions and sacrifices of 
the men and women who have defended our freedom at home and abroad. 
Today, the Department of Veterans Affairs, ably led by Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi, continues to provide the benefits 
and services that our nations veterans have earned.
  On the wall outside the VA's main office in Washington, DC, the words 
of President Abraham Lincoln are engraved on the building: ``To care 
for him who have borne the battle, and his widow and his orphan.'' This 
is the mission that draws so many committed men and women to the VA.
  Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to work on behalf of our nation's 
veterans and I want to pay tribute to the Department of Veterans 
Affairs, and especially all of their gifted and dedicated employees, on 
the 13th anniversary of their becoming a full Cabinet Department of the 
federal government.

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