[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 126 (Tuesday, October 1, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9703-S9704]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CHALLENGES TO CONCURRENT RECEIPT OF BENEFITS FOR DISABLED VETERANS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have worked hard to make sure all the 
brave men and women who have served in our Armed Forces are treated 
fairly.
  Many military retirees, like so many other Americans, have relocated 
to fast-growing Nevada because of its high quality of life. And Nevada 
is also home to some of the country's finest military installations.
  Regardless of where our loyal veterans and service members live, they 
all deserve our gratitude, respect, and fair treatment.
  For several years I have introduced and championed legislation that 
would end the unfair policy of denying America's disabled veterans 
retirement benefits they have earned through years of service and 
sacrifice.
  Changing the current law that requires disabled retirees to forfeit a 
dollar of their earned retired pay for each dollar they receive in 
veterans' disability compensation is simply the right thing to do.
  I am therefore extremely troubled that the Bush administration 
opposes a

[[Page S9704]]

provision in the Senate Defense authorization bill allowing so-called 
concurrent receipt of retirement pay and disability pay by disabled 
military retirees.
  Some officials have been quoted in recent newspaper articles as 
stating that retired pay and disability pay are ``two pays for the same 
event'' and that receiving both would be ``double-dipping'' not 
permitted other retirees. These statements are simply not true.
  Career military retired veterans are the only group of Federal 
retirees required to waive their retirement pay in order to receive VA 
disability. Other Federal retirees get both disability and retirement 
pay.
  This antiquated law that denies our veterans concurrent receipt in 
effect implies wrongly and unfairly that disabled military retirees 
neither need nor deserve the full compensation they earned for their 20 
or more years served in uniform.
  Military retirement pay and disability compensation are earned for 
entirely different purposes and therefore a disabled veteran should be 
allowed to receive both. Current law ignores the distinction between 
these two benefits.
  Military retired pay is earned compensation for the extraordinary 
demands and sacrifices inherent in a military career. It is a reward 
promised for serving two decades or more under conditions that most 
Americans find intolerable.
  Veterans' disability compensation, on the other hand, is recompense 
for pain, suffering, and lost future earning power caused by a service-
connected illness or injury. Few retirees can afford to live on their 
retired pay alone, and a severe disability only makes the problem worse 
by limiting or denying any postservice working life. A retiree 
shouldn't have to forfeit part or all of his or her earned retired pay 
as a result of having suffered a service-connected disability.
  Likewise, the administration's assertion that if concurrent receipt 
passes ``1.2 million veterans could qualify'' for extra payments is 
simply not credible. The Department of Defense and Department of 
Veterans Affairs previously informed Congress that about 550,000 
disabled retirees would qualify if the Senate concurrent receipt plan 
were approved. But the new administration speculation that an 
additional 700,000 might apply for and be granted disability ratings is 
an unfounded exaggeration.
  The administration's argument that funding benefits for America's 
disabled veterans would hurt current military personnel is also 
misleading. Congress is not cutting funding for those who are now 
serving our country in order to provide benefits for those from 
previous generations who served loyally and made tremendous sacrifices. 
Congress will appropriate the money to pay for it.
  Enacting my concurrent receipt legislation will not cause service 
members to live in substandard quarters, as some Defense leaders try to 
claim in a misguided attempt to turn one generation of patriots against 
others.
  Moreover, at a time when our Nation is calling upon our Armed Forces 
to defend democracy and freedom, we must be careful not to send the 
wrong signal to those now in uniform. All who have selected to make 
their career in the U.S. military now face an additional unknown risk 
in our fight against terrorism. If they are injured, they would be 
forced to forego their earned retired pay in order to receive their VA 
disability compensation. In effect, they would be paying for their own 
disability benefits from their retirement checks unless my legislation 
is enacted.
  We must send a signal to these brave men and women that the American 
people and Government take care of those who make sacrifices for our 
Nation. We have a unique opportunity this year to redress the unfair 
practice of requiring disabled military retirees to fund their own 
disability compensation. It is time for us to show our appreciation to 
these men and women.
  Finally the assertion that the veterans who would benefit from 
concurrent receipt are already doing well financially is ridiculous. 
NBC News recently aired three news stories documenting the dire 
situation that veterans are facing today. The Pentagon has acknowledged 
that its studies of retiree income included very few seriously disabled 
retirees.
  On July 8, 2002, I sent a letter to the President urging him to 
support the inclusion of a concurrent receipt provision in the final 
Defense Authorization Act. Our veterans have heard enough excuses. Now 
it is time for them to receive the benefits they earned.

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