[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 159 (Wednesday, November 5, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H10348]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           CONCURRENT RECEIPT

  (Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as our military men and women 
continue to do a great job to keep us safe and secure, heated debate 
has broken out about whether veterans should receive both disability 
pay and retirement pay. This issue is called concurrent receipt.
  Right now, when a veteran retires, military pension benefits from the 
Department of Defense are reduced dollar for dollar by the amount of 
disability benefits received from the Veterans Affairs Department. 
Republicans have proposed commonsense solutions that will send more 
disability money to our veterans.
  Under the plan, disabled veterans will see more retirement money, and 
benefits will now be available to Reservists and Guardsmen injured in 
service. This is a solution that is fair, responsible, and honors our 
Nation's disabled veterans.
  I encourage all veterans to contact their lawmakers and urge them to 
support this important legislation and pass it by the end of the year.

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