[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 27, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1634]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  A BILL TO MAKE THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON MINORITY VETERANS PERMANENT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. LUIS V. GUTIERREZ

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 27, 2005

  Mr. GUTIERREZ. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing legislation that 
is vital to the interests of minority veterans in our Nation. Current 
law mandates the termination of the Advisory Committee on Minority 
Veterans, ACMV, on December 31, 2009. My bill would simply repeal the 
provision of law that discontinues this important committee's mandate 
so that its critical work on behalf of minority veterans can continue.
  The Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans operates in conjunction 
with the VA Center for Minority Veterans. This committee consists of 
members appointed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and includes 
minority veterans, representatives of minority veterans groups and 
individuals who are recognized authorities in fields pertinent to the 
needs of minority veterans.
  The Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans helps the VA Center for 
Minority Veterans by advising the Secretary on the adoption and 
implementation of policies and programs affecting minority veterans, 
and by making recommendations to the VA for the establishment or 
improvement of programs in the department for which minority veterans 
are eligible.
  The committee has consistently provided the VA and Congress with 
balanced, forwardlooking recommendations, many of which go far beyond 
the unique needs of minority veterans. In 2002, the committee met in my 
hometown of Chicago and warned that in the Chicago regional office ``it 
was mentioned that it was much easier to deny benefits than to grant 
benefits because of stringent requirements of VBA and Court of Appeal 
for Veterans Claims.''
  Two years later, the Chicago Sun-Times exposed that Illinois veterans 
ranked 50th in disability benefit compensation. That information 
sparked a campaign by the Illinois congressional delegation to rectify 
the situation. Since then, the VA Inspector General has issued his 
report and recommendations and the Secretary has pledged additional 
staff and resources to the Chicago regional office.

  The committee will also be needed in the future since the unique 
concerns of minority veterans will become increasingly important for 
our Nation during the next decade.
  Currently, 18 percent of the troops serving in Iraq are African-
American, while 10 percent are Hispanic. The concerns of these veterans 
and others will not go away on December 31, 2009, and neither should 
the committee created to ensure that they are represented. The Advisory 
Committee on Minority Veterans has helped our minority veterans from 
past wars with programs to address their concerns. We should not 
shortchange our newly returning soldiers by allowing this committee's 
tenure to expire.
  Many specific issues of concern to minority veterans need to be 
addressed further. Minority veterans confront the debilitating effects 
of post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, and substance abuse in greater 
numbers. Minority veterans suffer from a higher incidence of 
homelessness. Access to health care for Native American veterans is 
also a common problem. In addition, access to adequate job training is 
a difficulty for many minority veterans, a high percentage of whom 
qualify as low-income, category A veterans.
  Unfortunately, discrimination and cultural insensitivity remain 
problematic for minority veterans at many VA facilities. The Advisory 
Committee on Minority Veterans still has a lot of work to do, and I 
urge my colleagues to support this legislation to make this important 
committee permanent.

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