[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 6811-6830]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               VETERANS' BENEFITS ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2007

  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Under the previous order, the 
Senate will resume consideration of S. 1315, which the clerk will 
report.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1315) to amend Title 38, United States Code, to 
     enhance life insurance benefits for disabled veterans, and 
     for other purposes.

  Pending:

       Burr amendment No. 4572, to increase benefits for disabled 
     United States veterans and provide a fair benefit to World 
     War II Filipino veterans for their service to the United 
     States.


                           Amendment No. 4572

  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Brown). Under the previous order, there is 
60 minutes of debate equally divided on the Burr amendment. Who yields 
time?
  The junior Senator from Hawaii is recognized.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I see that my colleague is here, Senator 
Inouye of Hawaii. Before I make my statement on S. 1315, I yield time 
to the senior Senator from Hawaii, Mr. Inouye.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The senior Senator from Hawaii is recognized.
  Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, in 1898, when the United States defeated 
Spain in the Spanish-American War, we found ourselves suddenly becoming 
a colonial power. In opposition was the Philippines. Until the end of 
the war, World War II, we exercised jurisdiction over the Philippines 
like a colonial power.
  However, in July of 1941, when we noted the presence of war clouds 
over the Pacific and Asia, we called upon the Filipinos to consider 
volunteering to serve the United States under American command. 
Thirteen days after December 7, we issued a command order inviting 
Filipinos to volunteer--it was a crucial time--and 470,000 Filipinos 
volunteered. From that number, we developed the Commonwealth Army of 
the Philippines--200,000. We set aside 200,000 of them to serve as 
guerrilla fighters and about 50,000 to serve as guards and patrols on 
the shore and along the borders.
  History now shows us the Japanese attack, and as a result we had two 
tragic battles, Corregidor and Bataan. Before these battles were 
determined and ended, General MacArthur, the commander, was ordered to 
leave the Philippines, and he left with his staff and arrived in 
Australia. The Filipinos were left to do their part without proper 
armament, proper medicine, and with inadequate food. But they fought.
  I think all of us remember the Bataan Death March when 75,000 were 
ordered to march 65 miles without food, medicine, or water. Along that 
trip, only 54,000 survived--the rest died. I think all of us recall the 
heroic movies that were filmed as a result of that march. The Bataan 
Death March became part of the vocabulary of the United States.
  We saw Americans being bayoneted, hit, and killed. But the facts show 
that of the over 75,000 who had to undergo and suffer the Bataan Death 
March, 15,000 were Americans and 60,000 were Filipinos. They are the 
ones who got bayoneted. They are the ones who were slaughtered and 
killed.
  Well, these Filipinos were willing to fight for the United States, to 
stand in harm's way on our behalf. They fought throughout the war as 
guerilla fighters. They suffered thousands of casualties. Those who 
were fighting for America's cause and fighting under the command of 
American officers, strangely, could not receive American medals.
  Now, if one should go to Baghdad, if he is wounded, he gets a Purple 
Heart. If he does something heroic, he gets a Bronze Star or Silver 
Star or DSC. Once in a while, someone gets a Medal of Honor. Well, in 
this case, these matters were not recognized.
  The war ended on September 2, 1945, when the Japanese signed the 
surrender on the deck of the USS Missouri. At that moment, we did not 
have an ambassador nor an embassy, but we had a high commissioner who 
was not authorized to accept applications for citizenship. Remember, 
one of the promises was citizenship.
  So about December, Washington sent an official of the Immigration and 
Naturalization Service to receive applications from Filipinos. Well, he 
had no staff; he had to do it all on his own. But within a month, 
Washington decided to recall him. So here we had line upon line of 
Filipinos waiting to submit their application but no one to receive it.
  Then, in early February of 1946, the Congress of the United States 
passed a measure signed by the President repealing and rescinding the 
act that we passed in July of 1941, and the Executive order that was 
issued right after December 7, in which we promised Filipinos if they 
fought for us, shed their blood, risked their lives and limbs, if they 
wished they could become citizens of the United States and get all of 
the veterans' benefits.
  Keep in mind Manila was the most devastated city in World War II, so 
there were no veterans hospitals. That came later.
  Well, this veterans bill has a provision in it--a provision of 
honor--in which, finally, after over 65 years, we

[[Page 6812]]

will restore our honor and tell the Filipinos: It is late, but please 
forgive us. There are few remaining of the hundreds of thousands of 
Filipinos who volunteered and risked their lives. At this moment, I 
think there are about 18,000 left. As I speak, I am certain some are on 
their deathbed and dying.
  This provision has some rather insulting provisions, but the 
Filipinos are willing to take it. Some of my colleagues have suggested 
that the cost of living in the Philippines is less than the cost of 
living here, so their pension should be one-third of an American GI's, 
who did the same thing, with the same injury--but one-third. That is 
all right. But to suggest only those who were in combat, I don't know 
what that means.
  For example, in Iraq, whether you are out on the street or on the 
boulevard in a truck or in the so-called Green Zone, you are on the 
front line. Bombs can hit you anywhere. It is the same thing with a 
guerrilla fighter. Where is the front line for a guerrilla fighter? Is 
it the jungle? Is it the city? Is it his home?
  My colleagues, I hope we will take this opportunity today to restore 
the honor of the United States and undo the broken promise and make it 
good. There are a few Filipino World War II veterans left. At least we 
can face them and say: Yes, it took us a little while, but we are going 
to carry out our promise. Let's do that.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The junior Senator from Hawaii is recognized.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, how much time is left?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii has 20 minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I am very pleased that S. 1315, as reported 
by the Veterans' Affairs Committee, the proposed Veterans' Benefits 
Enhancement Act of 2007, is finally before the Senate for consideration 
and action.
  I want to express my huge gratitude to the majority leader, also the 
minority leader, and especially to my friend, the ranking member, for 
coming to an agreement for our offering today.
  This comprehensive legislation would improve benefits and services 
for veterans both old and young.
  The Veterans' Affairs Committee reported S. 1315 to the full Senate 
in August of last year. At that time, my belief was that debate and 
consideration of this legislation by the full Senate, would take place 
during September. That did not happen. Now we have a good agreement.
  As I have described in detail this week, further action on the bill 
has been blocked because of opposition from the other side of the aisle 
to certain benefits for Filipinos who fought under U.S. command during 
World War II.
  Mr. President, the people of the Philippines did not shy from the 
call to fight during World War II. They were true brothers in arms who 
fought valiantly under U.S. command in World War II. This bill, at long 
last, recognizes the valor of all Filipino veterans in sacrifice to 
this noble cause and loyalty to their American commanders.
  On July 26, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued an Executive 
order ordering all military forces of the Commonwealth of the 
Philippines into the service of the Armed Forces of the United States 
under the command of a newly created command structure called the U.S. 
Armed Forces of the Far East.
  According to orders from General MacArthur, Philippine units once 
mustered into U.S. service would be paid and supplied from American 
sources.
  The unique relationship between the Philippines and the United States 
made the Philippine islands particularly susceptible to Japanese 
aggression during the war.
  Historians agree that the Japanese strategy was based upon a plan to 
destroy or neutralize the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, and to 
deprive the United States of its base in the Philippines. Were it not 
for the U.S. presence, the Philippines would not have presented the 
Japanese with a strategic threat and turned into a battlefield.
  The Philippine forces under U.S. command suffered heavy casualties as 
a result of the Japanese invasion. It is estimated that 10,000 
Filipinos died during the Bataan Death March, along with 3,000 U.S. 
soldiers. The Philippines, throughout the war, suffered great loss of 
life and tremendous physical damage.
  By the end of the war, the capital city of Manila was in ruins and up 
to one million Filipinos had been killed.
  In October 1945, General Omar Bradley, then Director of the Veterans' 
Administration, affirmed that all Filipinos who served under U.S. 
command were entitled to all benefits under laws administered by that 
agency.
  However, in 1946, the U.S. Congress, through the Rescissions Act of 
1946, withdrew veteran status from certain Filipino veterans of World 
War II.
  Upon passage of the Rescissions Act, President Harry Truman expressed 
his disapproval of the withdrawal of benefits from Filipino veterans. 
He stated:

       There can be no question, but that the Philippine veteran 
     who is entitled to benefits bearing a reasonable relation to 
     those received by the American veteran, with whom he fought 
     side by side.

  The action by Congress in 1946 to strip Filipino veterans who served 
under the American flag during World War II of the recognition and 
benefits that were their due was a grave injustice. It is especially 
regrettable that this injustice has existed for so many years.
  I wish to speak briefly about the purpose of pension benefits and 
more specifically about the pension benefit in the pending bill.
  Veterans' pension benefits are provided to allow veterans to live in 
dignity and meet their basic needs. The amounts proposed in this 
legislation would permit Filipino veterans who have been denied their 
rightful status as United States veterans for too long to finally live 
in dignity.
  Unlike other World War II veterans, these veterans have been denied 
pension benefits for over 60 years. It is also important to note that 
these benefits are not retroactive.
  The amounts proposed are sufficient to give aged Filipino veterans a 
payment that would allow them to meet their basic needs for adequate 
nutrition and medicine.
  The pension proposed for Filipino veterans is less than one-third of 
the basic amount provided to veterans living in the United States, in 
recognition of the lower cost of living in the Philippines. Measured 
against the aid and attendance standard, the proposed benefit is about 
one-sixth of the amount provided to veterans in the United States.
  Because the income and asset verification procedures used in the 
United States are not available in the Philippines, and it is not 
feasible to develop an administratively efficient system in the 
Philippines to monitor the income and assets of pension recipients, the 
bill provides a flat benefit amount substantially lower than that paid 
in the United States.
  I believe firmly that the proposed amount is a reasonable benefit 
taking into account all of these factors.
  As I have said time and time again, this legislation would correct an 
injustice that has existed for over 60 years. I, like President Truman, 
believe it is the obligation of the United States to care for those who 
have fought under the U.S. flag. It is past time to right that wrong.
  As my fellow World War II veteran, the senior Senator from Alaska, 
said only yesterday, this is about honor. I believe it is the moral 
obligation of this Nation to provide for those who served under the 
U.S. flag and alongside the U.S. troops during World War II.
  The soldier's creed is to leave no fellow warrior behind. I believe 
in that creed. I believe it is important to acknowledge the valiant 
service of those Filipino veterans of World War II who served under 
U.S. command.
  Mr. President, I reserve the remainder of my time and yield the 
floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, will the Senator yield me time, please?
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I yield the Senator what time he may use.

[[Page 6813]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The senior Senator from Alaska is recognized.
  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, the Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 
2007 would recognize the service and sacrifice of Filipino veterans who 
fought under our flag in World War II. I join my good friends and 
fellow World War II veterans, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, in 
supporting the restoration of veterans benefits to these heroic 
individuals.
  Filipino troops fought as American nationals, under the American 
flag, alongside American soldiers, and under the command of American 
GEN Douglas MacArthur, earning themselves the status of U.S. veterans.
  Like most American troops, Filipino soldiers were effectively drafted 
into the U.S. military.
  When war with Japan became imminent, President Franklin Roosevelt 
ordered the military forces of the Philippines into the service of the 
U.S. Armed Forces. The President held this authority because the 
Philippine Islands were a U.S. possession and the power was written 
into our law.
  The position of these Filipino soldiers was similar to the thousands 
of courageous Alaskans who volunteered to serve in the Alaska 
Territorial Guard and protect Alaska before it became a state.
  Nearly 60 years later, in 2000, Congress determined that the service 
of the Alaska Territorial Guard was ``active duty'' service, making 
them eligible for the same veterans benefits Filipino veterans now 
seek.
  Just 10 hours after the attack on the U.S. at Pearl Harbor, Japan 
invaded the Philippines. In the years of war that followed, Filipino 
soldiers fought alongside American troops with uncommon valor and 
loyalty to the United States.
  Stories of their heroism and sacrifice are abundant. Outnumbered by 
the Japanese and forced out of Manila, Filipino soldiers and U.S. 
troops held their ground for months before being forced to surrender on 
the Bataan Peninsula and in Corregidor.
  Nearly 80,000 Filipino and U.S. soldiers were taken prisoner and 
forced to walk to a prison camp over 65 miles away in what became known 
as the infamous ``Death March.'' As many as one in three of these men, 
weakened by disease and malnutrition and tortured by their captors, 
died before reaching their destination.
  After their American leader, GEN Douglas MacArthur, was ordered to 
Australia, thousands of Filipino guerilla soldiers continued resisting 
Japanese occupation for nearly 3 years. When MacArthur and allied 
forces returned, Filipino soldiers fought fiercely until Japan's 
surrender.
  One million Filipino combatants and noncombatants died in World War 
II. In comparison, approximately 400,000 U.S. troops lost their lives 
in all theaters of the war.
  As President Truman would later say of the Filipino troops: ``Their 
assignment was as bloody and difficult as any in which our American 
soldiers engaged.''
  Congress should remember the vital contributions of Filipino veterans 
to the success of the allied forces. Their resistance distracted the 
Japanese in the Islands, preventing them from deploying elsewhere and 
possibly reaching the U.S. mainland.
  These soldiers bought precious time for General MacArthur to mount a 
successful counterstrike.
  After the war, the U.S. Veterans' Administration determined these 
service members met the definition of ``active Service'' in the U.S. 
Armed Forces and were eligible for full VA benefits.
  Under the Rescission Acts of 1946, however, many Filipino veterans' 
World War II service no longer qualified as `active duty' service. 
Congress stripped these soldiers of the benefits they had earned. 
Filipino veterans and their advocates have fought for the Restoration 
of these benefits for more than 60 years.
  This bill contains provisions that would restore U.S. veteran status 
to all Filipino World War II Veterans, increase service-connected 
disability compensation, and provide a reduced flat rate pension to 
many Filipino veterans residing in the Philippines.
  Nonservice-connected pension and death pension benefits are available 
to all qualifying U.S. veterans regardless of race, national origin, or 
citizenship status.
  Many Filipino World War II veterans and their survivors have been 
excluded from receiving these benefits. This bill proposes a reasonable 
and fair way to assist to these veterans.
  The expense of this reduced benefit is justified by the contribution 
of Filipino veterans to this country. If not for their service, the 
fate of the United States could have been very different. For this, 
they should be treated as American veterans.
  The proposed benefit would cost only a fraction of what it would have 
if pensions were made available to alL Filipino veterans who were 
entitled. The Embassy of the Philippines claims there were 470,000 
Filipino veterans after the war.
  Today only about 18,000 of these veterans--most in their eighties--
still survive.
  Filipino World War II veterans residing in the Philippines have been 
denied eligibility for pension benefits for more than 60 years. A 
pension benefit about one third the size of that available to veterans 
in the United States is not overly generous.
  I hope Congress will recognize the service of all our Filipino World 
War II Veterans just as we have for the Alaska Territorial Guard.
  It is time we show our Nation's gratitude for the role Filipino World 
War II veterans played in our history, fighting alongside soldiers from 
the U.S. and helping us secure victory over tyranny.
  Mr. President, I am grateful to the Senator from Hawaii, Mr. Akaka, 
for the comments he made. I do believe this is a matter of honor. I 
understand how some of the younger Senators might view this as being 
costly, but I wish to put it in perspective.
  As I pointed out, there were approximately 1 million Filipinos killed 
in action in the defense of our country in World War II. Approximately 
a half a million survived. Actually, during the war, as I have also 
pointed out, President Roosevelt said all Filipinos were subject to 
service in our Armed Forces; in effect, he conscripted the Filipinos to 
serve.
  Those who survived were treated at first as our veterans on the 
mainland. Subsequently, it was determined that those who came to our 
country, to the mainland, would be treated fully as veterans of all 
types in the country were treated. We have to remember, this was an 
all-male military, primarily a draftee Army of over 16 million men.
  First the VA determined all Filipino veterans were subject to the 
same laws as in the United States. If a person came to the United 
States as a veteran from the Philippines, he was automatically given 
citizenship and entitled to full benefits of all the veterans laws, 
including the GI bill, the right to have money to build a home, and a 
lot of other benefits were involved in those actions taken by Congress 
to try and deal with the returning veterans and help them regain their 
lives.
  Later, it was determined that those benefits would not be paid to 
many of those who stayed in the Philippines. We have been trying for 
many years to restore those payments. I commend the Senators from 
Hawaii for trying to do so.
  Actually, we had a parallel situation in the Alaska Guard. The Alaska 
Guard was primarily made up of Eskimos and Alaska Native people who 
patrolled the borders of Alaska. I remind the Senate that we have half 
the coastline of the United States. Those people who were in the Alaska 
Guard patrolled with their dogsleds without any uniforms being issued 
to them. It took us a period of time until we were able to recognize 
them, and we did so. We finally awarded those people in the National 
Guard their rights as veterans of the United States military forces.
  This is something we have to do, as far as I am concerned. The 
provision in this bill restores the benefits these Filipino veterans 
have earned. I do believe, as I pointed out the other night on the 
floor, the Senate should know that Senator Inouye and I went to the 
Philippines this year and met with

[[Page 6814]]

some of these people. I am 85 this year and my friend is 84, and we 
were the youngsters at the meeting. These Filipino veterans who are 
surviving are our age or older. Most of them are infirm. There are 
18,000 left out of the 470,000 plus, almost half a million survivors. 
This bill restores their benefits.
  How long can they last? People who have talked about the cost of this 
benefit I think misunderstand the situation. This is not a cost of 
today's economy. This is not a cost for today's taxpayers. This is a 
burden that should have been borne before.
  These people have not had these benefits during all of these years, 
and they have asked us now, as a matter of honor, to restore their 
rights before they leave this planet.
  I, for one, appeal to the Senate. As I said, there are now only five 
of us from World War II left in the Senate. When I came here, there 
were more than 70. There would be no question--I didn't know this 
actually happened, I have to tell you. We discovered a year ago, when 
Senator Akaka raised it, that this situation exists in the Philippines. 
I do believe it is an action that must be taken. These people not only 
now are our allies, but they have warmly supported our efforts 
throughout the world. I do believe to recognize the service and 
sacrifice of these Filipino veterans who fought under our flag in World 
War II is absolutely essential. These benefits are going to the heroes 
of the Philippines who are now surviving.
  Lastly, I again point out to the Senate, those who lived through that 
time know if they had not made this sacrifice, if they had not lost 
two-thirds of their men in World War II, we would not have had the time 
to rebuild America. We would not have had the time to bring in the 
forces, to train the people who finally carried the war throughout the 
world to two tyrants, to Hitler and to the Japanese.
  We have not had a world war since that time, and I do hope the world 
will never see another world war. But these people were the keys to the 
Pacific. Without them, we would have certainly been at war another 
couple of years at least and certainly would have seen an exchange of 
atomic weapons by that time. They gave us the time to survive, and I 
think we ought to give them their rights before they leave this planet.
  I thank the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  The Senator from North Carolina.
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  Chairman Akaka is a good man and a fair man. He is a wonderful 
chairman. He has produced a bill which has a tremendous amount of good. 
I am in deep respect of Senator Inouye and Senator Stevens. This 
country owes both, as well as all World War II veterans, a tremendous 
thanks for their commitment.
  As Senator Stevens mentioned ages, it made me think, on Monday my dad 
turned 87. He fought in the Pacific. He did it because it was the right 
thing to do. I believe protection of our veterans is the right thing to 
do.
  Let me, if I may, focus everybody on what S. 1315 is. I ask a chart 
be put up. One might hear this debate and think this is all about a 
special pension for Philippine veterans who live in the Philippines who 
have no service-connected disability. There is a difference. This bill 
is so much more.
  It is $332 million in Philippine benefits, of which $221 million is 
devoted to a new special pension that does not exist. There is a term 
life insurance program for our veterans of $83 million over 5 years and 
$326 million over 10 years; state approving agencies, $60 million; 
mortgage life insurance for our veterans, $51 million, retroactive 
traumatic injury, on-the-job training benefits, supplemental insurance, 
housing grants for burned injured, auto grants for burned injured, COLA 
for surviving spouses, and much more.
  I wanted to highlight those items that are mandatory spending in the 
bill.
  This is a good bill. Regardless of the outcome of my amendment, I 
want my colleagues to support final passage of this bill.
  Having said that, I highlight the fact that we do have a difference 
as it relates to the pensions. Before I get into the specifics of why I 
believe, not as some have portrayed it that I believe it is too costly, 
I believe that, one, there was not a promise made. We did not imply it. 
It was not an impression that people had; that, in fact, when we look 
back at those individuals who served in this Chamber who made the 
decision on the Rescissions Act, they looked at the history very well. 
They looked at what Franklin Roosevelt said and the documents that 
backed it up. They looked at what General MacArthur said and the 
documents that backed it up. And they felt this was not the way for us 
to go.
  Mr. President, I wish to yield a short period of time to my 
colleague, Senator Cornyn.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas is recognized.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I appreciate Senator Burr's leadership on 
this issue. I, too, express my appreciation, and I have to say our two 
Senators from Hawaii are beloved by all Members of this Senate and 
people whom we respect enormously, as well as the Senator from Alaska.
  My father was a veteran of World War II, and the service each of 
these veterans has provided for our country and for our freedom and 
security is something we can never thank them for enough.
  I agree with Senator Burr that this bill is largely a very good bill, 
and I am proud to have contributed some provisions that helped enhance 
veterans' benefits, primarily by cutting redtape that would allow 
disabled Active-Duty Military personnel to get housing benefits before 
they officially retire from Active Duty; making family members eligible 
for housing grants if they are caring for a wounded warrior--and I 
especially want to recognize the good work of Rosie Babin, the mother 
of Alan Babin, of Round Rock, TX, who brought this to my attention, and 
so now we have this provision--and ensuring that burn victims are 
eligible for housing grants--and this is an area where I want to 
recognize the work of Christy Patten, the wife of Everett Patten, from 
Kentucky, who was hospitalized at the Brooke Army Medical Center with 
burns he received from an IED, and I thank them for the help they 
provided me in working with the Veterans' Affairs Committee to make 
sure they were provided for here.
  I appreciate the good work our Filipino allies contributed to our 
effort in the Far East, but I have to say that the problem I have with 
this bill, and the reason why I agree with Senator Burr, is that the 
U.S. Treasury is not bottomless, and the funding that is being provided 
to create this new pension for these Filipino allies, which were of 
course fighting not only with us but for themselves and for the freedom 
of their country, is that it would literally be at the expense of U.S. 
veterans.
  The $221 million that is addressed by Senator Burr's amendment would 
actually go back in to supplement benefits for United States veterans. 
And while we appreciate and honor and do nothing but show our respect 
to all of our allies who fought alongside of us in World War II, 
certainly that doesn't mean we are going to grant pension benefits to 
all of our allies, starting with the Filipino veterans, or the British, 
or the Australians, and all the other allies that fought with us in 
defeating Hitler and the threat in Japan.
  Frankly, I can't see our priorities are correct if we do this at the 
expense of American veterans. That is why I support the amendment by 
Senator Burr, and I hope our colleagues will vote for it, because 
certainly our American veterans should be our priority.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Texas.
  Let me highlight one area from these 11 points of the substance of 
Senator Akaka's bill, and it is the creation of a new special pension 
of $300 a month to Filipino veterans who live in the Philippines who 
have no service-connected disability and who did not serve in the 
United States services.
  Now, the reason I want to draw that distinction--and I will ask for 
the next

[[Page 6815]]

chart--is there are four groups of Filipino veterans. It is important 
to understand that the group we refer to as Old Scouts enlisted in the 
U.S. Army. Because they enlisted in the U.S. Army, they are extended 
every benefit a U.S. veteran has. We had three other groups, though, 
the Commonwealth Army of the Philippines, Recognized Guerilla Forces, 
and New Philippine Scouts. Of those three categories, none were 
enlisted in the U.S. service.
  Senator Inouye was correct, they were under U.S. command. There were 
a lot of people in the Second World War who were under the U.S. 
command. But the official account lists this as the Commonwealth Army 
of the Philippines. Now, the question that is at the heart of the 
matter here is: Were Filipino veterans promised VA benefits? According 
to the information provided in a 1998 congressional hearing, the 
Department of the Army examined its holdings on General McArthur and 
President Roosevelt and found no reference by either of these wartime 
leaders to post-war benefits for Filipino veterans.
  Let me draw a distinction. For any Philippine veteran who has a 
service-connected disability, they are compensated today, whether they 
live in the United States or whether they live in the Philippines. For 
the soldier in the Commonwealth Army of the Philippines, those whom 
Senator Stevens referred to from the Bataan Death March or side by side 
in the foxhole, and who had a service-connected disability, they 
receive compensation from the U.S. Government today, and have 
continually. The reference that they only got part of what the U.S. vet 
gets is, in fact, accurate. Because of the difference in the two 
economies, it was structured to recognize their economy and not to 
provide more than an equal share to U.S. veterans.
  In this bill, we make a change, and that is why, when I alluded to 
the fact there is $320 some million designated for Filipinos but only 
$221 million designated to the special new pension, the other $100 
million Senator Akaka has recognized that 50 cents on the dollar is 
very difficult to substantiate. What he does is he raises it dollar for 
dollar with U.S. veterans.
  Let me put that in perspective. For a 100-percent disabled veteran in 
the Philippines today, it means today they get $1,200 a month. After 
this bill passes, they will get $2,400 a month, in an economy where the 
average annual income is $2,800 a month. We will take every 
servicemember, regardless of which of those three branches of the 
commonwealth army they served in, and they will be in the elite class 
from a standpoint of income. I support that. I support Senator Akaka's 
change in the law.
  But the root issue raised is: They were promised something more. Was 
it Congress's intent to grant full VA benefits to Filipino veterans? 
First, it is important to note that it was a 1942 VA legal opinion 
which concluded that Filipino veterans had served ``in the active 
military or naval service of the United States'' and on that basis were 
eligible for VA benefits. Senator Carl Hayden, who in 1946 was the 
chairman of the Subcommittee on Appropriations, had this to say about 
VA's legal determination regarding Philippine Army veterans during the 
committee proceedings in March of that year:

       There is nothing to indicate that there was any discussion 
     of the meaning of that term, probably because it is generally 
     well recognized and has been used in many statutes having to 
     do with members or former members of the American armed 
     forces. It would normally be construed to include persons 
     regularly enlisted or inducted in the regular manner in the 
     military and naval service of the United States.

  He goes on to say:

       But no one could be found who would assert that it was ever 
     the clear intention of Congress that such benefits as are 
     granted--under the GI Bill of Rights--should be extended to 
     the soldiers of the Philippine Army. There is nothing in the 
     text of any of the laws enacted by Congress for the benefit 
     of veterans to indicate such intent.

  He goes further to say:

       It is certainly unthinkable that Congress would extend the 
     normal meaning of the term to cover the large number of 
     Filipinos to whom it has been suggested that the Servicemen's 
     Readjustment Act of 1940 applies, at a cost running into 
     billions of dollars, aside from other considerations, without 
     some reference to it either in the debates in Congress or in 
     the committee reports.

  Maybe this is the debate in Congress.
  This issue was raised in 1997, and in June of that year, when the 
Clinton administration was asked to testify on this, Stephen Lemons, 
Acting Under Secretary for Benefits, was quoted in the hearing as 
saying this:

       History shows that the limitations on eligibility for U.S. 
     benefits based on service in these Philippine forces were 
     based on a carefully considered determination of the 
     government's responsibilities toward them.

  They testified against extending that benefit.
  In 1948, there was a House hearing, and in that House hearing there 
was an exchange between witnesses and Members of the House. There was a 
Father Haggarty who came to testify, and I read from the official 
accounts of that hearing. This is Father Haggarty:

       It was constantly promised, as the ambassador mentioned, in 
     radio broadcasts, official American broadcasts to the 
     Philippines in the war. It was definitely promised by General 
     McArthur, General Wainwright, and also it has been 
     acknowledged, I believe, that the Philippine groups 
     recognized the guerrillas, acting as members of the United 
     States Armed Forces, were entitled at one time to complete GI 
     bill of rights. That is, they were included. I believe that 
     is correct, and were later left out.

  Mr. Allen, Member:

       May I say there, Father, I know you are sincere about it, 
     but I think you are in error. Because there are three or four 
     of us here on the committee who were present when the GI bill 
     was written, and I don't think that ever entered into it.

  So the individuals who wrote the GI bill in a committee hearing are 
verifying that was not even discussed, much less their intent.
  There are a number of documents that have existed as committees have 
held hearings over a period of time from the Department of the Army, 
from the Roosevelt library. There have been searches everywhere to try 
to find any documentation that would lead one to believe that there was 
a promise, that there was an insinuation, and the fact is, whether it 
is Roosevelt documents, whether it is Army documents, whether it is 
General MacArthur's personal documents, no one can find anything, other 
than ``we believe this existed.''
  What factors influenced Congress's decision to limit certain VA 
benefits to Philippine veterans in what is known as the Rescissions Act 
of 1946, where it was made perfectly clear in legislation that this was 
going to happen? Well, you have heard it from the authors of the GI 
bill. ``We never intended this to be extended.'' The Congressional 
Research Service testimony in April of 2007 provided the following 
conclusion based on its review of the congressional history.

       It seems clear that Congress considered the Rescissions Act 
     in the context of providing for the comprehensive economic 
     development of the soon to be sovereign Republic of the 
     Philippines.

  President Truman, in signing the Rescissions Act, reminded everyone 
in the United States that we shared responsibility with the Philippine 
Government for the welfare of Philippine veterans, but recognized that 
certain practical difficulties exist in applying the GI bill of rights 
to the Philippines.
  Again, the second President in the line suggesting that this was not 
the intent.
  As I said earlier, we extend disability compensation to any Filipino 
veteran, regardless of Commonwealth Army or of the U.S. Army, who was 
injured in service or disabled because of service. Now, what have we 
done? What specifically has the United States done since we left the 
Philippines?
  After the war, the U.S. provided $620 million--in today's dollars 
that is $6.7 billion--for repair of public property and war damage 
claims and assistance to the Philippine Government. VA compensation for 
service-related disabilities, as I said, and survivor compensation was 
also provided, and again paid at a rate that reflected differences in 
the cost of living.
  We are changing that. We are raising it to 100 percent. The United 
States provided $22.5 million--$196 million in today's dollars--for the 
construction

[[Page 6816]]

and equipping of a hospital in the Philippines for the care of Filipino 
veterans. In addition, the U.S. Government provides annual grants to 
support the operation of the hospital, which was later donated to the 
Philippine Government. The grants continue to exist today.
  Survivors of the Filipino veterans who died as a result of service 
are eligible for educational assistance benefits. Filipino veterans 
legally residing in the United States are eligible for full-rate 
disability compensation, full-rate cash burial benefits, full access to 
the VA health care clinics, medical centers, and burial in our national 
cemeteries.
  I am not sure anybody can leave this debate and say we have not done 
our share. So we are back to one issue: the special pension. We are 
back to the creation of a special pension for some number of Filipinos 
who served or were affiliated with the Commonwealth Army of the 
Philippines that would place them in a pension category of $300 a 
month.
  I will ask for the last chart to go up. I made this case 2 days ago 
extremely hard, and I want my colleagues to listen. The proposal to 
raise $300 is on top of what is currently paid by the Filipino 
Government to every veteran. That is $120 a month. That $120 a month in 
the Philippines puts every veteran 400 percent above the poverty line 
in the Philippines. Let me put it in perspective to the United States. 
For our veterans who receive a special pension because of income, that 
pension equates to 10 percent above the poverty line. Today, the $120 a 
month equates to 400 percent above the poverty line.
  What we are being asked to do in 1315, and what I am cutting from 
1315 and allocating to our veterans, is $300 a month, which would raise 
the Filipino veterans to 1400 percent over poverty.
  Mr. President, that is 27 percent over the median annual income of a 
Filipino.
  I might once again say, for U.S. veterans under special pensions, 
they are 10 percent above poverty; they are at 21 percent of median 
income--under, not over. This one change, this one creation of a new 
program, puts the whole group at 1400 percent over the poverty line and 
27 percent over the median income. This is on top of the $1,200, if 
they are fully disabled, that they are currently getting each month. 
What Senator Akaka will do in his bill, and I support, raises that to 
$2,400 if they are 100 percent disabled.
  I say to my colleagues, we are not here to create another class in 
the Philippines. I hold Senator Inouye's and Senator Stevens' belief 
that we owe these individuals so much--but so do we to our veterans, to 
my dad who just turned 87 who fought in the Pacific. Senator Craig, in 
the committee markup, attempted to reach a compromise. He offered $100 
versus $300. It was rejected. The chairman knows I do not have any ill 
will over that; a decision was made, and it was rejected on a party-
line vote.
  I hope--and I say this to the chairman today--I hope this is the last 
time while I am here when the Veterans' Affairs Committee brings a bill 
to the floor that does not have the bipartisan consensus that history 
has proven, and I think he and I can accomplish that.
  We inherited something on which we were incapable of coming to some 
compromise, so we have a tough decision to make. That decision today is 
about, frankly, our veterans or their veterans. Are we going to enhance 
the benefits for housing grants and for car grants or are we going to 
create a new special pension for Filipino veterans who live in the 
Philippines who have no service-connected disability? It is an issue 
of, Is it equitable?
  What my amendment does is simple. It eliminates this new special 
pension and takes the $221 million and increases the grants that we 
have in adaptive housing for our burned veterans and for car grants.
  We respect and we are grateful for the brave Filipino fighters, but 
this is about today, not yesterday. It is about the needs of our 
veterans, the equity of our generosity. It is not about broken 
promises, it is about recognizing priorities. It is not about young 
Members looking and saying that is too much money. No, it is about 
young Members looking and saying: You know what, when you can't fund 
everything you have to prioritize.
  I urge my colleagues, I implore my colleagues, support my amendment 
and make sure we put our priorities in the right place. Then vote for 
passage. Support the chairman in his efforts for passage and know that 
each one of us will have upheld our responsibilities to our warriors, 
those individuals who protect us every day we are here.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Tester). The time of the Senator has 
expired. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I yield 5 minutes to the Senator from New 
Jersey, Mr. Menendez.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, the Veterans' Benefit Enhancement Act we 
are debating contains a number of important benefits to provide for our 
veterans. It would expand eligibility for traumatic injury insurance, 
provide job training, and help disabled veterans make their homes more 
accessible. That is all worthy.
  There is also another issue. In 1941, President Roosevelt called on 
the people of the Philippines to fight for their freedom and ours, and 
thousands of brave Filipinos answered the call. They carried out 
operations to liberate their homeland and joined us in support of our 
efforts in the Pacific theater. They fought and died at Corregidor, 
they were with us on the beaches of Bataan, and in the death marches. 
They were there when General MacArthur promised he would return, they 
fought using guerrilla tactics to tie down the Japanese, and they 
fought under General MacArthur when he came back and said, ``I have 
returned.''
  Throughout the war, Filipino soldiers fought under the American flag, 
serving with valor, strength, and dignity. President Roosevelt 
guaranteed those brave soldiers that the United States would come to 
their aid in times of peace, just as they had come to our aid during 
times of war.
  He guaranteed them equal veterans' benefits--a fair promise, 
considering their service and considering the law of the land, as they 
were full members of the U.S. military.
  But in 1946 in one of the most misguided legislative actions at the 
time, Congress took away the benefits that the President of the United 
States had promised them, benefits they had rightfully earned.
  Of the approximately 250,000 Filipino veterans who fought for us in 
America, only 18,000 are still alive today. Many of them are searching 
for ways to pay for health care and struggling in ways they never 
should. These veterans have more yesterdays than tomorrows. They are 
well into their eighties, and in terms of our budget, what this bill 
would cost over the next 10 years we are spending in Iraq every 18 
hours. Those who say it will cost too much are the same voices who said 
it would cost too much to do what Democrats did under the leadership of 
Senator Akaka when, for the first time, we fully funded the veterans 
independent budget.
  When we bring this bill to a vote, we will be answering a very simple 
but powerful question: Does our Nation keep its promises? We need to 
right an injustice of the past and show our allies, for future purposes 
as well, when we tell people to join us in our fight against terrorism, 
to join us in our fight against other challenges in the world, that 
America honors its obligations to those who fight for the values and 
principles we collectively share.
  This is a critical time to send a message to friends of freedom 
across the world that we remember our allies, and we pay our debts.
  Our distinguished colleagues in this Senate who have served during 
World War II have said this is not simply a question of budget, this is 
a question of honor. These individuals of honor put their lives on the 
line for our Nation, and now the honor of our Nation is on the line.
  Let's just show a fraction of the bravery they did and vote to 
restore to them what they were promised, what was the law, and what 
they rightfully earned.

[[Page 6817]]

  Now, like lawyers, there are some who are picking on points here or 
there to build a case against these benefits. In my mind it is a case 
made of sand. Let's vote to bring an honorable ending to this story and 
in however small a way let us pledge now to give them dignity in the 
twilight of their lives.
  I urge my colleagues to support Senator Akaka's bill as it is to be 
able to keep our word in the world.
  Mr. President, to reiterate, the Veterans' Benefits Enhancement Act 
that we are debating contains a number of important measures to provide 
for our veterans. It would expand eligibility for traumatic injury 
insurance, provide job training, help disabled veterans make their 
homes more accessible. And that is all worthy. But there is also 
another issue.
  In 1941, President Roosevelt called on the people of the Philippines 
to fight for their freedom and ours, and thousands of brave Filipinos 
answered the call. They carried out operations to liberate their 
homeland, and joined us in support of our efforts in the Pacific 
Theater. They fought and died at Corregidor. They were with us on the 
beaches at Bataan, and in the death marches. They were there when 
General MacArthur promised he would return, they fought using guerilla 
tactics to tie down the Japanese, and they fought under General 
MacArthur when he came back and said, ``I have returned.''
  Throughout the war, Filipino soldiers fought under the American flag, 
serving with valor, strength, and dignity. President Roosevelt 
guaranteed those brave soldiers that the United States would come to 
their aid in times of peace just as they had come to our aid during 
times of war. He guaranteed them equal veterans' benefits--a fair 
promise, considering their service, and considering the law of the 
land, as they were full members of the U.S. military.
  But in 1946, in one of the most misguided legislative actions of the 
time, Congress took away the benefits that the President of the United 
States had promised them--benefits they had rightfully earned. Of the 
approximately 250,000 Filipino veterans who fought for us in America, 
only about 18,000 are still alive today. Many of them are searching for 
ways to pay for health care, and are struggling in ways they never 
should.
  These veterans have more yesterdays than tomorrows. They are all well 
into their eighties. In terms of our budget, what this bill would cost 
over the course of 10 years, we are spending in Iraq every 18 hours.
  So those who say it costs too much are the same voices who said that 
it would cost too much to do what Democrats did under the leadership of 
Senator Akaka, when for the first time we fully funded the veterans 
independent budget. When we bring this bill to a vote, we will be 
answering a very simple but powerful question: Does our Nation keep its 
promises?
  We need to right an injustice of the past and show our allies for 
future purposes as well; when we tell people join us in our fight 
against terrorism, join us in our fight against other challenges in the 
world that America honors its obligation to those who fight for the 
values and our principles that we collectively share. This is a 
critical time to send a message to friends of freedom across the world: 
we remember our allies and we pay our debts.
  Our distinguished colleagues in the Senate who have served during 
World War II have said, this is not simply a question of budget. This 
is a question of honor. These individuals of honor put their lives on 
the line for our Nation, and now the honor of our Nation is on the 
line. Let us show them just a fraction of the bravery they did, and 
vote to restore them what they were promised, what was the law and what 
they rightfully earned.
  Now, like lawyers there are some who are picking on points here and 
there to build a case against these benefits, in my mind is a case made 
of sand. Let us vote to bring an honorable ending to this story and in 
however small a way, let us pledge now to give them dignity in the 
twilight of their life. I really urge my colleagues to support Senator 
Akaka's bill as it is, and be able to keep our word in the world.
  If I have any remaining time, I yield it back to Senator Akaka.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I would like to yield 5 minutes to the 
Senator from Florida, Mr. Nelson.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida is recognized.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, the underlying bill that the 
Senators from Hawaii and North Carolina have put together is a step in 
the right direction: increasing life insurance benefits, increasing 
disability benefits--particularly for traumatic brain injury--and doing 
that retroactively.
  There is another portion in here that makes a lot of sense. If under 
current law a veteran who is deployed to a war zone can get out of his 
apartment rental contract, why should not he be able to get out of his 
cell phone lease contract? That provision is in here. That is in the 
underlying bill.
  Let me tell you what is not in here--I am going to have to take this 
up on the Defense authorization bill--taking care of the widows and the 
orphans in the offset between survivor benefits plans and dependents' 
indemnity compensation--SVPDIC. The veterans' survivors, the widows and 
orphans, are entitled under both by law--but by law they offset each 
other. Thus widows and orphans are suffering. We will address that in 
the Defense authorization bill.
  I want to expand on what the two Senators from Hawaii have said. 
There is one thing that America should never do, and that is break her 
word. When we have allies who are side by side with us in war, and they 
are depending on our word that we are going to take care of them, it is 
the obligation of America to do that.
  I yield the floor.
  Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I rise today in support of providing 
benefits to Filipino veterans who served our Nation during World War 
II. S. 1315, the Veterans' Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 introduced 
by Senator Akaka, specifically includes a provision that would restore 
health and pension benefits to Filipino veterans who fought for the 
United States during World War II. This provision is based on S.57, the 
Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007 originally introduced by Senator 
Inouye and which I am proud to cosponsor. I have supported rectifying 
this injustice since I entered the Senate in 2001.
  Senator Burr's amendment would strip the provision benefitting 
Filipino veterans from S. 1315. I strongly oppose this amendment.
  In 1942, President Roosevelt issued an order conscripting Filipino 
soldiers into the U.S. Armed Forces. More than 250,000 Filipino 
soldiers joined the U.S. Armed Forces in the months before and days 
following the attack on Pearl Harbor. These men served on the 
battlefield and fought courageously alongside American soldiers 
throughout World War II, took part in the guerilla resistance, and 
suffered in prisoner-of-war camps including the infamous Bataan Death 
March in which untold numbers of Americans and Filipinos soldiers 
suffered and died under brutal conditions.
  The United States promised these Filipino veterans the same health 
and pension benefits as those of American servicemembers, but after 
World War II ended, Congress passed the Rescission Act of 1946, 
rescinding benefits that the Filipino soldiers were entitled to receive 
as U.S. veterans. Since then, these veterans have been fighting for 
these benefits which were unjustly revoked by the 1946 Rescission Act.
  I reiterate the statements I made recently in honor of the 66th 
anniversary of the Bataan Death March that this is a matter of 
restoring the honor and dignity of these courageous veterans. I will 
continue to support and fight for the Filipino veterans equity bill.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, how much time do we in the majority have?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Five minutes. The time of the Senator from 
North Carolina has expired.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Florida for his 
remarks.
  Mr. President, on July 26, 1941, President Roosevelt issued an 
Executive

[[Page 6818]]

Order ordering all military forces of the Commonwealth of the 
Philippines into service of the Armed Forces of the United States. This 
happened after a bit of history.
  In 1898 the Philippines became a colony of the United States. It was 
on March 24, 1934, that the Tydings-McDuffie Act passed Congress. That 
provided for independence for the Philippines. It was mandated in that 
bill that there would be a 10-year period--that is to 1944--when the 
Philippines would formalize and shape and develop its entity. But what 
was mandated was that the United States would provide the control and 
supervision of the national defense of the Philippines, and also of its 
foreign affairs.
  This was in that bill in 1934. The 10-year period ended in 1944. So 
the United States was very much a part of the Philippines. In 1941, 
under the declaration and Executive Order of President Roosevelt, they 
served in the U.S. Armed Forces of the Far East. All of the military 
forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines remained under the 
command of the U.S. Armed Forces of the Far East throughout World War 
II and until the Philippines was granted independence on July 4, 1946.
  Our Nation has a long history of caring for aging veterans, 
particularly those who served the country during a time of war. 
Philippine veterans of the Second World War are now in their twilight 
years, and many are struggling to make ends meet, especially with 
global food prices on the rise. Now, perhaps more than ever, the modest 
pension benefits that are in S. 1315 are of the greatest value to 
veterans who earned them on the battlefield so many years ago.
  I urge my colleagues to stand with me, with my World War II 
colleagues, Senators Inouye and Stevens, and a majority of the 
Veterans' Affairs Committee and not accept the amendment of the Senator 
from North Carolina.


                           Amendment No. 4576

  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, under the agreement entered yesterday, I 
now call up the managers' technicals package and ask unanimous consent 
that the amendment be considered and agreed to and the motion to 
reconsider laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 4576) was agreed to, as follows:

       On page 12, beginning on line 8, strike ``June 1, 2008'' 
     and insert ``April 1, 2009''.
       On page 13, line 17, strike ``January 1, 2008'' and insert 
     ``January 1, 2009''.
       On page 14, line 9, strike ``January 1, 2008'' and insert 
     ``January 1, 2009''
       On page 29, line 7, strike ``October 1, 2007'' and insert 
     ``October 1, 2008''.
       On page 29, line 12, strike ``December 31, 2008'' and 
     insert ``December 31, 2009''.
       On page 30, line 19, strike ``December 31, 2008'' and 
     insert ``December 31, 2009''.
       On page 35, line 22, add after the period the following: 
     ``The amendment made by the preceding sentence shall take 
     effect on October 1, 2008, and shall expire on January 1, 
     2010.''.
       On page 38, beginning on line 21, strike ``the date of the 
     enactment of this Act'' and insert ``April 1, 2009''.
       On page 41, line 16, strike ``May 1, 2008'' and insert 
     ``April 1, 2009''.
       On page 41, line 18, strike ``May 1, 2008'' and insert 
     ``April 1, 2009''.
       On page 41, line 24, strike ``the date of the enactment of 
     this Act'' and insert ``April 1, 2009''.
       On page 42, line 1, strike ``the date of the enactment of 
     this Act'' and insert ``that date''.
       On page 59, line 17, strike ``October 1, 2007'' and insert 
     ``October 1, 2008''.
       On page 62, line 22, strike ``October 1, 2007'' and insert 
     ``October 1, 2008''.
       On page 67, line 23, strike ``October 1, 2007'' and insert 
     ``October 1, 2008''.
       On page 71, beginning on line 9, strike ``October 1, 2007, 
     and ending on September 30, 2011'' and insert ``October 1, 
     2008, and ending on September 30, 2012''.
       On page 71, line 23, strike ``March 31, 2011'' and insert 
     ``March 31, 2012''.
       On page 72, line 3, strike ``September 30, 2011'' and 
     insert ``September 30, 2012''.
       On page 72, line 14, strike ``fiscal years 2008 through 
     2011'' and inserting ``fiscal years 2009 through 2012''.
       On page 73, line 4, strike ``fiscal year 2011'' and insert 
     ``fiscal year 2012''.
       On page 75, beginning on line 22, strike ``December 31, 
     2010'' and insert ``December 31, 2011''.

  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I yield back the remaining time and I ask 
for the vote.
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There appears to be a sufficient second.
  The question is on agreeing to amendment No. 4572.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Mr. Obama) is 
necessarily absent.
  Mr. KYL. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator 
from South Carolina (Mr. DeMint) and the Senator from Arizona (Mr. 
McCain).
  Further, if present and voting, the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. 
DeMint) would have voted ``yea.''
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 41, nays 56, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 111 Leg.]

                                YEAS--41

     Alexander
     Allard
     Barrasso
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Bond
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Burr
     Chambliss
     Coburn
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Craig
     Crapo
     Dole
     Domenici
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Graham
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hatch
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Kyl
     Martinez
     McConnell
     Roberts
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Sununu
     Thune
     Vitter
     Wicker

                                NAYS--56

     Akaka
     Baucus
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Boxer
     Brown
     Byrd
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Clinton
     Conrad
     Dodd
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Inouye
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Kerry
     Klobuchar
     Kohl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lugar
     McCaskill
     Menendez
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Rockefeller
     Salazar
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Tester
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Webb
     Whitehouse
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--3

     DeMint
     McCain
     Obama
  The amendment (No. 4572) was rejected.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. LEAHY. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I would like to offer my support for S. 
1315, the Veterans' Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007. This is a 
tremendously important piece of legislation, and I commend Senator 
Akaka and the Veterans' Affairs Committee for their work.
  This bill says to the men and women who have served and suffered 
horrible injuries and paid the price of war, ``We have not forgotten 
you. You and your families deserve the respect and care of a grateful 
Nation, and we will do all that we can to see to it that you live lives 
of dignity.'' Among other things, this legislation enhances life 
insurance benefits to disabled servicemembers, improves benefits for 
veterans who need to renovate their homes to accommodate their 
injuries, and increases education benefits so our veterans will have an 
easier time going back to school and getting good jobs when they finish 
military service.
  But just as important as taking care of our newest generation of 
veterans, this bill also takes care of some of the oldest veterans who 
were a part of the ``greatest generation.''
  In 1941, President Roosevelt issued an order that directed the 
Commonwealth Army of the Philippines to fight alongside our Armed 
Forces, as he was authorized to do under the Philippine Independence 
Act of 1934. Some 250,000 Filipinos would swear allegiance to the 
United States of America in the months before and the days after Pearl 
Harbor.
  Under our flag, they went on to fight and die on the same 
battlefields as U.S. troops. They gathered intelligence, organized a 
guerilla resistance against the Japanese invasion of their island home, 
and assisted in rescue operations of American prisoners of war.

[[Page 6819]]

  When the fighting stopped, the members of the Filipino Army were to 
have been eligible for full veterans' benefits, just like American 
veterans. In October of 1945 GEN Omar Bradley, who at the time was the 
head of the Veterans' Administration, affirmed that the Filipino 
soldiers would be treated no differently and were to receive all the 
benefits that they rightly deserved.
  Unfortunately, the Rescission Act of 1946 changed all that. It stated 
that the Filipinos who fought alongside Americans had not performed 
``active service'' and that they had no standing or claim to any 
``rights, privileges, or benefits.''
  Mr. President, there are now only about 18,000 of these heroic 
Filipinos left. About 13,000 of them are still in the Philippines, 
where they have waited over 60 years for the United States Government 
to provide the benefits they were promised and are owed for serving our 
Nation and defending the cause of freedom. That is what this 
legislation does. It also extends the benefits available to all U.S. 
servicemembers to the 5,000 Filipino veterans living here in the United 
States.
  Unfortunately, for the past 9 months, the other side of the aisle has 
balked at allowing this legislation to come up for a vote. I am 
certainly thankful that they have no problem with extending full 
benefits to Filipino veterans living here. But sadly they feel that 
$300 a month for a single person and $375 for a married person is too 
high a pension for someone who lives in the Philippines but fought for 
the United States 60 years ago and hasn't received a penny since. 
Instead they are insisting on no pension at all for these veterans.
  However, I am glad that we have now moved to the bill, and we can 
debate the merits of this vital legislation that will address the needs 
of those who have paid the price of war.
  Senator Inouye, who has so faithfully lead this effort for the past 
16 years and knows what it means to have fought under our flag in World 
War II, recently stated, ``What happened 61 years ago was not right; it 
was shameful and disgraceful. . . . The legislation is about fairness 
and dignity--core American values. It is also about correcting an 
injustice that has stood for way too long.''
  I could not agree more, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill 
and bring these well-deserved and urgently needed benefits to those 
veterans--both young and old--who have fought on our behalf.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the amendment in the 
nature of a substitute, as amended, is agreed to.
  The clerk will read the bill for the third and final time.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read 
the third time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill having been read the third time, the 
question is, Shall it pass?
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays on final 
passage and urge my colleagues to support the pending measure.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There appears to be.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Mr. Obama) is 
necessarily absent.
  Mr. KYL. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator 
from South Carolina (Mr. DeMint) and the Senator from Arizona (Mr. 
McCain).
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 96, nays 1, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 112 Leg.]

                                YEAS--96

     Akaka
     Alexander
     Allard
     Barrasso
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Brown
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Burr
     Byrd
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Chambliss
     Clinton
     Coburn
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Conrad
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Craig
     Crapo
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Graham
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Isakson
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Kerry
     Klobuchar
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lugar
     Martinez
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Salazar
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Sununu
     Tester
     Thune
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Webb
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden

                                NAYS--1


       
     Vitter
       

                             NOT VOTING--3

     DeMint
     McCain
     Obama
  The bill (S. 1315), as amended, was passed, as follows:

                                S. 1315

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans' 
     Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Reference to title 38, United States Code.

                       TITLE I--INSURANCE MATTERS

Sec. 101. Level-premium term life insurance for veterans with service-
              connected disabilities.
Sec. 102. Administrative costs of service disabled veterans' insurance.
Sec. 103. Modification of servicemembers' group life insurance 
              coverage.
Sec. 104. Supplemental insurance for totally disabled veterans.
Sec. 105. Expansion of individuals qualifying for retroactive benefits 
              from traumatic injury protection coverage under 
              Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance.
Sec. 106. Consideration of loss dominant hand in prescription of 
              schedule of severity of traumatic injury under 
              Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance.
Sec. 107. Designation of fiduciary for traumatic injury protection 
              coverage under Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance in 
              case of lost mental capacity or extended loss of 
              consciousness.
Sec. 108. Enhancement of veterans' mortgage life insurance.

                       TITLE II--HOUSING MATTERS

Sec. 201. Home improvements and structural alterations for totally 
              disabled members of the Armed Forces before discharge or 
              release from the Armed Forces.
Sec. 202. Eligibility for specially adapted housing benefits and 
              assistance for members of the Armed Forces with service-
              connected disabilities and individuals residing outside 
              the United States.
Sec. 203. Specially adapted housing assistance for individuals with 
              severe burn injuries.
Sec. 204. Extension of assistance for individuals residing temporarily 
              in housing owned by a family member.
Sec. 205. Supplemental specially adapted housing benefits for disabled 
              veterans.
Sec. 206. Report on specially adapted housing for disabled individuals.
Sec. 207. Report on specially adapted housing assistance for 
              individuals who reside in housing owned by a family 
              member on permanent basis.

                 TITLE III--LABOR AND EDUCATION MATTERS

Sec. 301. Coordination of approval activities in the administration of 
              education benefits.
Sec. 302. Modification of rate of reimbursement of State and local 
              agencies administering veterans education benefits.
Sec. 303. Waiver of residency requirement for Directors for Veterans' 
              Employment and Training.
Sec. 304. Modification of special unemployment study to cover veterans 
              of Post 9/11 Global Operations.
Sec. 305. Extension of increase in benefit for individuals pursuing 
              apprenticeship or on-job training.

            TITLE IV--FILIPINO WORLD WAR II VETERANS MATTERS

Sec. 401. Expansion of eligibility for benefits provided by Department 
              of Veterans Affairs for certain service in the organized 
              military forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines 
              and the Philippine Scouts.

[[Page 6820]]

Sec. 402. Eligibility of children of certain Philippine veterans for 
              educational assistance.

                         TITLE V--COURT MATTERS

Sec. 501. Recall of retired judges of the United States Court of 
              Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Sec. 502. Additional discretion in imposition of practice and 
              registration fees.
Sec. 503. Annual reports on workload of United States Court of Appeals 
              for Veterans Claims.
Sec. 504. Report on expansion of facilities for United States Court of 
              Appeals for Veterans Claims.

               TITLE VI--COMPENSATION AND PENSION MATTERS

Sec. 601. Addition of osteoporosis to disabilities presumed to be 
              service-connected in former prisoners of war with post-
              traumatic stress disorder.
Sec. 602. Cost-of-living increase for temporary dependency and 
              indemnity compensation payable for surviving spouses with 
              dependent children under the age of 18.
Sec. 603. Clarification of eligibility of veterans 65 years of age or 
              older for service pension for a period of war.

                 TITLE VII--BURIAL AND MEMORIAL MATTERS

Sec. 701. Supplemental benefits for veterans for funeral and burial 
              expenses.
Sec. 702. Supplemental plot allowances.

                       TITLE VIII--OTHER MATTERS

Sec. 801. Eligibility of disabled veterans and members of the Armed 
              Forces with severe burn injuries for automobiles and 
              adaptive equipment.
Sec. 802. Supplemental assistance for providing automobiles or other 
              conveyances to certain disabled veterans.
Sec. 803. Clarification of purpose of the outreach services program of 
              the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 804. Termination or suspension of contracts for cellular telephone 
              service for servicemembers undergoing deployment outside 
              the United States.
Sec. 805. Maintenance, management, and availability for research of 
              assets of Air Force Health Study.
Sec. 806. National Academies study on risk of developing multiple 
              sclerosis as a result of certain service in the Persian 
              Gulf War and Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters.
Sec. 807. Comptroller General report on adequacy of dependency and 
              indemnity compensation to maintain survivors of veterans 
              who die from service-connected disabilities.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCE TO TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE.

       Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this 
     Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an 
     amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the 
     reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 
     other provision of title 38, United States Code.

                       TITLE I--INSURANCE MATTERS

     SEC. 101. LEVEL-PREMIUM TERM LIFE INSURANCE FOR VETERANS WITH 
                   SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITIES.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 19 is amended by inserting after 
     section 1922A the following new section:

     ``Sec. 1922B. Level-premium term life insurance for veterans 
       with service-connected disabilities

       ``(a) In General.--In accordance with the provisions of 
     this section, the Secretary shall grant insurance to each 
     eligible veteran who seeks such insurance against the death 
     of such veteran occurring while such insurance is in force.
       ``(b) Eligible Veterans.--For purposes of this section, an 
     eligible veteran is any veteran less than 65 years of age who 
     has a service-connected disability.
       ``(c) Amount of Insurance.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), 
     the amount of insurance granted an eligible veteran under 
     this section shall be $50,000 or such lesser amount as the 
     veteran shall elect. The amount of insurance so elected shall 
     be evenly divisible by $10,000.
       ``(2) The aggregate amount of insurance of an eligible 
     veteran under this section, section 1922 of this title, and 
     section 1922A of this title may not exceed $50,000.
       ``(d) Reduced Amount for Veterans Age 70 or Older.--In the 
     case of a veteran insured under this section who turns age 
     70, the amount of insurance of such veteran under this 
     section after the date such veteran turns age 70 shall be the 
     amount equal to 20 percent of the amount of insurance of the 
     veteran under this section as of the day before such date.
       ``(e) Premiums.--(1) Premium rates for insurance under this 
     section shall be based on the 2001 Commissioners Standard 
     Ordinary Basic Table of Mortality and interest at the rate of 
     4.5 per centum per annum.
       ``(2) The amount of the premium charged a veteran for 
     insurance under this section may not increase while such 
     insurance is in force for such veteran.
       ``(3) The Secretary may not charge a premium for insurance 
     under this section for a veteran as follows:
       ``(A) A veteran who has a service-connected disability 
     rated as total and is eligible for a waiver of premiums under 
     section 1912 of this title.
       ``(B) A veteran who is 70 years of age or older.
       ``(4) Insurance granted under this section shall be on a 
     nonparticipating basis and all premiums and other collections 
     therefor shall be credited directly to a revolving fund in 
     the Treasury of the United States, and any payments on such 
     insurance shall be made directly from such fund. 
     Appropriations to such fund are hereby authorized.
       ``(5) Administrative costs to the Government for the costs 
     of the program of insurance under this section shall be paid 
     from premiums credited to the fund under paragraph (4), and 
     payments for claims against the fund under paragraph (4) for 
     amounts in excess of amounts credited to such fund under that 
     paragraph (after such administrative costs have been paid) 
     shall be paid from appropriations to the fund.
       ``(f) Application Required.--An eligible veteran seeking 
     insurance under this section shall file with the Secretary an 
     application therefor. Such application shall be filed not 
     later than the earlier of--
       ``(1) the end of the two-year period beginning on the date 
     on which the Secretary notifies the veteran that the veteran 
     has a service-connected disability; and
       ``(2) the end of the 10-year period beginning on the date 
     of the separation of the veteran from the Armed Forces, 
     whichever is earlier.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 19 is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 1922A the following new item:

``1922B. Level-premium term life insurance for veterans with service-
              connected disabilities.''.
       (c) Exchange of Service Disabled Veterans' Insurance.--
     During the one-year period beginning on the effective date of 
     this section under subsection (d), any veteran insured under 
     section 1922 of title 38, United States Code, who is eligible 
     for insurance under section 1922B of such title (as added by 
     subsection (a)), may exchange insurance coverage under such 
     section 1922 for insurance coverage under such section 1922B.
       (d) Effective Date.--This section, and the amendments made 
     by this section, shall take effect on April 1, 2009.

     SEC. 102. ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS OF SERVICE DISABLED VETERANS' 
                   INSURANCE.

       Section 1922(a) is amended by striking ``directly from such 
     fund'' and inserting ``directly from such fund; and (5) 
     administrative costs to the Government for the costs of the 
     program of insurance under this section shall be paid from 
     premiums credited to the fund under paragraph (4), and 
     payments for claims against the fund under paragraph (4) for 
     amounts in excess of amounts credited to such fund under that 
     paragraph (after such administrative costs have been paid) 
     shall be paid from appropriations to the fund''.

     SEC. 103. MODIFICATION OF SERVICEMEMBERS' GROUP LIFE 
                   INSURANCE COVERAGE.

       (a) Expansion of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance To 
     Include Certain Members of Individual Ready Reserve.--
       (1) In general.--Paragraph (1)(C) of section 1967(a) is 
     amended by striking ``section 1965(5)(B) of this title'' and 
     inserting ``subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 1965(5) of 
     this title''.
       (2) Conforming amendment.--Paragraph (5)(C) of such section 
     1967(a) is amended by striking ``section 1965(5)(B) of this 
     title'' and inserting ``subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 
     1965(5) of this title''.
       (b) Reduction in Period of Coverage for Dependents After 
     Member Separates.--Section 1968(a)(5)(B)(ii) is amended by 
     striking ``120 days after''.

     SEC. 104. SUPPLEMENTAL INSURANCE FOR TOTALLY DISABLED 
                   VETERANS.

       (a) In General.--Section 1922A(a) is amended by striking 
     ``$20,000'' and inserting ``$30,000''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on January 1, 2009.

     SEC. 105. EXPANSION OF INDIVIDUALS QUALIFYING FOR RETROACTIVE 
                   BENEFITS FROM TRAUMATIC INJURY PROTECTION 
                   COVERAGE UNDER SERVICEMEMBERS' GROUP LIFE 
                   INSURANCE.

       (a) In General.--Paragraph (1) of section 501(b) of the 
     Veterans' Housing Opportunity and Benefits Improvement Act of 
     2006 (Public Law 109-233; 120 Stat. 414; 38 U.S.C. 1980A 
     note) is amended by striking ``, if, as determined by the 
     Secretary concerned, that loss was a direct result of a 
     traumatic injury incurred in the theater of operations for 
     Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--The heading of such section is 
     amended by striking ``in Operation Enduring Freedom and 
     Operation Iraqi Freedom''.

[[Page 6821]]

       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on January 1, 2009.

     SEC. 106. CONSIDERATION OF LOSS DOMINANT HAND IN PRESCRIPTION 
                   OF SCHEDULE OF SEVERITY OF TRAUMATIC INJURY 
                   UNDER SERVICEMEMBERS' GROUP LIFE INSURANCE.

       (a) In General.--Section 1980A(d) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``Payments under'' and inserting ``(1) 
     Payments under''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(2) As the Secretary considers appropriate, the schedule 
     required by paragraph (1) may distinguish in specifying 
     payments for qualifying losses between the severity of a 
     qualifying loss of a dominant hand and a qualifying loss of a 
     non-dominant hand.''.
       (b) Payments for Qualifying Losses Incurred Before Date of 
     Enactment.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     prescribe in regulations mechanisms for payments under 
     section 1980A of title 38, United States Code, for qualifying 
     losses incurred before the date of the enactment of this Act 
     by reason of the requirements of paragraph (2) of subsection 
     (d) of such section (as amended by subsection (a)(2) of this 
     section).
       (2) Qualifying loss defined.--In this subsection, the term 
     ``qualifying loss'' means--
       (A) a loss specified in the second sentence of subsection 
     (b)(1) of section 1980A of title 38, United States Code; and
       (B) any other loss specified by the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs pursuant to the first sentence of that subsection.

     SEC. 107. DESIGNATION OF FIDUCIARY FOR TRAUMATIC INJURY 
                   PROTECTION COVERAGE UNDER SERVICEMEMBERS' GROUP 
                   LIFE INSURANCE IN CASE OF LOST MENTAL CAPACITY 
                   OR EXTENDED LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense shall, in 
     consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, develop 
     a form for the designation of a recipient for the funds 
     distributed under section 1980A of title 38, United States 
     Code, as the fiduciary of a member of the Armed Forces in 
     cases where the member is mentally incapacitated (as 
     determined by the Secretary of Defense in consultation with 
     the Secretary of Veterans Affairs) or experiencing an 
     extended loss of consciousness.
       (b) Elements.--The form under subsection (a) shall require 
     that a member may elect that--
       (1) an individual designated by the member be the recipient 
     as the fiduciary of the member; or
       (2) a court of proper jurisdiction determine the recipient 
     as the fiduciary of the member for purposes of this 
     subsection.
       (c) Completion and Update.--The form under subsection (a) 
     shall be completed by an individual at the time of entry into 
     the Armed Forces and updated periodically thereafter.

     SEC. 108. ENHANCEMENT OF VETERANS' MORTGAGE LIFE INSURANCE.

       Section 2106(b) is amended by striking ``$90,000'' and 
     inserting ``$150,000, or $200,000 after January 1, 2012,''.

                       TITLE II--HOUSING MATTERS

     SEC. 201. HOME IMPROVEMENTS AND STRUCTURAL ALTERATIONS FOR 
                   TOTALLY DISABLED MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES 
                   BEFORE DISCHARGE OR RELEASE FROM THE ARMED 
                   FORCES.

       Section 1717 is amended by adding at the end the following 
     new subsection:
       ``(d)(1) In the case of a member of the Armed Forces who, 
     as determined by the Secretary, has a disability permanent in 
     nature incurred or aggravated in the line of duty in the 
     active military, naval, or air service, the Secretary may 
     furnish improvements and structural alterations for such 
     member for such disability or as otherwise described in 
     subsection (a)(2) while such member is hospitalized or 
     receiving outpatient medical care, services, or treatment for 
     such disability if the Secretary determines that such member 
     is likely to be discharged or released from the Armed Forces 
     for such disability.
       ``(2) The furnishing of improvements and alterations under 
     paragraph (1) in connection with the furnishing of medical 
     services described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection 
     (a)(2) shall be subject to the limitation specified in the 
     applicable subparagraph.''.

     SEC. 202. ELIGIBILITY FOR SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING BENEFITS 
                   AND ASSISTANCE FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES 
                   WITH SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITIES AND 
                   INDIVIDUALS RESIDING OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.

       (a) Eligibility.--Chapter 21 is amended by inserting after 
     section 2101 the following new section:

     ``Sec. 2101A. Eligibility for benefits and assistance: 
       members of the Armed Forces with service-connected 
       disabilities; individuals residing outside the United 
       States

       ``(a) Members With Service-Connected Disabilities.--(1) The 
     Secretary may provide assistance under this chapter to a 
     member of the Armed Forces serving on active duty who is 
     suffering from a disability that meets applicable criteria 
     for benefits under this chapter if the disability is incurred 
     or aggravated in line of duty in the active military, naval, 
     or air service. Such assistance shall be provided to the same 
     extent as assistance is provided under this chapter to 
     veterans eligible for assistance under this chapter and 
     subject to the same requirements as veterans under this 
     chapter.
       ``(2) For purposes of this chapter, any reference to a 
     veteran or eligible individual shall be treated as a 
     reference to a member of the Armed Forces described in 
     subsection (a) who is similarly situated to the veteran or 
     other eligible individual so referred to.
       ``(b) Benefits and Assistance for Individuals Residing 
     Outside the United States.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the 
     Secretary may, at the Secretary's discretion, provide 
     benefits and assistance under this chapter (other than 
     benefits under section 2106 of this title) to any individual 
     otherwise eligible for such benefits and assistance who 
     resides outside the United States.
       ``(2) The Secretary may provide benefits and assistance to 
     an individual under paragraph (1) only if--
       ``(A) the country or political subdivision in which the 
     housing or residence involved is or will be located permits 
     the individual to have or acquire a beneficial property 
     interest (as determined by the Secretary) in such housing or 
     residence; and
       ``(B) the individual has or will acquire a beneficial 
     property interest (as so determined) in such housing or 
     residence.
       ``(c) Regulations.--Benefits and assistance under this 
     chapter by reason of this section shall be provided in 
     accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may 
     prescribe.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--
       (1) Repeal of superseded authority.--Section 2101 is 
     amended--
       (A) by striking subsection (c); and
       (B) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (c).
       (2) Limitations on assistance.--Section 2102 is amended--
       (A) in subsection (a)--
       (i) by striking ``veteran'' each place it appears and 
     inserting ``individual''; and
       (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking ``veteran's'' and 
     inserting ``individual's'';
       (B) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``a veteran'' and 
     inserting ``an individual'';
       (C) in subsection (c)--
       (i) by striking ``a veteran'' and inserting ``an 
     individual''; and
       (ii) by striking ``the veteran'' each place it appears and 
     inserting ``the individual''; and
       (D) in subsection (d), by striking ``a veteran'' each place 
     it appears and inserting ``an individual''.
       (3) Assistance for individuals temporarily residing in 
     housing of family member.--Section 2102A is amended--
       (A) by striking ``veteran'' each place it appears (other 
     than in subsection (b)) and inserting ``individual'';
       (B) in subsection (a), by striking ``veteran's'' each place 
     it appears and inserting ``individual's''; and
       (C) in subsection (b), by striking ``a veteran'' each place 
     it appears and inserting ``an individual''.
       (4) Furnishing of plans and specifications.--Section 2103 
     is amended by striking ``veterans'' both places it appears 
     and inserting ``individuals''.
       (5) Construction of benefits.--Section 2104 is amended--
       (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``veteran'' each place 
     it appears and inserting ``individual''; and
       (B) in subsection (b)--
       (i) in the first sentence, by striking ``A veteran'' and 
     inserting ``An individual'';
       (ii) in the second sentence, by striking ``a veteran'' and 
     inserting ``an individual''; and
       (iii) by striking ``such veteran'' each place it appears 
     and inserting ``such individual''.
       (6) Veterans' mortgage life insurance.--Section 2106 is 
     amended--
       (A) in subsection (a)--
       (i) by striking ``any eligible veteran'' and inserting 
     ``any eligible individual''; and
       (ii) by striking ``the veterans' '' and inserting ``the 
     individual's'';
       (B) in subsection (b), by striking ``an eligible veteran'' 
     and inserting ``an eligible individual'';
       (C) in subsection (e), by striking ``an eligible veteran'' 
     and inserting ``an individual'';
       (D) in subsection (h), by striking ``each veteran'' and 
     inserting ``each individual'';
       (E) in subsection (i), by striking ``the veteran's'' each 
     place it appears and inserting ``the individual's'';
       (F) by striking ``the veteran'' each place it appears and 
     inserting ``the individual''; and
       (G) by striking ``a veteran'' each place it appears and 
     inserting ``an individual''.
       (7) Heading amendments.--(A) The heading of section 2101 is 
     amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 2101. Acquisition and adaptation of housing: eligible 
       veterans''.

       (B) The heading of section 2102A is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``Sec. 2102A. Assistance for individuals residing temporarily 
       in housing owned by a family member''.

       (8) Clerical amendments.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 21 is amended--
       (A) by striking the item relating to section 2101 and 
     inserting the following new item:


[[Page 6822]]


``2101. Acquisition and adaptation of housing: eligible veterans.'';

       (B) by inserting after the item relating to section 2101, 
     as so amended, the following new item:

``2101A. Eligibility for benefits and assistance: members of the Armed 
              Forces with service-connected disabilities; individuals 
              residing outside the United States.'';

     and
       (C) by striking the item relating to section 2102A and 
     inserting the following new item:

``2102A. Assistance for individuals residing temporarily in housing 
              owned by a family member.''.

     SEC. 203. SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR 
                   INDIVIDUALS WITH SEVERE BURN INJURIES.

       Section 2101 is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2), by adding at the end the 
     following new subparagraph:
       ``(E) The disability is due to a severe burn injury (as 
     determined pursuant to regulations prescribed by the 
     Secretary).''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)(2)--
       (A) by striking ``either'' and inserting ``any''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(C) The disability is due to a severe burn injury (as so 
     determined).''.

     SEC. 204. EXTENSION OF ASSISTANCE FOR INDIVIDUALS RESIDING 
                   TEMPORARILY IN HOUSING OWNED BY A FAMILY 
                   MEMBER.

       Section 2102A(e) is amended by striking ``after the end of 
     the five-year period that begins on the date of the enactment 
     of the Veterans' Housing Opportunity and Benefits Improvement 
     Act of 2006'' and inserting ``after December 31, 2011''.

     SEC. 205. SUPPLEMENTAL SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING BENEFITS FOR 
                   DISABLED VETERANS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 21 is amended by inserting after 
     section 2102A the following new section:

     ``Sec. 2102B. Supplemental assistance

       ``(a) In General.--(1) Subject to the availability of funds 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in 
     advance in an appropriations Act, whenever the Secretary 
     makes a payment in accordance with section 2102 of this title 
     to an individual authorized to receive such assistance under 
     section 2101 of this title for the acquisition of housing 
     with special features or for special adaptations to a 
     residence, the Secretary is also authorized and directed to 
     pay such individual supplemental assistance under this 
     section for such acquisition or adaptation.
       ``(2) No supplemental assistance payment shall be made 
     under this subsection if the Secretary has expended all funds 
     that were specifically provided for purposes of this 
     subsection in an appropriations Act.
       ``(b) Amount of Supplemental Assistance.--(1) In the case 
     of a payment made in accordance with section 2102(a) of this 
     title, supplemental assistance required by subsection (a) is 
     equal to the excess of--
       ``(A) the payment which would be determined under section 
     2102(a) of this title, and 2102A of this title if applicable, 
     if the amount described in section 2102(d)(1) of this title 
     were increased to the adjusted amount described in subsection 
     (c)(1), over
       ``(B) the payment determined without regard to this 
     section.
       ``(2) In the case of a payment made in accordance with 
     section 2102(b) of this title, supplemental assistance 
     required by subsection (a) is equal to the excess of--
       ``(A) the payment which would be determined under section 
     2102(b) of this title, and 2102A of this title if applicable, 
     if the amount described in section 2102(b)(2) of this title 
     and section 2102(d)(2) of this title were increased to the 
     adjusted amount described in subsection (c)(2), over
       ``(B) the payment determined without regard to this 
     section.
       ``(c) Adjusted Amount.--(1) In the case of a payment made 
     in accordance with section 2102(a) of this title, the 
     adjusted amount is $60,000 (as adjusted from time to time 
     under subsection (d)).
       ``(2) In the case of a payment made in accordance with 
     section 2102(b) of this title, the adjusted amount is $12,000 
     (as adjusted from time to time under subsection (d)).
       ``(d) Adjustment.--(1) Effective on October 1 of each year 
     (beginning in 2008), the Secretary shall increase the 
     adjusted amounts described in subsection (c) in accordance 
     with this subsection.
       ``(2) The increase in amounts under paragraph (1) to take 
     effect on October 1 of any year shall be the percentage by 
     which (A) the residential home cost-of-construction index for 
     the preceding calendar year exceeds (B) the residential home 
     cost-of-construction index for the year preceding that year.
       ``(3) The Secretary shall establish a residential home 
     cost-of-construction index for the purposes of this 
     subsection. The index shall reflect a uniform, national 
     average increase in the cost of residential home 
     construction, determined on a calendar year basis. The 
     Secretary may use an index developed in the private sector 
     that the Secretary determines is appropriate for purposes of 
     this subsection.
       ``(e) Estimates.--(1) From time to time, the Secretary 
     shall make an estimate of--
       ``(A) the amount of funding that would be necessary to 
     provide supplemental assistance under this section to all 
     eligible recipients for the remainder of the fiscal year in 
     which such an estimate is made; and
       ``(B) the amount that Congress would need to appropriate to 
     provide all eligible recipients with supplemental assistance 
     under this section in the next fiscal year.
       ``(2) On the dates described in paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress the estimates described in paragraph (1).
       ``(3) The dates described in this paragraph are the 
     following:
       ``(A) April 1 of each year.
       ``(B) July 1 of each year.
       ``(C) September 1 of each year.
       ``(D) The date that is 60 days before the date estimated by 
     the Secretary on which amounts appropriated for the purposes 
     of this section for a fiscal year will be exhausted.
       ``(f) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' 
     means--
       ``(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       ``(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 2102A the following new item:

``2102B. Supplemental assistance.''.

       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such 
     sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
     section 2102B of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
     subsection (a)).
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall apply with 
     respect to payments made in accordance with section 2102 of 
     title 38, United States Code, on or after that date.

     SEC. 206. REPORT ON SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING FOR DISABLED 
                   INDIVIDUALS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than December 31, 2009, the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee 
     on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 
     that contains an assessment of the adequacy of the 
     authorities available to the Secretary under law to assist 
     eligible disabled individuals in acquiring--
       (1) suitable housing units with special fixtures or movable 
     facilities required for their disabilities, and necessary 
     land therefor;
       (2) such adaptations to their residences as are reasonably 
     necessary because of their disabilities; and
       (3) residences already adapted with special features 
     determined by the Secretary to be reasonably necessary as a 
     result of their disabilities.
       (b) Focus on Particular Disabilities.--The report required 
     by subsection (a) shall set forth a specific assessment of 
     the needs of--
       (1) veterans who have disabilities that are not described 
     in subsections (a)(2) and (b)(2) of section 2101 of title 38, 
     United States Code; and
       (2) other disabled individuals eligible for specially 
     adapted housing under chapter 21 of such title by reason of 
     section 2101A of such title (as added by section 202(a) of 
     this Act) who have disabilities that are not described in 
     such subsections.

     SEC. 207. REPORT ON SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR 
                   INDIVIDUALS WHO RESIDE IN HOUSING OWNED BY A 
                   FAMILY MEMBER ON PERMANENT BASIS.

       Not later than December 31, 2009, the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of 
     the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives a report on the advisability of 
     providing assistance under section 2102A of title 38, United 
     States Code, to veterans described in subsection (a) of such 
     section, and to members of the Armed Forces covered by such 
     section 2102A by reason of section 2101A of title 38, United 
     States Code (as added by section 202(a) of this Act), who 
     reside with family members on a permanent basis.

                 TITLE III--LABOR AND EDUCATION MATTERS

     SEC. 301. COORDINATION OF APPROVAL ACTIVITIES IN THE 
                   ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATION BENEFITS.

       (a) Coordination.--
       (1) In general.--Section 3673 is amended--
       (A) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c); and
       (B) by inserting after subsection (a) the following new 
     subsection (b):
       ``(b) Coordination of Activities.--The Secretary shall take 
     appropriate actions to ensure the coordination of approval 
     activities performed by State approving agencies under this 
     chapter and chapters 34 and 35 of this title and approval 
     activities performed by the Department of Labor, the 
     Department of Education, and other entities in order to 
     reduce overlap and improve efficiency in the performance of 
     such activities.''.
       (2) Conforming and clerical amendments.--(A) The heading of 
     such section is amended to read as follows:

[[Page 6823]]



     ``Sec. 3673. Approval activities: cooperation and 
       coordination of activities''.

       (B) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 36 is 
     amended by striking the item relating to section 3673 and 
     inserting the following new item:

``3673. Approval activities: cooperation and coordination of 
              activities.''.
       (3) Stylistic amendments.--Such section is further 
     amended--
       (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ``Cooperation in 
     Activities.--'' after ``(a)''; and
       (B) in subsection (c), as redesignated by paragraph (1)(A) 
     of this subsection, by inserting ``Availability of 
     Information Material.--'' after ``(c)''.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives a report setting forth the following:
       (1) The actions taken to establish outcome-oriented 
     performance standards for State approving agencies created or 
     designated under section 3671 of title 38, United States 
     Code, including a description of any plans for, and the 
     status of the implementation of, such standards as part of 
     the evaluations of State approving agencies required by 
     section 3674A of title 38, United States Code.
       (2) The actions taken to implement a tracking and reporting 
     system for resources expended for approval and outreach 
     activities by such agencies.
       (3) Any recommendations for legislative action that the 
     Secretary considers appropriate to achieve the complete 
     implementation of the standards described in paragraph (1).

     SEC. 302. MODIFICATION OF RATE OF REIMBURSEMENT OF STATE AND 
                   LOCAL AGENCIES ADMINISTERING VETERANS EDUCATION 
                   BENEFITS.

       Section 3674(a)(4) is amended by striking ``$13,000,000'' 
     and all that follows through ``fiscal year 2007,''.

     SEC. 303. WAIVER OF RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT FOR DIRECTORS FOR 
                   VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING.

       Section 4103(a)(2) is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``(2)''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(B) The Secretary may waive the requirement in 
     subparagraph (A) with respect to a Director for Veterans' 
     Employment and Training if the Secretary determines that the 
     waiver is in the public interest. Any such waiver shall be 
     made on a case-by-case basis.''.

     SEC. 304. MODIFICATION OF SPECIAL UNEMPLOYMENT STUDY TO COVER 
                   VETERANS OF POST 9/11 GLOBAL OPERATIONS.

       (a) Modification of Study.--Subsection (a)(1) of section 
     4110A is amended--
       (1) in the matter before subparagraph (A), by striking ``a 
     study every two years'' and inserting ``an annual study'';
       (2) by redesignating subparagraph (A) as subparagraph (F);
       (3) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the 
     following new subparagraphs:
       ``(A) Veterans who were called to active duty while members 
     of the National Guard or a Reserve Component.
       ``(B) Veterans who served in combat or in a war zone in the 
     Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters.''; and
       (4) in subparagraph (C)--
       (A) by striking ``Vietnam era'' and inserting ``Post 9/11 
     Global Operations period''; and
       (B) by striking ``the Vietnam theater of operations'' and 
     inserting ``the Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters''.
       (b) Definitions.--Such section is further amended by adding 
     at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(c) In this section:
       ``(1) The term `Post 9/11 Global Operations period' means 
     the period of the Persian Gulf War beginning on September 11, 
     2001, and ending on the date thereafter prescribed by 
     Presidential proclamation or law.
       ``(2) The term `Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters' means 
     Afghanistan, Iraq, or any other theater in which the Global 
     War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal is awarded for 
     service.''.

     SEC. 305. EXTENSION OF INCREASE IN BENEFIT FOR INDIVIDUALS 
                   PURSUING APPRENTICESHIP OR ON-JOB TRAINING.

       Section 103 of the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 
     2004 (Public Law 108-454; 118 Stat. 3600) is amended by 
     striking ``2008'' each place it appears and inserting 
     ``2010''. The amendment made by the preceding sentence shall 
     take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall expire on January 
     1, 2010.

            TITLE IV--FILIPINO WORLD WAR II VETERANS MATTERS

     SEC. 401. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR BENEFITS PROVIDED BY 
                   DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR CERTAIN 
                   SERVICE IN THE ORGANIZED MILITARY FORCES OF THE 
                   COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES AND THE 
                   PHILIPPINE SCOUTS.

       (a) Modification of Status of Certain Service.--
       (1) In general.--Section 107 is amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 107. Certain service with Philippine forces deemed to 
       be active service

       ``(a) In General.--Service described in subsection (b) 
     shall be deemed to have been active military, naval, or air 
     service for purposes of any law of the United States 
     conferring rights, privileges, or benefits upon any 
     individual by reason of the service of such individual or the 
     service of any other individual in the Armed Forces.
       ``(b) Service Described.--Service described in this 
     subsection is service--
       ``(1) before July 1, 1946, in the organized military forces 
     of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, 
     while such forces were in the service of the Armed Forces of 
     the United States pursuant to the military order of the 
     President dated July 26, 1941, including among such military 
     forces organized guerrilla forces under commanders appointed, 
     designated, or subsequently recognized by the Commander in 
     Chief, Southwest Pacific Area, or other competent authority 
     in the Army of the United States; or
       ``(2) in the Philippine Scouts under section 14 of the 
     Armed Forces Voluntary Recruitment Act of 1945 (59 Stat. 
     538).
       ``(c) Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for Certain 
     Recipients Residing Outside the United States.--(1) 
     Dependency and indemnity compensation provided under chapter 
     13 of this title to an individual described in paragraph (2) 
     shall be made at a rate of $0.50 for each dollar authorized.
       ``(2) An individual described in this paragraph is an 
     individual who resides outside the United States and is 
     entitled to dependency and indemnity compensation under 
     chapter 13 of this title based on service described in 
     subsection (b).
       ``(d) Modified Pension and Death Pension for Certain 
     Recipients Residing Outside the United States.--(1) Any 
     pension provided under subchapter II or III of chapter 15 of 
     this title to an individual described in paragraph (2) shall 
     be made only as specified in section 1514 of this title.
       ``(2) An individual described in this paragraph is an 
     individual who resides outside the United States and is 
     entitled to a pension provided under subchapter II or III of 
     chapter 15 of this title based on service described in 
     subsection (b).
       ``(e) United States Defined.--In this section, the term 
     `United States' means the States, the District of Columbia, 
     Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other 
     possession or territory of the United States.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 1 is amended by striking the item 
     related to section 107 and inserting the following new item:

``107. Certain service with Philippine forces deemed to be active 
              service.''.

       (3) Effective date.--The amendment made by this subsection 
     shall apply with respect to the payment or provision of 
     benefits on or after April 1, 2009. No benefits are payable 
     or are required to be provided by reason of such amendment 
     for any period before such date.
       (b) Pension and Death Pension for Certain Service.--
       (1) In general.--Subchapter II of chapter 15 is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:

     ``Sec. 1514. Certain recipients residing outside the United 
       States

       ``(a) Special Rates for Pension Benefits for Individuals 
     Serving With Philippine Forces and Survivors.--(1) Payment 
     under this subchapter to an individual who resides outside 
     the United States and is eligible for such payment because of 
     service described in section 107(b) of this title shall be 
     made as follows:
       ``(A) For such an individual who is married, at a rate of 
     $4,500 per year (as increased from time to time under section 
     5312 of this title).
       ``(B) For such an individual who is not married, at a rate 
     of $3,600 per year (as increased from time to time under 
     section 5312 of this title).
       ``(2) Payment under subchapter III of this chapter to an 
     individual who resides outside the United States and is 
     eligible for such payment because of service described in 
     section 107(b) of this title shall be made at a rate of 
     $2,400 per year (as increased from time to time under section 
     5312 of this title).
       ``(3) An individual who is otherwise entitled to benefits 
     under this chapter and resides outside the United States, and 
     receives or would otherwise be eligible to receive a monetary 
     benefit from a foreign government, may not receive benefits 
     under this chapter for service described in section 107(b) of 
     this title if receipt of such benefits under this chapter 
     would reduce such monetary benefit from such foreign 
     government.
       ``(4) The provisions of sections 1503(a), 1506, 1522, and 
     1543 of this title shall not apply to benefits paid under 
     this section.
       ``(b) Individuals Living Outside the United States Entitled 
     to Certain Social Security Benefits Ineligible.--An 
     individual residing outside the United States who is 
     receiving or is eligible to receive benefits under title VIII 
     of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) may not 
     receive benefits under this chapter.

[[Page 6824]]

       ``(c) United States Defined.--In this section, the term 
     `United States' means the States, the District of Columbia, 
     Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other 
     possession or territory of the United States.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 15 is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 1513 the following new item:

``1514. Certain recipients residing outside the United States.''.

       (3) Frequency of payment.--Section 1508 is amended by 
     inserting ``1514,'' before ``1521,'' each place it appears.
       (4) Rounding down of rates.--Section 5123 is amended by 
     inserting ``1514,'' before ``1521''.
       (5) Annual adjustment of benefit rates.--Section 5312 is 
     amended--
       (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ``1514,'' before 
     ``1521,'' the first place it appears; and
       (B) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ``1514,'' before 
     ``1521,''.
       (6) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraphs (1) 
     and (2) shall apply to applications for benefits filed on or 
     after April 1, 2009. The amendments made by paragraphs (3), 
     (4), and (5) shall take effect on April 1, 2009.
       (c) Pension and Death Pension Benefit Protection.--
     Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a veteran with 
     service described in section 107(b) of title 38, United 
     States Code (as added by subsection (a)), who is receiving 
     benefits under a Federal or federally assisted program as of 
     April 1, 2009, or a survivor of such veteran who is receiving 
     such benefits as of that date, may not be required to apply 
     for or receive benefits under chapter 15 of such title if the 
     receipt of such benefits would--
       (1) make such veteran or survivor ineligible for any 
     Federal or federally assisted program for which such veteran 
     or survivor qualifies; or
       (2) reduce the amount of benefit such veteran or survivor 
     would receive from any Federal or federally assisted program 
     for which such veteran or survivor qualifies.

     SEC. 402. ELIGIBILITY OF CHILDREN OF CERTAIN PHILIPPINE 
                   VETERANS FOR EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.

       (a) In General.--Subsection (b) of section 3565 is amended 
     by striking ``except that--'' and all that follows and 
     inserting ``except that a reference to a State approving 
     agency shall be deemed to refer to the Secretary.''.
       (b) Repeal of Obsolete Provision.--Such section is further 
     amended by striking subsection (c).

                         TITLE V--COURT MATTERS

     SEC. 501. RECALL OF RETIRED JUDGES OF THE UNITED STATES COURT 
                   OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS.

       (a) Repeal of Limit on Service of Recalled Retired Judges 
     Who Voluntarily Serve More Than 90 Days.--Section 7257(b)(2) 
     is amended by striking ``or for more than a total of 180 days 
     (or the equivalent) during any calendar year''.
       (b) New Judges Recalled After Retirement Receive Pay of 
     Current Judges Only During Period of Recall.--
       (1) In general.--Section 7296(c) is amended by striking 
     paragraph (1) and inserting the following new paragraph:
       ``(1)(A) A judge who is appointed on or after the date of 
     the enactment of the Veterans' Benefits Enhancement Act of 
     2007 and who retires under subsection (b) and elects under 
     subsection (d) to receive retired pay under this subsection 
     shall (except as provided in paragraph (2)) receive retired 
     pay as follows:
       ``(i) In the case of a judge who is a recall-eligible 
     retired judge under section 7257 of this title, the retired 
     pay of the judge shall (subject to section 7257(d)(2) of this 
     title) be the rate of pay applicable to that judge at the 
     time of retirement, as adjusted from time to time under 
     subsection (f)(3).
       ``(ii) In the case of a judge other than a recall-eligible 
     retired judge, the retired pay of the judge shall be the rate 
     of pay applicable to that judge at the time of retirement.
       ``(B) A judge who retired before the date of the enactment 
     of the Veterans' Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 and elected 
     under subsection (d) to receive retired pay under this 
     subsection, or a judge who retires under subsection (b) and 
     elects under subsection (d) to receive retired pay under this 
     subsection, shall (except as provided in paragraph (2)) 
     receive retired pay as follows:
       ``(i) In the case of a judge who is a recall-eligible 
     retired judge under section 7257 of this title or who was a 
     recall-eligible retired judge under that section and was 
     removed from recall status under subsection (b)(4) of that 
     section by reason of disability, the retired pay of the judge 
     shall be the pay of a judge of the court.
       ``(ii) In the case of a judge who at the time of retirement 
     did not provide notice under section 7257 of this title of 
     availability for service in a recalled status, the retired 
     pay of the judge shall be the rate of pay applicable to that 
     judge at the time of retirement.
       ``(iii) In the case of a judge who was a recall-eligible 
     retired judge under section 7257 of this title and was 
     removed from recall status under subsection (b)(3) of that 
     section, the retired pay of the judge shall be the pay of the 
     judge at the time of the removal from recall status.''.
       (2) Cost-of-living adjustment for retired pay of new judges 
     who are recall-eligible.--Section 7296(f)(3)(A) is amended by 
     striking ``paragraph (2) of subsection (c)'' and inserting 
     ``paragraph (1)(A)(i) or (2) of subsection (c)''.
       (3) Pay during period of recall.--Subsection (d) of section 
     7257 is amended to read as follows:
       ``(d)(1) The pay of a recall-eligible retired judge to whom 
     section 7296(c)(1)(B) of this title applies is the pay 
     specified in that section.
       ``(2) A judge who is recalled under this section who 
     retired under chapter 83 or 84 of title 5 or to whom section 
     7296(c)(1)(A) of this title applies shall be paid, during the 
     period for which the judge serves in recall status, pay at 
     the rate of pay in effect under section 7253(e) of this title 
     for a judge performing active service, less the amount of the 
     judge's annuity under the applicable provisions of chapter 83 
     or 84 of title 5 or the judge's annuity under section 
     7296(c)(1)(A) of this title, whichever is applicable.''.
       (4) Notice.--The last sentence of section 7257(a)(1) is 
     amended to read as follows: ``Such a notice provided by a 
     retired judge to whom section 7296(c)(1)(B) of this title 
     applies is irrevocable.''.
       (c) Limitation on Involuntary Recalls.--Section 7257(b)(3) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: 
     ``This paragraph shall not apply to a judge to whom section 
     7296(c)(1)(A) or 7296(c)(1)(B) of this title applies and who 
     has, in the aggregate, served at least five years of recalled 
     service on the Court under this section.''.

     SEC. 502. ADDITIONAL DISCRETION IN IMPOSITION OF PRACTICE AND 
                   REGISTRATION FEES.

       Section 7285(a) is amended--
       (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ``reasonable'' 
     after ``impose a'';
       (2) in the second sentence, by striking ``, except that 
     such amount may not exceed $30 per year''; and
       (3) in the third sentence, by inserting ``reasonable'' 
     after ``impose a''.

     SEC. 503. ANNUAL REPORTS ON WORKLOAD OF UNITED STATES COURT 
                   OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS.

       (a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 72 is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:

     ``Sec. 7288. Annual report

       ``(a) In General.--The chief judge of the Court shall 
     submit annually to the appropriate committees of Congress a 
     report summarizing the workload of the Court for the last 
     fiscal year that ended before the submission of such report. 
     Such report shall include, with respect to such fiscal year, 
     the following information:
       ``(1) The number of appeals filed.
       ``(2) The number of petitions filed.
       ``(3) The number of applications filed under section 2412 
     of title 28.
       ``(4) The number and type of dispositions.
       ``(5) The median time from filing to disposition.
       ``(6) The number of oral arguments.
       ``(7) The number and status of pending appeals and 
     petitions and of applications described in paragraph (3).
       ``(8) A summary of any service performed by recalled 
     retired judges during the fiscal year.
       ``(b) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' means 
     the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the 
     Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 72 is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 7287 the following new item:

``7288. Annual report.''.

     SEC. 504. REPORT ON EXPANSION OF FACILITIES FOR UNITED STATES 
                   COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims 
     is currently located in the District of Columbia in a 
     commercial office building that is also occupied by other 
     Federal tenants.
       (2) In February 2006, the General Services Administration 
     provided Congress with a preliminary feasibility analysis of 
     a dedicated Veterans Courthouse and Justice Center that would 
     house the Court and other entities that work with the Court.
       (3) In February 2007, the Court notified Congress that the 
     ``most cost-effective alternative appears to be leasing 
     substantial additional space in the current location'', which 
     would ``require relocating other current government tenants'' 
     from that building.
       (4) The February 2006 feasibility report of the General 
     Services Administration does not include an analysis of 
     whether it would be feasible or desirable to locate a 
     Veterans Courthouse and Justice Center at the current 
     location of the Court.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims 
     should be provided with appropriate office space to meet its 
     needs, as well as to provide the image, security, and stature 
     befitting a court that provides justice to the veterans of 
     the United States; and

[[Page 6825]]

       (2) in providing that space, Congress should avoid undue 
     disruption, inconvenience, or cost to other Federal entities.
       (c) Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of General 
     Services shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs 
     of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives a report on the feasibility of--
       (A) leasing additional space for the United States Court of 
     Appeals for Veterans Claims within the building where the 
     Court was located on the date of the enactment of this Act; 
     and
       (B) using the entirety of such building as a Veterans 
     Courthouse and Justice Center.
       (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
     include a detailed analysis of the following:
       (A) The impact that the matter analyzed in accordance with 
     paragraph (1) would have on Federal tenants of the building 
     used by the Court.
       (B) Whether it would be feasible to relocate such Federal 
     tenants into office space that offers similar or preferable 
     cost, convenience, and usable square footage.
       (C) If relocation of such Federal tenants is found to be 
     feasible and desirable, an analysis of what steps should be 
     taken to convert the building into a Veterans Courthouse and 
     Justice Center and a timeline for such conversion.
       (3) Comment period.--The Administrator shall provide an 
     opportunity to such Federal tenants--
       (A) before the completion of the report required by 
     paragraph (1), to comment on the subject of the report 
     required by such paragraph; and
       (B) before the Administrator submits the report required by 
     paragraph (1) to the congressional committees specified in 
     such paragraph, to comment on a draft of such report.

               TITLE VI--COMPENSATION AND PENSION MATTERS

     SEC. 601. ADDITION OF OSTEOPOROSIS TO DISABILITIES PRESUMED 
                   TO BE SERVICE-CONNECTED IN FORMER PRISONERS OF 
                   WAR WITH POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER.

       Section 1112(b)(2) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subparagraph:
       ``(F) Osteoporosis, if the Secretary determines that the 
     veteran was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder 
     (PTSD).''.

     SEC. 602. COST-OF-LIVING INCREASE FOR TEMPORARY DEPENDENCY 
                   AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION PAYABLE FOR 
                   SURVIVING SPOUSES WITH DEPENDENT CHILDREN UNDER 
                   THE AGE OF 18.

       Section 1311(f) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new paragraph:
       ``(5) Whenever there is an increase in benefit amounts 
     payable under title II of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
     401 et seq.) as a result of a determination made under 
     section 215(i) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)), the Secretary 
     shall, effective on the date of such increase in benefit 
     amounts, increase the amount payable under paragraph (1), as 
     such amount was in effect immediately prior to the date of 
     such increase in benefit amounts, by the same percentage as 
     the percentage by which such benefit amounts are increased. 
     Any increase in a dollar amount under this paragraph shall be 
     rounded down to the next lower whole dollar amount.''.

     SEC. 603. CLARIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY OF VETERANS 65 YEARS 
                   OF AGE OR OLDER FOR SERVICE PENSION FOR A 
                   PERIOD OF WAR.

       Section 1513 is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``by section 1521'' and 
     all that follows and inserting ``by subsection (b), (c), 
     (f)(1), (f)(5), or (g) of that section, as the case may be 
     and as increased from time to time under section 5312 of this 
     title.'';
       (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c); and
       (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following new 
     subsection (b):
       ``(b) The conditions in subsections (h) and (i) of section 
     1521 of this title shall apply to determinations of income 
     and maximum payments of pension for purposes of this 
     section.''.

                 TITLE VII--BURIAL AND MEMORIAL MATTERS

     SEC. 701. SUPPLEMENTAL BENEFITS FOR VETERANS FOR FUNERAL AND 
                   BURIAL EXPENSES.

       (a) Funeral Expenses.--
       (1) In general.--Chapter 23 is amended by inserting after 
     section 2302 the following new section:

     ``Sec. 2302A. Funeral expenses: supplemental benefits

       ``(a) In General.--(1) Subject to the availability of funds 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in 
     advance in an appropriations Act, whenever the Secretary 
     makes a payment for the burial and funeral of a veteran under 
     section 2302(a) of this title, the Secretary is also 
     authorized and directed to pay the recipient of such payment 
     a supplemental payment under this section for the cost of 
     such burial and funeral.
       ``(2) No supplemental payment shall be made under this 
     subsection if the Secretary has expended all funds that were 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in an 
     appropriations Act.
       ``(b) Amount.--The amount of the supplemental payment 
     required by subsection (a) for any death is $900 (as adjusted 
     from time to time under subsection (c)).
       ``(c) Adjustment.--With respect to deaths that occur in any 
     fiscal year after fiscal year 2008, the supplemental payment 
     described in subsection (b) shall be equal to the sum of--
       ``(1) the supplemental payment in effect under subsection 
     (b) for the preceding fiscal year (determined after 
     application of this subsection), plus
       ``(2) the sum of the amount described in section 2302(a) of 
     this title and the amount under paragraph (1), multiplied by 
     the percentage by which--
       ``(A) the Consumer Price Index (all items, United States 
     city average) for the 12-month period ending on the June 30 
     preceding the beginning of the fiscal year for which the 
     increase is made, exceeds
       ``(B) such Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period 
     preceding the 12-month period described in subparagraph (A).
       ``(d) Estimates.--(1) From time to time, the Secretary 
     shall make an estimate of--
       ``(A) the amount of funding that would be necessary to 
     provide supplemental payments under this section to all 
     eligible recipients for the remainder of the fiscal year in 
     which such an estimate is made; and
       ``(B) the amount that Congress would need to appropriate to 
     provide all eligible recipients with supplemental payments 
     under this section in the next fiscal year.
       ``(2) On the dates described in paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress the estimates described in paragraph (1).
       ``(3) The dates described in this paragraph are the 
     following:
       ``(A) April 1 of each year.
       ``(B) July 1 of each year.
       ``(C) September 1 of each year.
       ``(D) The date that is 60 days before the date estimated by 
     the Secretary on which amounts appropriated for the purposes 
     of this section for a fiscal year will be exhausted.
       ``(e) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' 
     means--
       ``(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       ``(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 2302 the following new item:

``2302A. Funeral expenses: supplemental benefits.''.
       (3) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such 
     sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
     section 2302A of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
     this subsection).
       (b) Death From Service-Connected Disability.--
       (1) In general.--Chapter 23 is amended by inserting after 
     section 2307 the following new section:

     ``Sec. 2307A. Death from service-connected disability: 
       supplemental benefits for burial and funeral expenses

       ``(a) In General.--(1) Subject to the availability of funds 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in 
     advance in an appropriations Act, whenever the Secretary 
     makes a payment for the burial and funeral of a veteran under 
     section 2307(1) of this title, the Secretary is also 
     authorized and directed to pay the recipient of such payment 
     a supplemental payment under this section for the cost of 
     such burial and funeral.
       ``(2) No supplemental payment shall be made under this 
     subsection if the Secretary has expended all funds that were 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in an 
     appropriations Act.
       ``(b) Amount.--The amount of the supplemental payment 
     required by subsection (a) for any death is $2,100 (as 
     adjusted from time to time under subsection (c)).
       ``(c) Adjustment.--With respect to deaths that occur in any 
     fiscal year after fiscal year 2008, the supplemental payment 
     described in subsection (b) shall be equal to the sum of--
       ``(1) the supplemental payment in effect under subsection 
     (b) for the preceding fiscal year (determined after 
     application of this subsection), plus
       ``(2) the sum of the amount described in section 2307(1) of 
     this title and the amount under paragraph (1), multiplied by 
     the percentage by which--
       ``(A) the Consumer Price Index (all items, United States 
     city average) for the 12-month period ending on the June 30 
     preceding the beginning of the fiscal year for which the 
     increase is made, exceeds
       ``(B) such Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period 
     preceding the 12-month period described in subparagraph (A).
       ``(d) Estimates.--(1) From time to time, the Secretary 
     shall make an estimate of--
       ``(A) the amount of funding that would be necessary to 
     provide supplemental payments under this section to all 
     eligible recipients

[[Page 6826]]

     for the remainder of the fiscal year in which such an 
     estimate is made; and
       ``(B) the amount that Congress would need to appropriate to 
     provide all eligible recipients with supplemental payments 
     under this section in the next fiscal year.
       ``(2) On the dates described in paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress the estimates described in paragraph (1).
       ``(3) The dates described in this paragraph are the 
     following:
       ``(A) April 1 of each year.
       ``(B) July 1 of each year.
       ``(C) September 1 of each year.
       ``(D) The date that is 60 days before the date estimated by 
     the Secretary on which amounts appropriated for the purposes 
     of this section for a fiscal year will be exhausted.
       ``(e) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' 
     means--
       ``(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       ``(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 2307 the following new item:

``2307A. Death from service-connected disability: supplemental benefits 
              for burial and funeral expenses.''.

       (3) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such 
     sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
     section 2307A of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
     this subsection).
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall apply with 
     respect to deaths occurring on or after that date.

     SEC. 702. SUPPLEMENTAL PLOT ALLOWANCES.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 23 is amended by inserting after 
     section 2303 the following new section:

     ``Sec. 2303A. Supplemental plot allowance

       ``(a) In General.--(1) Subject to the availability of funds 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in 
     advance in an appropriations Act, whenever the Secretary 
     makes a payment for the burial and funeral of a veteran under 
     section 2303(a)(1)(A) of this title, or for the burial of a 
     veteran under paragraph (1) or (2) of section 2303(b) of this 
     title, the Secretary is also authorized and directed to pay 
     the recipient of such payment a supplemental payment under 
     this section for the cost of such burial and funeral or 
     burial, as applicable.
       ``(2) No supplemental plot allowance payment shall be made 
     under this subsection if the Secretary has expended all funds 
     that were specifically provided for purposes of this 
     subsection in an appropriations Act.
       ``(b) Amount.--The amount of the supplemental payment 
     required by subsection (a) for any death is $445 (as adjusted 
     from time to time under subsection (c)).
       ``(c) Adjustment.--With respect to deaths that occur in any 
     fiscal year after fiscal year 2008, the supplemental payment 
     described in subsection (b) shall be equal to the sum of--
       ``(1) the supplemental payment in effect under subsection 
     (b) for the preceding fiscal year (determined after 
     application of this subsection), plus
       ``(2) the sum of the amount described in section 
     2303(a)(1)(A) of this title and the amount under paragraph 
     (1), multiplied by the percentage by which--
       ``(A) the Consumer Price Index (all items, United States 
     city average) for the 12-month period ending on the June 30 
     preceding the beginning of the fiscal year for which the 
     increase is made, exceeds
       ``(B) such Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period 
     preceding the 12-month period described in subparagraph (A).
       ``(d) Estimates.--(1) From time to time, the Secretary 
     shall make an estimate of--
       ``(A) the amount of funding that would be necessary to 
     provide supplemental plot allowance payments under this 
     section to all eligible recipients for the remainder of the 
     fiscal year in which such an estimate is made; and
       ``(B) the amount that Congress would need to appropriate to 
     provide all eligible recipients with supplemental plot 
     allowance payments under this section in the next fiscal 
     year.
       ``(2) On the dates described in paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress the estimates described in paragraph (1).
       ``(3) The dates described in this paragraph are the 
     following:
       ``(A) April 1 of each year.
       ``(B) July 1 of each year.
       ``(C) September 1 of each year.
       ``(D) The date that is 60 days before the date estimated by 
     the Secretary on which amounts appropriated for the purposes 
     of this section for a fiscal year will be exhausted.
       ``(e) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' 
     means--
       ``(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       ``(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 2303 the following new item:

``2303A. Supplemental plot allowance.''.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall apply with 
     respect to deaths occurring on or after that date.
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such 
     sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
     section 2303A of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
     subsection (a)).

                       TITLE VIII--OTHER MATTERS

     SEC. 801. ELIGIBILITY OF DISABLED VETERANS AND MEMBERS OF THE 
                   ARMED FORCES WITH SEVERE BURN INJURIES FOR 
                   AUTOMOBILES AND ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT.

       (a) Eligibility.--Paragraph (1) of section 3901 is 
     amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A)--
       (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``or 
     (iii) below'' and inserting ``(iii), or (iv)''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following new clause:
       ``(iv) A severe burn injury (as determined pursuant to 
     regulations prescribed by the Secretary).''; and
       (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or (iii)'' and 
     inserting ``(iii), or (iv)''.
       (b) Stylistic Amendments.--Such section is further 
     amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``chapter--'' and inserting ``chapter:'';
       (2) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``means--'' and inserting ``means the following:'';
       (B) in subparagraph (A)--
       (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``any 
     veteran'' and inserting ``Any veteran'';
       (ii) in clauses (i) and (ii), by striking the semicolon at 
     the end and inserting a period; and
       (iii) in clause (iii), by striking ``or'' and inserting a 
     period; and
       (C) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``any member'' and 
     inserting ``Any member''.

     SEC. 802. SUPPLEMENTAL ASSISTANCE FOR PROVIDING AUTOMOBILES 
                   OR OTHER CONVEYANCES TO CERTAIN DISABLED 
                   VETERANS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 39 is amended by inserting after 
     section 3902 the following new section:

     ``Sec. 3902A. Supplemental assistance for providing 
       automobiles or other conveyances

       ``(a) In General.--(1) Subject to the availability of funds 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in 
     advance in an appropriations Act, whenever the Secretary 
     makes a payment for the purchase of an automobile or other 
     conveyance for an eligible person under section 3902 of this 
     title, the Secretary is also authorized and directed to pay 
     the recipient of such payment a supplemental payment under 
     this section for the cost of such purchase.
       ``(2) No supplemental payment shall be made under this 
     subsection if the Secretary has expended all funds that were 
     specifically provided for purposes of this subsection in an 
     appropriations Act.
       ``(b) Amount of Supplemental Payment.--Supplemental payment 
     required by subsection (a) is equal to the excess of--
       ``(1) the payment which would be determined under section 
     3902 of this title if the amount described in section 3902 of 
     this title were increased to the adjusted amount described in 
     subsection (c), over
       ``(2) the payment determined under section 3902 of this 
     title without regard to this section.
       ``(c) Adjusted Amount.--The adjusted amount is $22,484 (as 
     adjusted from time to time under subsection (d)).
       ``(d) Adjustment.--(1) Effective on October 1 of each year 
     (beginning in 2008), the Secretary shall increase the 
     adjusted amount described in subsection (c) to an amount 
     equal to 80 percent of the average retail cost of new 
     automobiles for the preceding calendar year.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall establish the method for 
     determining the average retail cost of new automobiles for 
     purposes of this subsection. The Secretary may use data 
     developed in the private sector if the Secretary determines 
     the data is appropriate for purposes of this subsection.
       ``(e) Estimates.--(1) From time to time, the Secretary 
     shall make an estimate of--
       ``(A) the amount of funding that would be necessary to 
     provide supplemental payment under this section for every 
     eligible person for the remainder of the fiscal year in which 
     such an estimate is made; and
       ``(B) the amount that Congress would need to appropriate to 
     provide every eligible person with supplemental payment under 
     this section in the next fiscal year.

[[Page 6827]]

       ``(2) On the dates described in paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress the estimates described in paragraph (1).
       ``(3) The dates described in this paragraph are the 
     following:
       ``(A) April 1 of each year.
       ``(B) July 1 of each year.
       ``(C) September 1 of each year.
       ``(D) The date that is 60 days before the date estimated by 
     the Secretary on which amounts appropriated for the purposes 
     of this section for a fiscal year will be exhausted.
       ``(f) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' 
     means--
       ``(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       ``(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item related to section 3902 the following new item:

``3902A. Supplemental assistance for providing automobiles or other 
              conveyances.''.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such 
     sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
     section 3902A of title 38, United States Code (as added by 
     subsection (a)).
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall apply with 
     respect to payments made in accordance with section 3902 of 
     title 38, United States Code, on or after that date.

     SEC. 803. CLARIFICATION OF PURPOSE OF THE OUTREACH SERVICES 
                   PROGRAM OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

       (a) Clarification of Inclusion of Members of the National 
     Guard and Reserve in Program.--Subsection (a)(1) of section 
     6301 is amended by inserting ``, or from the National Guard 
     or Reserve,'' after ``active military, naval, or air 
     service''.
       (b) Definition of Outreach.--Subsection (b) of such section 
     is amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as paragraphs 
     (2) and (3), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) the following new 
     paragraph (1):
       ``(1) the term `outreach' means the act or process of 
     reaching out in a systematic manner to proactively provide 
     information, services, and benefits counseling to veterans, 
     and to the spouses, children, and parents of veterans who may 
     be eligible to receive benefits under the laws administered 
     by the Secretary, to ensure that such individuals are fully 
     informed about, and assisted in applying for, any benefits 
     and programs under such laws;''.

     SEC. 804. TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION OF CONTRACTS FOR CELLULAR 
                   TELEPHONE SERVICE FOR SERVICEMEMBERS UNDERGOING 
                   DEPLOYMENT OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.

       (a) In General.--Title III of the Servicemembers Civil 
     Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 531 et seq.) is amended by 
     inserting after section 305 the following new section:

     ``SEC. 305A. TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION OF CONTRACTS FOR 
                   CELLULAR TELEPHONE SERVICE.

       ``(a) In General.--A servicemember who receives orders to 
     deploy outside of the continental United States for not less 
     than 90 days may request the termination or suspension of any 
     contract for cellular telephone service entered into by the 
     servicemember before that date if the servicemember's ability 
     to satisfy the contract or to utilize the service will be 
     materially affected by that period of deployment. The request 
     shall include a copy of the servicemember's military orders.
       ``(b) Relief.--Upon receiving the request of a 
     servicemember under subsection (a), the cellular telephone 
     service contractor concerned shall, at the election of the 
     contractor--
       ``(1) grant the requested relief without imposition of an 
     early termination fee for termination of the contract or a 
     reactivation fee for suspension of the contract; or
       ``(2) permit the servicemember to suspend the contract at 
     no charge until the end of the deployment without requiring, 
     whether as a condition of suspension or otherwise, that the 
     contract be extended.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for that Act 
     is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
     305 the following new item:

``Sec. 305A. Termination or suspension of contracts for cellular 
              telephone service.''.

     SEC. 805. MAINTENANCE, MANAGEMENT, AND AVAILABILITY FOR 
                   RESEARCH OF ASSETS OF AIR FORCE HEALTH STUDY.

       (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to ensure that 
     the assets transferred to the Medical Follow-Up Agency from 
     the Air Force Health Study are maintained, managed, and made 
     available as a resource for future research for the benefit 
     of veterans and their families, and for other humanitarian 
     purposes.
       (b) Assets From Air Force Health Study.--For purposes of 
     this section, the assets transferred to the Medical Follow-Up 
     Agency from the Air Force Health Study are the assets of the 
     Air Force Health Study transferred to the Medical Follow-Up 
     Agency under section 714 of the John Warner National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 (Public Law 109-364; 
     120 Stat. 2290), including electronic data files and 
     biological specimens on all participants in the study 
     (including control subjects).
       (c) Maintenance and Management of Transferred Assets.--The 
     Medical Follow-Up Agency shall maintain and manage the assets 
     transferred to the Agency from the Air Force Health Study.
       (d) Additional Near-Term Research.--
       (1) In general.--The Medical Follow-Up Agency may, during 
     the period beginning on October 1, 2008, and ending on 
     September 30, 2012, conduct such additional research on the 
     assets transferred to the Agency from the Air Force Health 
     Study as the Agency considers appropriate toward the goal of 
     understanding the determinants of health, and promoting 
     wellness, in veterans.
       (2) Research.--In carrying out research authorized by this 
     subsection, the Medical Follow-Up Agency may, utilizing 
     amounts available under subsection (f)(1)(B), make grants for 
     such pilot studies for or in connection with such research as 
     the Agency considers appropriate.
       (e) Additional Medium-Term Research.--
       (1) Report.--Not later than March 31, 2012, the Medical 
     Follow-Up Agency shall submit to Congress a report assessing 
     the feasability and advisability of conducting additional 
     research on the assets transferred to the Agency from the Air 
     Force Health Study after September 30, 2012.
       (2) Disposition of assets.--If the report required by 
     paragraph (1) includes an assessment that the research 
     described in that paragraph would be feasible and advisable, 
     the Agency shall, utilizing amounts available under 
     subsection (f)(2), make any disposition of the assets 
     transferred to the Agency from the Air Force Health Study as 
     the Agency considers appropriate in preparation for such 
     research.
       (f) Funding.--
       (1) In general.--From amounts available for each of fiscal 
     years 2009 through 2012 for the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs for Medical and Prosthetic Research, amounts shall be 
     available as follows:
       (A) $1,200,000 shall be available in each such fiscal year 
     for maintenance, management, and operation (including 
     maintenance of biological specimens) of the assets 
     transferred to the Medical Follow-Up Agency from the Air 
     Force Health Study.
       (B) $250,000 shall be available in each such fiscal year 
     for the conduct of additional research authorized by 
     subsection (d), including the funding of pilot studies 
     authorized by paragraph (2) of that subsection.
       (2) Medium-term research.--From amounts available for 
     fiscal year 2012 for the Department of Veterans Affairs for 
     Medical and Prosthetic Research, $200,000 shall be available 
     for the preparation of the report required by subsection 
     (e)(1) and for the disposition, if any, of assets authorized 
     by subsection (e)(2).

     SEC. 806. NATIONAL ACADEMIES STUDY ON RISK OF DEVELOPING 
                   MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AS A RESULT OF CERTAIN 
                   SERVICE IN THE PERSIAN GULF WAR AND POST 9/11 
                   GLOBAL OPERATIONS THEATERS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     enter into a contract with the Institute of Medicine of the 
     National Academies to conduct a comprehensive epidemiological 
     study for purposes of identifying any increased risk of 
     developing multiple sclerosis as a result of service in the 
     Armed Forces during the Persian Gulf War in the Southwest 
     Asia theater of operations or in the Post 9/11 Global 
     Operations theaters.
       (b) Elements.--In conducting the study required under 
     subsection (a), the Institute of Medicine shall do the 
     following:
       (1) Determine whether service in the Armed Forces during 
     the Persian Gulf War in the Southwest Asia theater of 
     operations, or in the Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters, 
     increased the risk of developing multiple sclerosis.
       (2) Identify the incidence and prevalence of diagnosed 
     neurological diseases, including multiple sclerosis, 
     Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and brain 
     cancers, as well as central nervous system abnormalities that 
     are difficult to precisely diagnose, in each group as 
     follows:
       (A) Members of the Armed Forces who served during the 
     Persian Gulf War in the Southwest Asia theater of operations.
       (B) Members of the Armed Forces who served in the Post 9/11 
     Global Operations theaters.
       (C) A non-deployed comparison group for those who served in 
     the Persian Gulf War in the Southwest Asia theater of 
     operations and the Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters.
       (3) Compare the incidence and prevalence of the named 
     diagnosed neurological diseases and undiagnosed central 
     nervous system abnormalities among veterans who served during 
     the Persian Gulf War in the Southwest Asia theater of 
     operations, or in the Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters, 
     in various locations during such periods, as determined by 
     the Institute of Medicine.

[[Page 6828]]

       (4) Collect information on risk factors, such as pesticide 
     and other toxic exposures, to which veterans were exposed 
     while serving during the Persian Gulf War in the Southwest 
     Asia theater of operations or the Post 9/11 Global Operations 
     theaters, or thereafter.
       (c) Reports.--
       (1) Interim report.--The contract required by subsection 
     (a) shall require the Institute of Medicine to submit to the 
     Secretary, and to appropriate committees of Congress, interim 
     progress reports on the study required under subsection (a). 
     Such reports shall not be required to include a description 
     of interim results on the work under the study.
       (2) Final report.--The contract shall require the Institute 
     of Medicine to submit to the Secretary, and to appropriate 
     committees of Congress, a final report on the study by not 
     later than December 31, 2011. The final report shall include 
     such recommendations for legislative or administrative action 
     as the Institute considers appropriate in light of the 
     results of the study.
       (d) Funding.--The Secretary shall provide the Institute of 
     Medicine with such funds as are necessary to ensure the 
     timely completion of the study required under subsection (a).
       (e) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) The term ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives.
       (2) The term ``Persian Gulf War'' has the meaning given 
     that term in section 101(33) of title 38, United States Code.
       (3) The term ``Post 9/11 Global Operations theaters'' means 
     Afghanistan, Iraq, or any other theater in which the Global 
     War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal is awarded for service.

     SEC. 807. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT ON ADEQUACY OF 
                   DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION TO 
                   MAINTAIN SURVIVORS OF VETERANS WHO DIE FROM 
                   SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITIES.

       (a) Report Required.--Not later than 10 months after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of 
     the United States shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' 
     Affairs and Appropriations of the Senate and the Committees 
     on Veterans' Affairs and Appropriations of the House of 
     Representatives a report on the adequacy of dependency and 
     indemnity compensation payable under chapter 13 of title 38, 
     United States Code, to surviving spouses and dependents of 
     veterans who die as a result of a service-connected 
     disability in replacing the deceased veteran's income.
       (b) Elements.--The report required by subsection (a) shall 
     include--
       (1) a description of the current system for the payment of 
     dependency and indemnity compensation to surviving spouses 
     and dependents described in subsection (a), including a 
     statement of the rates of such compensation so payable;
       (2) an assessment of the adequacy of such payments in 
     replacing the deceased veteran's income; and
       (3) such recommendations as the Comptroller General 
     considers appropriate in order to improve or enhance the 
     effects of such payments in replacing the deceased veteran's 
     income.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the title amendment 
is agreed to.
  The title was amended so as to read:

       ``To amend title 38, United States Code, to enhance 
     veterans' insurance and housing benefits, to improve benefits 
     and services for transitioning servicemembers, and for other 
     purposes.''.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to 
reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I am pleased that S. 1315, as reported by 
the Veterans' Affairs Committee, the proposed Veterans Benefits 
Enhancement Act of 2007, finally passed in the Senate. This 
comprehensive legislation would improve benefits and services for 
veterans both young and old.
  The Veterans' Affairs Committee reported S. 1315 to the full Senate 
in August of last year. At that time, my belief was that debate and 
consideration of this legislation by the full Senate, would take place 
during September. That did not happen. As I described in detail 
yesterday, further action on the bill has been blocked because of 
opposition from the other side of the aisle to certain benefits for 
Filipinos who fought under U.S. command during World War II.
  I will first describe some of the provisions in the bill and then 
will discuss in more detail my views on the provisions relating to 
Filipino veterans.
  This legislation, as reported by the committee, would make several 
important improvements in insurance programs for disabled veterans. It 
would establish a new program of insurance for service-connected 
disabled veterans that would provide up to a maximum of $50,000 in 
level premium term life insurance coverage.
  This legislation would also expand eligibility for retroactive 
benefits from traumatic injury protection coverage under the 
Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance program. This insurance program 
went into effect on December 1, 2005. All insured servicemembers under 
SGLI from that point forward are covered by traumatic injury protection 
regardless of where their injuries occur. However, individuals 
sustaining traumatic injuries between October 7, 2001 and November 30, 
2005, that were not incurred as a direct result of Operations Enduring 
or Iraqi Freedom, are not eligible for a retroactive payment under the 
traumatic injury protection program. This legislation would expand 
eligibility to these individuals.
  This legislation would also increase the maximum amount of Veterans' 
Mortgage Life Insurance so that a service-connected disabled veteran 
may purchase from the current maximum of $90,000 to $200,000. In the 
event of the veteran's death, the veteran's family is protected because 
VA will pay the balance of the mortgage owed up to the maximum amount 
of insurance purchased. The need for this increase is obvious in 
today's housing market.
  In addition, S. 1315, as reported, would also increase the amount of 
supplemental life insurance available to totally disabled veterans from 
$20,000 to $30,000. Many totally disabled veterans find it difficult to 
obtain commercial life insurance. These are the veterans we are trying 
to help with this legislation by providing them with a reasonable 
amount of life insurance coverage.
  S. 1315, as reported, would also make small but necessary changes in 
existing laws relating to education and employment. First, it would 
restore the funding cap on the amount of support available to State 
Approving Agencies to the fiscal year 2007 level of $19 million. 
Without this restoration, these entities that assist VA in approving 
programs of education would be facing a reduction of more than 30 
percent beginning in this fiscal year. It is particularly important as 
more veterans return to civilian life and begin to use their 
educational benefits that SAAs have adequate resources.
  Second, the pending legislation would update the Special Unemployment 
Study required to be submitted by the Secretary of Labor to the 
Congress by mandating that it cover veterans of post-9/11 global 
operations. It would also require the report to be submitted on an 
annual, rather than a biennial, basis. By updating this report, 
Congress will have more data available on more recent groups of 
veterans--those who served and are serving in the gulf war and post-9/
11 global operations. This will help with assessments of the needs of 
current veterans entering the work force and develop appropriate 
responses.
  Third, the bill would extend for 2 years a temporary increase in the 
monthly educational assistance allowance for apprenticeship or other 
on-the-job training. The current temporary increase expired on January 
1, 2008, and this provision would benefit the 34,000 veterans who are 
suffering through the first benefit rate reduction in the history of 
the G.I. bill. Allowing the temporary increase to be eliminated would 
mean a monthly benefit rate cut for veterans enrolled in this type of 
training and would remove marketable incentive to encourage individuals 
to accept trainee positions they might not otherwise consider.
  S. 1315, as reported, would also improve a variety of housing 
benefits for servicemembers and veterans. I note that title II of this 
legislation was recently passed as part of H.R. 3221, the housing 
reform bill. It is my intent to include these provisions in S. 1315 
until they have become law through another vehicle.
  This legislation would also amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act 
to help servicemembers get relief from cell phone contracts when 
deployed overseas. Servicemembers, with all of their responsibilities 
abroad, should not have to worry about being released from cell phone 
contracts.

[[Page 6829]]

  Finally, this legislation gives Congress an opportunity to rectify a 
wrong done to Filipino World War II veterans over 60 years ago. In the 
years since the end of the Second World War, Filipino veterans and 
their advocates, especially my distinguished colleague, the senior 
Senator from Hawaii, have worked tirelessly to secure these veterans 
the status they were promised when they agreed to fight under U.S. 
command in defense of their homeland and to protect U.S. interests in 
the region. Today, I am proud to say, many Filipino veterans enjoy 
eligibility for benefits and health care services as U.S. veterans. 
However, there remains a distinction in law between certain groups of 
Filipino veterans. I hope that Congress will take another step toward 
removing that unjust distinction. This Nation has a moral obligation to 
care for those who have served under its flag.
  Although I view veterans' benefits as a continuing cost of war and 
should be funded as such, the provisions in S. 1315 would be paid for 
by an offset that restores the original intent of Congress, which was 
wrongly interpreted in a recent court decision, to provide certain VA 
benefits on the basis of disability and not age. Some of the opposition 
to S. 1315 has centered on a misunderstanding of this provision. Aged 
veterans who are seriously disabled would not be deprived of special 
benefits, but would continue to be eligible for them under the same 
conditions as applied to younger veterans.
  This is not a comprehensive recitation of all the provisions within 
this important veterans' legislation. However, I hope that I have 
provided an appropriate overview of the benefits this legislation would 
provide for America's veterans and servicemembers.
  The sole point of controversy in S. 1315 is a pension benefit for 
Filipino veterans who served under U.S. command during World War II and 
who live in the Philippines. I wish to give my colleagues my 
perspective on why this benefit should be paid.
  The United States has had a relationship with the Philippines since 
1898, when it was acquired as a result of the Spanish American War. In 
1934, Congress passed the Philippine Independence Act, which set a 10-
year timetable for the independence of the Philippines. In the interim, 
the U.S. established a Commonwealth of the Philippines vested with 
certain powers over its own internal affairs. The granting of full 
independence was delayed until 1946 because of the Japanese occupation 
of the Philippines from 1942 to 1945.
  On July 26, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued an Executive 
Order ordering all military forces of the Commonwealth of the 
Philippines into the service of the Armed Forces of the United States 
under the command of a newly created command structure called the 
United States Armed Forces of the Far East. According to orders from 
General MacArthur, Philippine units once mustered into U.S. service 
would be paid and supplied from American sources.
  The unique relationship between the Philippines and the United States 
made the Philippine islands particularly susceptible to Japanese 
aggression during the war. Historians agree that the Japanese strategy 
was based upon a plan to destroy or neutralize the U.S. Pacific Fleet 
at Pearl Harbor, and to deprive the United States of its base in the 
Philippines. Were it not for the U.S. presence, the Philippines would 
not have presented the Japanese with a strategic threat and turned into 
a battlefield.
  The Philippine forces under U.S. command suffered heavy casualties as 
a result of the Japanese invasion. It is estimated that 10,000 
Filipinos died during the Bataan Death March, along with 3,000 U.S. 
soldiers. The Philippines throughout the war suffered great loss of 
life and tremendous physical damage. By the end of the war, the capital 
city of Manila was in ruins and up to 1 million Filipinos had been 
killed.
  All of the military forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines 
remained under the command of the U.S. Armed Forces of the Far East 
throughout World War II, and until the Philippines was granted 
independence on July 4, 1946.
  In October 1945, Gen. Omar Bradley, then Director of the Veterans' 
Administration, affirmed that all Filipinos who served under U.S. 
command were entitled to all benefits under laws administered by that 
agency.
  However, in 1946, the U.S. Congress, through the Rescission Acts of 
1946, withdrew veterans' status from certain Filipino veterans of World 
War II.
  Upon passage of the Rescission Acts, President Harry Truman expressed 
his disapproval of the withdrawal of benefits from Filipino veterans. 
He stated, ``There can be no question, but that the Philippine veteran 
is entitled to benefits bearing a reasonable relation to those received 
by the American veteran, with whom he fought side by side.''
  Our Nation has a long history of caring for aging veterans, 
particularly those who served the country during a time of war.
  The sole purpose of the VA pension program is to assist older, low-
income, war-time veterans, so that those who experienced the horror of 
war are not forgotten in their old age.
  Philippine veterans of the Second World War are now in their twilight 
years and many are struggling to make ends meet, especially with global 
food prices on the rise. Now, perhaps more than ever, the modest 
pension benefits that are in S. 1315 are of the greatest value to 
veterans who earned them on the battlefield so many years ago.
  The action by Congress in 1946 to strip Filipino veterans who served 
under the American Flag during World War II of the recognition and 
benefits that were their due was a grave injustice. It is especially 
regrettable that this injustice has existed for so many years. The 
inaction of prior Congresses to correct this wrong does not excuse us 
from the responsibility to take remedial action now.
  The United States has a moral obligation to care for Filipino 
veterans who served under U.S. command in World War II and we must not 
fail in fulfilling that obligation.
  I would like to speak briefly about the purpose of pension benefits 
and more specifically about the pension benefit in the pending bill. 
Veterans pension benefits are provided to allow wartime veterans to 
live in dignity and meet their basic needs.
  The amounts proposed in this legislation would permit Filipino 
veterans, who have been denied their rightful status as United States 
veterans for too long, to finally live in dignity.
  Unlike other World War II veterans, these veterans have been denied 
pension benefits for over 60 years. It is also important to note that 
these benefits are not retroactive.
  The amounts proposed are sufficient to give aged Filipino veterans a 
payment that would allow them to meet their basic needs for adequate 
nutrition and medicine.
  The flat rate benefit also takes into account the likelihood that 
many of these aged veterans, if living in the United States, would 
qualify for additional benefits based on disability due to their status 
as being housebound or in need of aid and attendance. No additional 
benefits for housebound status or aid and attendance are provided.
  The pension proposed for Filipino veterans is less than one-third of 
the basic amount provided to veterans living in the United States, in 
recognition of the lower cost of living in the Philippines. Measured 
against the aid and attendance standard, the proposed benefit is about 
one-sixth of the amount provided to veterans in the United States.
  The cost of items, such as food and medicine in Manila are about half 
of the cost in the United States, while the cost of housing is 
considerably less expensive.
  For example, a bottle of 100 aspirin tablets costs about $4 in 
Manila, about twice as much in the United States.
  Because the income and asset verification procedures used in the 
United States are not available in the Philippines, and it is not 
feasible to develop an administratively efficient system in the 
Philippines to monitor the income and assets of pension recipients, the 
bill provides a flat benefit

[[Page 6830]]

amount substantially lower than that paid in the United States.
  I believe firmly that the proposed amount is a reasonable benefit 
taking into account all of these factors.
  The people of the Philippines did not shy from the call to fight 
during World War II. They were true brothers in arms who fought 
valiantly under U.S. command in the global struggle against 
totalitarianism. This bill at long last recognizes the valor of all 
Filipino veterans in sacrifice to this noble cause and loyalty to their 
American commanders.
  The proposal put forward by the ranking member fails to honor these 
veterans by denying pension benefits to those who live in the 
Philippines. I understand that there may be different perspectives on 
what pension amounts would be appropriate given the difference in the 
cost-of-living between this country and the Philippines. I am not, 
however, willing to yield on the principle that Filipino veterans 
living in the Philippines deserve to receive veterans benefits in the 
same manner as those living in the U.S. or anywhere else. I reject the 
notion that two veterans, who fought side-by-side and endured the same 
hardships of war, should be treated unequally based solely on their 
place of residence.
  The soldier's creed is to leave no fellow warrior behind. I believe 
in that, and believe that it is important to acknowledge the valiant 
service of those Filipino veterans of World War II who served under 
U.S. command.
  I would like to end my comments tonight by again sharing the thoughts 
of the 33rd President of the United States--Harry S. Truman. In 1946, 
President Truman made a statement concerning provisions in a bill 
affecting Philippine Army veterans--At issue was a legislative rider 
attached to the transfer of $200 million for the pay of the Army of the 
Philippines.
  President Truman said, ``The effect of this rider is to bar 
Philippine Army veterans from all the benefits under the G.I. Bill of 
Rights with the exception of disability and death benefits which are 
made payable on the basis of one peso for every dollar of eligible 
benefits. I realize, however, that certain practical difficulties exist 
in applying the G.I. Bill of Rights to the Philippines.''
  President Truman went on to state, ``the passage and approval of this 
legislation does not release the United States from its moral 
obligation to provide for the heroic Philippine veterans who sacrificed 
so much for the common cause during the war . . . I consider it a moral 
obligation of the United States to look after the welfare of the 
Philippine Army veterans.''
  I agree with the words of President Truman from 60 years ago.
  As I have said time and time again, this legislation would correct an 
injustice that has existed for over 60 years. I, like President Truman, 
believe that it is the obligation of the United States to care for 
those who have fought under the U.S. flag.
  It is past time to right that wrong. As my fellow World War II 
veteran, the Senior Senator from Alaska said yesterday, this is about 
``honor.'' I believe it is the moral obligation of this Nation to 
provide for those who served under the U.S. flag and alongside U.S. 
troops during World War II.
  I thank my colleagues for standing with me, my World War II 
colleagues Senators Inouye and Stevens, and a majority of the Veterans' 
Affairs Committee, and not accepting the amendment of the Senator from 
North Carolina.
  Mr. REID. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________