PROPOSED LEGISLATION The following items are included in the President's legislative program for the First Session of the 97th Congress and have been included in his FY 1982 Budget. Compensation: To provide a 12.3 increase in the rate of compensation for veterans and their surviving spouses and children, effective October 1, 1981........ Readjustment Benefits: To extend for two years the delimiting period for certain Vietnam veterans, effective October 1, 1981... To eliminate benefits for flight training programs, effective October 1, 1981. Total, Readjustment Benefits...... 30.790 Medical Care: 30.790 To eliminate presumptive service connection for class II outpatient dental treatment now provided one year after discharge, effective October 1, 1981. To restrict payments of beneficiary travel for non-service-connected veterans.. Total, Medical Care... -46.913 -46.913 General Operating Expenses: To reduce administrative expenses related to the proposed elimination of flight training programs, effective October 1, 1981. -.222 To reduce administrative expenses related to the proposed elimination of correspondence training programs, effective October 1, 1981.. -.222 To reduce administrative expenses related to establishing a delimiting date for application for VA benefits by Philippine Scouts.. -.018 To increase administrative expenses to extend for two years the delimiting period for certain Vietnam veterans, effective October 1, 1981.. -.018 To record the proprietary receipts derived from extending this program one year... To extend this program in its present format an additional year until I. Presidential Proposals: A. PRESIDENTIAL BUDGET PROPOSALS FOR FISCAL YEAR 1982 The Committee is aware that President Carter's budget request includes $29 million in the Medical Care section for the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Counseling Program. The delimiting date for the majority of the participants in this program is September 30, 1981. The Committee concurs with the President's request for funding of this important program for another year and intends to recommend legislation to extend eligibility for two years for these Vietnam veterans. The Administration projects that almost 2.3 million veterans with service-connected disabilities will receive monthly compensation under existing legislation totaling $7 billion. Over 357,000 survivors of veterans whose deaths were service-connected or related to serviceconnected disabilities will receive benefits totaling $1.5 billion. This legislation will add $1 billion to the monthly benefits described above and will bring total compensation payments for FY 1982 to $9.7 billion. The proposed legislation projects a 12.3% cost-of-living increase in compensation payments to be effective October 1, 1981. This figure apparently is related to the projection made elsewhere in the budget that the automatic cost-of-living increase required by the terms of Public Law 95-588 for non-service-connected pension benefits will be 12.3%. The Committee takes note of the Congressional Budget Office's projection that the proposed rate increase will cost about $15 million more than the Administration's projected cost. In addition to the rate increase proposed by the Administration, the Subcommittee on Compensation, Pension and Insurance is expected to consider other program improvements, and the requisite total budget authority and outlays will be reflected in Congressional initiatives later in this report. The Carter Administration's Fiscal Year 1982 budget request proposes legislation to extend the delimiting period for two years for Vietnam veterans in on-the-job training and for educationally disadvantaged Vietnam veterans in vocational, technical or high school training at an additional cost of $63 million for 36,300 trainees. The Subcommittee plans to consider this recommendation, together with similar measures, which relate to a job program for Vietnam and disabled veterans. Should the program be continued for one year as recommended in President Carter's budget for Fiscal Year 1982, the cost of the program would be $30.5 million which would be offset by propriety receipts of $30.5 million derived from extending the program for 1 year. The effects of legislation to extend the VEAP Program for 1 year are not reflected in the fiscal year 1982 request submitted to Congress by President Carter. The Administration has recommended legislation to extend the VEAP Program in its present format an additional year until December 31, 1982. This program was established by PL 94-502 in October, 1976, 38 USC, Chapter 32, to provide educational assistance to those persons who enter the Armed Forces after December 31, 1976. It is a voluntary contributory matching program and each person entering military service has the right to enroll in and make contributions to the educational benefits program at any time during the person's service on active duty. These contributions will be matched by the Veterans' Administration on a two-for-one basis at the time the educational benefits are utilized. PL 94-502 permits no new enrollments in this program after December 31, 1981 unless, prior to June 1, 1981, the President recommends and both Houses of Congress agree to continue the program for new enrollments. There are a number of proposals which propose to authorize education and training assistance to persons who are members of the Armed Forces. The Subcommittee plans to consider these proposals together with any recommendations that may be submitted by the Administration, as required by PL 94–502. C. PRESIDENTIAL PROPOSALS FOR FISCAL YEAR 1982 LEGISLATIVE SAVINGS [In millions of dollars] In studies relating to the adjudication of claims and providing of benefits to veterans, survivors and children of those Philippine Island citizens who at one time or another served with or in the Armed Services of the United States, it is noted that many claims are repeatedly reopened time after time despite final appellate determination. The proposal will place a statute of limitations finality upon those decisions. This is the fifth consecutive year that the Administration has submitted these proposals. It is the Administration's view that this program has fulfilled its intended purpose by helping the veteran adjust to his or her circumstances by providing the training needed for basic employment. The House approved this recommendation in the 2nd Session of the 96th Congress when it unanimously approved H.R. 7394. However, Senate amendments were agreed to by the House, as provided in PL 96-466, which reduced the educational assistance allowance for flight training to 60 percent of the established charges in lieu of the previous 90 percent and to 70 percent from the previous 90 percent for correspondence courses. The Committee is not expected to favorably consider this measure since these two education and training programs were substantially reduced by the previous Congress. The Administration's proposal would completely eliminate the provision of dental care for former members of the Armed Forces during the first twelve months following discharge. At the present time, the Armed Forces do not have sufficient dental personnel to provide this care and treatment prior to discharge. No action is contemplated on this proposal by the Committee. |