28 1 effective program of collection, compilation, and analysis 2 of workers' compensation statistics. Such program may cover 3 all employments whether or not subject to any other pro4 visions of this Act. 5 (b) To carry out the duties prescribed under subsection 6 (a) of this section, the Secretary may 7 8 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 (1) promote, encourage, or directly engage in programs of studies, information, and communication concerning workmen's compensation statistics; (2) make grants to States or political subdivisions thereof in order to assist them in developing and administering programs dealing with workers' compensation statistics; and (3) arrange, through grants or contracts, for the conduct of such research and investigations as give promise of furthering the objectives of this section. (c) The Federal share for each grant under subsection 18 (b) of this section may be up to 50 per centum of the 19 State's total cost. 222 (d) The Secretary may, with the consent of any State or political subdivision thereof, accept and use the services, 22 facilities, and employees of the agencies of such State or 23 political subdivision, with or without reimbursement, in 24 order to assist in carrying out the functions under this section. (e) Employers shall file such reports as the Secretary 25 24-625 O-74-29 29 I shall prescribe by regulation, as necessary to carry out the 2 functions under this Act. 3 (f) Agreements between the Department of Labor and 4 any State pertaining to the collection of workers' compensa5 tion statistics already in effect on the effective date of this 6 Act shall remain in effect until superseded by grants or con7 tracts made under this Act. 8 9 EMPLOYMENT RELATED DISEASES SEC. 13, Not later than three months after the date of 10 enactment of this Act, and every year thereafter, the Secre 11 tary of Health, Education, and Welfare is authorized and 12 directed to establish a schedule of diseases related to employ13 ment for the purpose of this Act and for each disease included on such schedule within one year thereafter, standards 15 for determining (1) whether such disease arose out of or in 16 the course of employment and (2) whether death or disabil17 ity was due to such disease. Such standards may include 18 reasonable presumptions, whenever appropriate. In develop19 ing the schedule of diseases required by this section, the 20 Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare shall consult 21 with Director of the National Institute of Occupational 22 Safety and Health and such other organizations of employers 23 and employees as are appropriate with respect to new 24 diseases that are suspected of being employment related. 30 1 Each such schedule and standard shall be published in the 2 Federal Register and furnished to the Secretary of Labor. 3 4 EFFECT OF PERIODIC ADJUSTMENTS ON OTHER LAWS SEC. 14. No amount paid as a periodic adjustment of 5 workers' compensation benefits shall be considered in the de6 termination of the eligibility for, or amount of, any other 7 benefit authorized by Federal or State law. 9 SEC. 15. Within one hundred and twenty days fol10 lowing the convening of each regular session of each Con11 gress, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the President 12 for transmittal to the Congress a report upon the subject 13 matter of this Act, the progress toward achievement of the 14 purpose of this Act, the needs and requirements in the field 15 of workers' compensation, and any other relevant informa16 tion. 17 SEPARABILITY SEC. 16. If any provision of this Act, or the application 19 of such provision to any person or circumstance, shall be held invalid, the remainder of this Act, or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to 22 which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby. APPROPRIATIONS SEC. 17. There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act for each fiscal year such sums as the 26 Congress shall deem necessary. LEGAL FEES TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1973 U.S. SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON REPRESENTATION OF CITIZEN INTERESTS, Washington, D.C. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., in room 2228, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Senator John V. Tunney (chairman) presiding. Present: Senators Tunney (presiding), Cook, and Mathias. Also present: Jane Frank, chief counsel; Neil Levy, assistant counsel; Joseph Dawhare, minority counsel; Ann Hennigan, chief clerk; and Matthew Schneider, staff assistant. Senator TUNNEY. The Committee will come to order. STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN V. TUNNEY, U.S. SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA, CHAIRMAN, SUBCOMMITTEE ON REPRESENTATION OF CITIZEN INTERESTS The veterans benefits sections of title 38 of the U.S. Code provide a striking contrast to the black lung situation we heard about yesterday. Reacting to serious abuses by attorneys who had been collecting in fees as much as 50 percent of a claim secured for a veteran, Congress limited the fees which a veteran could pay an attorney to a flat $10 per claim. That was in 1936, and the law is still on the books. It applies regardless of the complexity of the case, and regardless of the circumstances of the attorney. It has virtually kept the private attorney out of the business of representing the veteran before the Veterans' Administration, and has left the veteran to rely on a number of service organizations (such as the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Disabled American Veterans) to represent him at no cost, or to rely on his own skills of advocacy. The result often leaves a lot to be desired. It can leave the Vietnam vet who may have received an "undesirable discharge" because of his protest against the war and whose discharge has been reclassified as "dishonorable" by the Veterans Administration, without a chance of securing benefits. It locks him into a "closed system" without access to an independent attorney or to judicial review. The system is cheaper than the black lung program to the taxpayer, and to the veteran who receives his benefits. But surely, the system needs improving if it is to represent adequately the interest of all veterans. Today we shall probe some questions for improving the system. Our first witness today is John J. Corcoran, General Counsel, veterans administration. (443) |