RECOMMENDATIONS OF VETERANS' ORGANIZATIONS, 1974 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1974 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Washington, D.C. The committee met at 10:30 a.m., pursuant to call, in room 345, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Olin E. Teague (acting chairman of the committee) presiding. Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. The committee will come to order. Our committee chairman, Mr. Dorn of South Carolina, couldn't get back today, and asked me to preside this morning, and he asked that I especially say hello and welcome Fred Welch and Paul Greer to Washington. I am sure that most of you know that Mr. Dorn is a candidate for Governor in South Carolina, and we hope we will soon be calling him Governor. We have with us this morning our good friend and colleague, Mr. Lucien Nedzi, who will introduce our national commander. Lucien is an important Member of the House. We think he has done a good job. Mr. NEDZI. I want to thank you very much for those kind remarks, and express my appreciation to you for providing me this opportunity. Mr. Chairman and members of the Veterans' Affairs Committee. I am pleased this morning to have the opportunity to present to you the national commander of the Disabled American Veterans, Mr. John T. Soave of East Detroit, Mich. I feel a special kinship to John Soave. We are both from the 14th Congressional District of Michigan; we are both members of the Michigan bar; and we both served in the Philippines during World War II. I feel personally grateful and reassured as a veteran, that a man of John Soave's background and vast experience in behalf of veterans is serving as head of the DAV. Mr. Soave was elected national commander of the DAV in August 1973, at the organization's 52d national convention. He has served the DAV as an officer at local, State, and national levels, including State commander of the Department of Michigan. He was national senior vice commander during 1972-73. Mr. Soave served in the South Pacific with the U.S. Army in World War II, participating in three major invasions, including the invasion of the Philippines. He was wounded in October 1944 on Leyte in the Philippines and honorably discharged in July 1945 with a serviceconnected disability. Mr. Soave has displayed an affection for his old comrades in arms from World War II. He has been dedicated to serving their needs, as I am sure he will shortly demonstrate. But he has also been highly sensitive to the needs of the veterans of the Vietnam war, an ambivalent and unpopular conflict, from which veterans returned to a much different atmosphere than that found by returnees of previous wars. He has been tireless in pursuit of his duties and has introduced innovative programs seeking to reach those veterans not usually reached by veterans services as well as Vietnam veterans with job needs. The State of Michigan has a long tradition of producing outstanding veterans' organizations and leaders. John T. Soave is in this fine tradition and it is a high honor for me to introduce him to the committee this morning. Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. Thank you, Lucien. Mr. SOAVE. Thank you, Lucien. Mr. Chairman, with your consent, I should like to introduce a few of the officers and staff members who are with us today. The past national commander, Jack O. Hicks. The national commander of the DAV Auxiliary, Mrs. Dorothy Van Hoy of Missouri. Our national adjutant, Denvel D. Adams. The national adjutant of the Ladies Auxiliary, Mrs. Kit Seal of Ohio. Our national service director, John J. Keller. Our national director of employment, Norman B. Harnett. A gentleman who needs no introduction to this distinguished committee, our national director of legislation, Charles L. Huber. And last but not least, the members of the DAV National Interim Legislative Committee Mr. Paul H. Greer of South Carolina, chairman. Mr. John W. Davis of Georgia. Mr. Billy "Rocky" Dunn of Arkansas. Mr. Chairman Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. Commander, before you go ahead, I understand your wife and son are out there. Mr. SOAVE. Yes. Delores Soave, my wife, and my son, Robert. Mr. Chairman, I can assure you they are much more nervous than I am. Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. They need not be nervous. If there is one group we love to have before this committee, it is the DAV. Mr. SOAVE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Before proceeding with my formal statement to this committee, outlining the objectives of the Disabled American Veterans for the coming year, I am compelled by the frustration of my fellow DAV comrades here in Washington this week, as well as those throughout the country, to comment briefly on a situation which has become intolerable. The DAV has been trying to find out the position of the White House on a cost-of-living increase for service-connected disabled veterans since the President released his special message on veterans, January 28. To date, we have received nothing but innuendo and evasion. Donald Johnson, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, at the Statler Hilton Hotel on Monday of this week appeared before 500 DAV leaders. He promised us at that time we would receive definite word before today of the administration's position. We have now been informed by Mr. Johnson that we would not know until Friday of the administration's decision. We feel that the administration has deliberately tried to hang the carrot in front of our nose so that we will go home without having accomplished our purpose for being here. We can assure them that 2.2 million disabled veterans of this country are going to know how they have been treated by the administration. Now, as an aside, this morning I did receive a letter. I have been promised this letter all week, and I will make no comments on the letter at this time, and if I may, I would like to go to my prepared remarks. Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. May I ask a question? I haven't studied the point nearly as thoroughly as I want to, but, have you, and surely you have, studied the increases of the last 10, 15, or 20 years to determine whether you would have done better had there been an automatic cost-of-living compensation increase, or whether you have done better by leaving this in the hands of this committee. Mr. SOAVE. Better in the hands of this committee, there is no question about it, but when the President's message was completely devoid, or his budget, anything in there-no request for any compensation increase for disabled veterans, we felt compelled to contact the President. Surely, we appreciate this committee's efforts for the magnificent job you have done throughout the years. Certainly, we feel we can come before you with our programs, and I am sure you can readily accept and will continue to do so in the future. Mr. TEAGUE of Texas. Mr. Commander, that is what I thought and what I understood to be the fact, and I have some reservations about taking this away from this committee and providing for an automatic cost-of-living increase tied to the CPI. This cost-of-living thing isn't an exact science and different people come up with different costof-living figures, and I really have some reservations, as to whether this is best for our DAV to turn compensation increases over to a costof-living council. Don't push too hard because if you do you will probably get it. I would give it some careful thought and careful study if I were you. Mr. SOAVE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. STATEMENT OF JOHN T. SOAVE OF THE DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS Mr. SOAVE. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee: It is a distinct pleasure as National Commander of the Disabled American Veterans to appear before you today and present our legislative program for this 2d session of the 93d Congress. At the very outset, Mr. Chairman, it seems most fitting that I take a moment to express, on behalf of the 430,000 members of the DAV, our profound sense of regret on the loss of two highly respected members of this committee-John P. Saylor of Pennsylvania and Charles M. Teague of California. Each will be remembered for his outstanding record of service to our cause. The DAV, through its national employment program, extends to those veterans whose employability has been restored, a practical, cooperative form of assistance in securing gainful employment. The DAV is dedicated to this fundamental mission and considerable emphasis is placed upon it by our organization. The continuing success of the DAV's scouting program for handicapped children is a particular source of satisfaction for all of us. Our scholarship program supports a total of 120 needy and deserving children of service-connected disabled veterans. Our two "relief" programs provide financial assistance to disabled veterans and their families who are temporarily in need of such assistance. NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAM One of the most important programs in which all of us in DAV share a definite pride is our extensive, highly developed national service program. This activity forms the very foundation upon which our organization was created. The DAV maintains a staff of 260 national service officers located in VA offices across the United States. Of this total, 180 are veterans of the Vietnam war. They, themselves, are disabled veterans, trained under DAV's guidance to be specialists in the field of veterans' programs generously provided by this committee and the Congress. During 1973, DAV national service officers handled claims for benefits that provided more than $317 million in payments to disabled veterans, their dependents and survivors. Our budget for the national service program in 1974 is approximately $5 million, which is contributed by a generous public. The DAV is enlarging this important, viable program through the use of eight mobile field service units which will travel about the country bringing our services directly to disabled veterans and their families. Throughout 1974, all eight units will cover each State in the continental limits of the United States. Fully equipped to function as traveling offices, each unit will have two experienced national service officers aboard who will counsel and assist claimants in securing benefits from various governmental agencies. Let me assure you, Mr. Chairman, of the deep sense of pride I feel for this new, expanded facet of our service program which will extend a helping hand, not only to those who reside in urban areas but also to those in rural areas far removed from VA regional offices. I want to take this opportunity to again express my grateful thanks to the distinguished chairman of this committee for participating so graciously and so effectively in the January 7 ceremony at Columbia, S.C. His message to all of us assembled in the State House in Columbia was most inspiring and uniquely appropriate for the kickoff event which sent the mobile field service units on their way. The DAV has long been engaged in providing assistance to the service disabled veteran through three basic VA programs, each one complementing the other. These consist of vocational rehabilitation, disability compensation, and hospital and medical care. These general forms of assistance, when properly blended, will set the handicapped war veteran on a course that will result in rehabilitation and maximum opportunities for employment. I want to give recognition here to the fact that this committee-in its customary bipartisan attitude-has consistently modified these three programs to meet the changing needs of the ill and disabled veteran-and for this we are genuinely grateful. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, we come forward this year with what I believe is a reasonable, supportable legislative program; a program that does not impose upon the Government the expenditure of vast sums of money, a program which, with the continuing help of this committee, will improve and strengthen the structure of Federal benefits for the Nation's war disabled veterans and their dependents. DISABILITY COMPENSATION The DAV in this term of the 93d Congress is focusing primarily on the disability compensation and dependency and indemnity compensation programs. We feel that changes are essential because the high rate of inflation has been biting deeply into the payments received under these programs, particularly in the last several months. In view of this, we were deeply disappointed to learn that the President's recent special message on veterans, and the budget itself, made no reference whatsoever with respect to funding needed for improvements in the disability compensation and dependency and indemnity compensation programs a matter considered by the DAV to be a most pressing order of business for this session of Congress. We are grateful to Congressman Dorn, for introducing, at our request, the compensation bill, H.R. 11469, which is now before this committee. His introductory remarks, appearing in the Congressional Record last November 14, were most emphatic and very much to the point. He declared that inflation has had a serious impact on the adequacy of the compensation program and it will be necessary that the Congress consider proposed increases in service-connected compensation needed to stay abreast of the changes in the cost of living index. He said that many inquiries are being received from disabled veterans regarding the subject, and it is the plan of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs to take up this legislation early this session. I want to say, Mr. Chairman, that inquiries reaching us at National Headquarters also manifest concerned interest in the need for compensation adjustments. The most touching inquiries come regularly from the seriously disabled veterans, all expressing their dire situations due to the higher costs of food, clothing, housing, fuel, and other basic necessities. Those veterans whose only income is their fixed monthly compensation payments are hit hardest by runaway inflation, and are desperately struggling to survive. H.R. 11469 has a three-fold purpose. It would provide an across-theboard increase of 15 percent in the basic disability compensation rates. Dependency allowances payable to veterans with service-connected disability rated 50 percent or more would also be increased by 15 percent. Finally, the bill proposes to raise from $47 to $60 the special statutory awards to veterans who have suffered the serviceconnected loss or loss of use of a limb, an eye, or other body organ. No one need be reminded that the cost of living has sky-rocketed since this committee so thoughtfully improved and updated the compensation program in August 1972. Available statistical data show |