Sweeping Veterans and Caregivers Legislation Passes Congress

Congress cleared a sweeping veterans' omnibus health care measure last week that would also provide assistance to caregivers of veterans.
 
The bill (S. 1963), which passed the House 419-0 on April 21 and the Senate the next day by voice vote, includes several of The American Legion's top legislative priorities: to improve women's services at VA health-care facilities, provide better support for caregivers of disabled veterans, expand mental-health services, reduce homelessness and commit the Federal government to a number of other initiatives to better serve veterans and their families. President Obama is expected to sign the bill before Memorial Day.  
 
Last September, The American Legion National Commander Clarence Hill testified before a joint session of the Veterans' Affairs Committees that women's health-care needs had to move up on the congressional agenda for VA. "The demographic of the American veteran is changing," he told the committees at that time. "This includes a growing and significant number of women veterans who sacrifice no less than their male counterparts."

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Washington
(April 20, 2010)

Less than a week after The American Legion urged Congress to give jobless veterans the "proper training and tools" they need to gain employment, three U.S. senators introduced a new bill today that will help America's veterans get back into the civilian work force.

The Veterans Employment Act of 2010 was unveiled at a press conference today in front of the U.S. Capitol by its three sponsors: Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; and Mark Begich, D-Alaska.
           
"This bill appears to be a legislative home run because it touches all the bases in addressing key challenges faced by our unemployed veterans," said Peter Gaytan, executive director for The American Legion here.
           
"Senator Murray and her colleagues are focused on critical areas that will also provide help for those veterans who are entrepreneurs. For instance, the bill's Veterans Business Center Program will prove to be a valuable asset. And, once this legislation is passed, The American Legion looks forward to participating in the semi-annual Veterans Entrepreneurial Development Summit," Gaytan said.
           
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INDIANAPOLIS
(April 15, 2010)

The American Bar Association Journal has been selected to receive The American Legion's Fourth Estate Award for publishing,  "The Cemetery Sea," in its May, 2009 edition."

The Fourth Estate Award is presented annually by The American Legion for outstanding achievement in the field of journalism.

"The journal chronicled the sinking of the Alaska Ranger, a 203-foot mackerel boat 120 miles off the Alaskan coast during a severe storm from a catastrophic hull breach," said Clarence E. Hill, national commander of The American Legion.  "It was a compelling story of a disaster at sea and the role the legal and regulatory system played in allowing that disaster to happen."

The article noted that currently, inspections of vessels like the Alaska Ranger are done under a voluntary compliance program that critics call de facto self-policing by the industry. A 2006 Coast Guard study estimated that 127 fishing vessels would be lost annually until safety regulation becomes more stringent.

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Washington
(April 30, 2010)

Despite a law passed more than a decade ago, federal agencies are still failing to comply with a key mandate: make sure that small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans get at least three percent of all federal contracting dollars.

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