Benefits under veterans equity bill 'far too generous,' says US senator

CHICAGO, Illinois (JGLi) – On the eve of the 62nd anniversary of the enactment of the Rescission Act of 1946 on Feb. 17, Sen. Larry E. Craig (Rep.-Idaho), one of the ranking members of the US Senate veterans affairs committee blocking the passage of S. 1315 or the Veterans Benefits Enhancements Act, maintained that the “pension benefit is far too generous." The Senate bill seeks to repeal the law that took away the full benefits of Filipino World War II veterans. It is up for Senate approval or rejection. Craig said in an e-mail that he is nonetheless “pleased to be an original co-sponsor of S. 2640," introduced by Sen. Richard Burr (Rep. North Carolina) last Feb. 14 “as an alternative to S. 1315" because “it incorporates many of the very important provisions of S. 1315." He explained that the bill provides “retroactive payments of up to $100,000 to all disabled veterans who sustained severe injuries since the war on terror began; increased insurance coverage for severely disabled veterans under the Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance Program; and housing and auto grants to veterans with severe burns who require modifications to either their homes or vehicles." The senator, who responded to a letter of retired Maj. Gen. Delfin Lorenzana, head of the Office of the Veterans Affairs of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C., said that “S. 2640 contains $107 million over 10 years to provide full pension to Filipino veterans legally residing in the United States; full disability compensation to Filipino veterans wherever they reside; and full access to the VA (Veterans Affairs) clinic in Manila for Filipino veterans with service-related disabilities. “My support for these provisions should be confirmation of what I have said all along: I support legislation improving benefits for Filipino veterans so long as it is done in a responsible manner and so long as other improvements in benefits for U.S. veterans receive the highest priorities." The email sent to this reporter by Senator Craig’s legislative assistant, Patrick Meuleman, quoted then-Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee Carl Hayden, speaking about the Rescission Act: “As I see it, the best thing the American government can do is to help the Filipino people help themselves. Where there was a choice between expenditures for the rehabilitation of the economy of the Philippine Islands and payments in cash to Filipino veterans, I am sure it is better to spend any equal sum of money, for example, on improving the roads and port facilities. What the Filipino veteran needs is a steady employment rather than to depend for his living upon a monthly payment sent from the United States." Craig further quoted Senator Hayden as saying that “there is no suggestion that Congress had in mind covering under GI bill of rights any classes not therefore understood to be included within the meaning of the words ‘in the active military or naval service of the United States,’ which is the primary basis for entitlement to its benefits. It is certainly unthinkable that the 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…" The S. 1315, sponsored by Hawaii Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (Dem.), chairman of the Senate Veterans Committee, provides for a flat rate of $3,600 annual non-service disability pension for single Filipino veterans living in the Philippines; $4,500 annually for married veterans; and $2,400 annually for surviving spouses. The House version pending before Veterans Committee Chairman Rep. Bob Filner (Dem.-San Diego) offers a higher benefit. Passage of S. 1315 will have the effect of repealing Public Law 79-310 or the Rescission Act of 1946 that was passed on Feb. 18, 1946, which reduced to peso (half-dollar) the service pay that the Filipino veterans would receive instead of the full dollar equivalent that their American counterpart veterans received for their services during World War II. – Joseph G. Lariosa, GMANews.TV