[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6121 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6121
To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the benefits
furnished by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to certain individuals
who served in the forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 30, 2023
Mr. Mullin (for himself, Mr. Case, Mr. Moylan, Mr. Carter of Louisiana,
Ms. Barragan, Mr. Bera, Mr. Carson, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Cohen,
Mr. Connolly, Mr. Costa, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Davis of North
Carolina, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Gomez,
Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs, Mr. Johnson of
Georgia, Mr. Khanna, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Lieu, Ms. Lofgren, Ms.
Matsui, Ms. Meng, Ms. Norton, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr.
Sablan, Ms. Sanchez, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Sherman, Mr.
Swalwell, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Vargas, and Ms. Waters) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the benefits
furnished by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to certain individuals
who served in the forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of
2023''.
SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT OF VETERANS BENEFITS FURNISHED TO CERTAIN
INDIVIDUALS WHO SERVED IN THE FORCES OF THE PHILIPPINES
AND THE PHILIPPINE SCOUTS.
(a) Expansion of Benefits.--Section 107 of title 38, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``; and'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following
new paragraph:
``(4) sections 1541 and 1542 of this title.''; and
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``; and'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following
new paragraph:
``(3) sections 1541 and 1542 of this title.''; and
(b) Eligibility.--Such section is further amended by adding at the
end the following new subsections:
``(e) Determination of Eligibility.--(1) In determining the
eligibility of the service of an individual under this section, the
Secretary shall take into account any alternative documentation
regarding such service, including documentation other than the
recognized guerrilla rosters stored at the National Personnel Records
Center, that the Secretary determines relevant.
``(2) Not later than March 1 of each year, the Secretary shall
submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House
of Representatives a report that includes--
``(A) the number of individuals applying for benefits
pursuant to this section during the previous year; and
``(B) the number of such individuals that the Secretary
approved for benefits.
``(f) Relation to Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund.--
Section 1002(h) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(title X of division A of Public Law 111-5; 123 Stat. 200; 38 U.S.C.
107 note) shall not apply to an individual described in subsection (a)
or (b) of this section.''.
(c) Effective Date.--
(1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall
take effect on the date that is 270 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(2) Applicability.--No benefits shall accrue to any person
for any period before the effective date of this Act by reason
of the amendments made by this section.
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