Issue Position: Veterans Affairs
I am humbled by the fact that for over 200 years, our nation has been protected by brave men and women who put their country before themselves. Taking care of our troops through every phase of their deployment as well as ensuring that veterans of prior wars have the services and care they need is one of my top priorities as a United States Senator.
One of my proudest moments in the Senate was the signing of my first piece of legislation - a bill requiring the Pentagon to pay our troops' travel expenses when they head home from abroad for R&R. That day set the stage for a number of future efforts to honor the sacrifices of our soldiers and veterans on the Senate floor. Last year I was extremely proud to pass into law the Veterans Benefits Outreach Act, the first ever action plan requiring the VA to reach out to all veterans to ensure they are aware of the benefits for which they are eligible so they can receive them efficiently and fairly. I have also worked on legislation to eliminate the Survivor Benefit offset to help military spouses, and after a century of injustice I have been helping to end the penalties that prevented disabled veterans from collecting both disability and retirement benefits.
I also believe it is right to recognize the service of our veterans at every opportunity. I have been proud to cosponsor resolutions to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and to designate the week of November 11th as National Veterans Awareness Week. I am extremely pleased that the Senate has passed both measures with my strong support this year.
We also need to fund our veterans benefit programs at the highest possible level. I have been honored to support an increase in funding for veterans benefits every year I have been in the Senate - supporting a 67 percent increase in veterans funding since taking office in 2003. Most recently, I joined a bipartisan majority of my Senate colleagues in passing the fiscal year 2008 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill (H.R. 2642). This bill provides nearly $88 billion in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs - nearly $10 billion more than fiscal year 2007. This funding includes an increase of over $3 billion for the Veterans Health Administration. In addition, on May 25, 2007, the President signed into law the fiscal year 2007 Supplemental Appropriations bill (H.R. 2206), which provides $1.78 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs. The funding is specifically targeted toward treatment for returning servicemembers from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. H.R. 2206 passed in the Senate on May 24, 2007, by a vote of 80-14 and I am pleased that this much-needed funding was authorized for our veterans.
We have encountered a number of new health challenges as our service men and women return from Iraq and Afghanistan. Unfortunately, conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) have become all too common. To address these and other mental health conditions, I secured a provision in this year's National Defense Authorization bill to make it easier for mental health providers to accept military health insurance. This is especially important to National Guard and Reserve troops who are spread across the country without proximity to military hospitals. I am also a proud cosponsor of the Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act which was included in this year's Defense Authorization bill. This legislation will make comprehensive improvements to healthcare for our troops and veterans including mental health services.
Over 60 years ago, Congress had the wisdom to pass one of the most successful pieces of legislation in our history - the GI Bill of Rights. Over the course of the last several decades, a number of changes and additions have been made to this landmark law, but its core mission remains the same: to afford returning veterans an opportunity to receive the education and training that they put on hold while bravely serving our country. I am proud to serve the legacy of this bill by fighting for increased education benefits for our soldiers and veterans in the United States Senate.
This year, I joined my friend and colleague Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) in introducing the Total Force GI Bill, legislation that would dramatically improve the quality of education benefits for our National Guard and Reserve troops. Part of this important legislation was included in this year's National Defense Authorization bill and will allow these soldiers to use their education benefits up to 10 years after separating from the service. Senator Lincoln and I also worked together this October to introduce the Veterans Upward Bound Improvement Act, a bill to make more members of the National Guard and Reserve eligible for education programs across Minnesota and the nation.
I have also partnered with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to create a program for college reenrollment and rapid reemployment services for returning Minnesota troops. I secured $1 million dollars in this year's education spending bill to fund this important program that will bring public and private sector interests together in the interest of assisting those who have so ably served in the defense of our nation.
Perhaps most importantly in this regard, I have worked tirelessly to eliminate a technical glitch which has limited access to education benefits for over a thousand Minnesota troops in the 1/34th Brigade Combat Team. Due to an inexplicable oversight in the length of their active duty orders, many members of this longest serving unit in Iraq had been denied the education assistance they deserve. I have spoken personally with Army Secretary Peter Geren about this issue and recently sent a letter to the President with 30 other members of Congress imploring him to fix this discrepancy. Our efforts have begun to pay off as more and more of these troops are granted their rightful benefits each day.
Our troops, both active duty and reserve, need to know that we will care for them properly beyond their service and into their retirement. Unfortunately, these troops face a retirement policy that is disproportionate to their valuable service and sacrifice. I joined my colleague Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) in introducing the National Guard and Reserve Retirement Modernization Act which reduced the retirement age for Reserve Component troops based on the time they have served on active duty. This is another important effort that has been included in this year's National Defense Authorization bill.
Supporting our troops means more than providing the best equipment or the world's best health care. It also means understanding what it takes to transition from the life of a soldier back to a life previously led. When our soldiers returned from previous wars, they were given almost no help in readjusting to civilian life. I believe we need to do better. To this end, I joined Senators Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) in introducing the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Act to implement a national strategy for reintegrating these brave citizen soldiers based on Minnesota's highly successful Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Program. With our support, this legislation was included in this year's National Defense Authorization bill and will enable Reserve Component troops across the nation access to reintegration services from family counseling to financial planning. In the meantime, I secured over $4 million in this year's Defense Appropriations bill to fully fund Minnesota's reintegration program for the over 2,600 members of the Minnesota National Guard's First Brigade Combat Team.
In conversations with soldiers both here and in Iraq I have been told that these programs have saved marriages and even lives. One spouse recently wrote my office about the reintegration event she recently returned from with her husband. "My husband expressed how stressed he has been trying to find someone to relate to his experiences I just don't know how to express the gratefulness on the speakers and knowledge they had. Everyone there was absolutely wonderful and helped out our family from the brink of destruction. The camp was a godsend. Thank you so much for giving our family a great opportunity to be involved. It has given our family a boost of self-worth."
The most humbling experience of serving as your senator is the opportunity to represent those who have served our country. There are no better examples of giving, self sacrifice and service to one's nation and I will do my part to make sure they bask in the embrace of a grateful nation. For regardless of generation, the soldiers of the hedgerows, frozen foxholes, jungles and deserts have all earned a permanent place in our hearts. We will never be able to properly thank our veterans for what they have given, but that doesn't mean I won't wear myself out trying.