S. 3003 — Introduced in Senate

II 114th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3003 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 26, 2016Mr. Schatz (for himself and Ms. Murkowski) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs A BILL To amend title 38, United States Code, to deem certain service in the organized military forces of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts to have been active service for purposes of benefits under programs administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of 2016. 2. Certain service in the organized military forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts deemed to be active service (a) In General Section 107 of title 38, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking not after Army of the United States, shall; and (B) by striking , except benefits under— and all that follows in that subsection and inserting a period; (2) in subsection (b)— (A) by striking not after Armed Forces Voluntary Recruitment Act of 1945 shall; and (B) by striking except— and all that follows in that subsection and inserting a period; (3) by amending subsection (c) to read as follows: (c) Determination of eligibility (1) In general 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 Missouri List, that the Secretary determines relevant. (2) Report Not later than March 1 of each year, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 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. ; and (4) by amending subsection (d) to read as follows: (d) 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. . (b) Conforming and clerical amendments (1) Conforming amendment The heading of such section is amended to read as follows: 107. Certain service deemed to be active service: service in organized military forces of the Philippines and in the Philippine Scouts . (2) Clerical amendment The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 1 of such title is amended by striking the item relating to section 107 and inserting the following: 107. Certain service deemed to be active service: service in organized military forces of the Philippines and in the Philippine Scouts. . (c) Effective date (1) In general The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date that is 90 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 specified in paragraph (1) by reason of the amendments made by this section.