"Finish Strong:" VFW Leaders Converge on Washington to Advocate for Veterans

This morning the VFW kicked off its fall legislative conference, telling the 112th Congress to “Finish Strong For Veterans.”

VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley briefed all 70 members of the VFW’s National Legislative Committee this morning at the Hilton Crystal City in Arlington, Va., outlining the VFW’s expectations for Congress and outstanding issues from the last two years.

Armed with the VFW’s “Finish Strong For Veterans” brochure, explaining each outstanding issue, VFW National Legislative Committee members are now scheduled to meet with every Congressional and Senate office over the next three days, calling on Congress to act before the end of the current term.

To learn more about the fall conference and VFW’s outstanding legislative issues, click here.

The VFW Capitol Hill blog will follow legislative committee members around to their meetings, posting photos and highlights as they are available. Check back regularly over the next three days for updates.

(Image: VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley briefs VFW National Legislative Committee members as this week's conference kicked off. Photo by Bob Hunter.)

VFW at the RNC: Tuesday Highlights

Last night, VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley and Senior Legislative Associate Shane Barker were on hand for the first night of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. The theme of the evening was “We Built It,” which provided an opportunity to highlight the importance of entrepreneurship and to showcase the differences between the parties on the role of government in job-creation and the economy.

Many of the speakers featured last evening were small business owners from across the country or rising stars within the Republican Party, such as Mia Love from Utah and Ted Cruz from Texas.

The evening’s marquee speakers, Ann Romney and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, are well known and admired among the ranks, and they didn’t fail to deliver for the crowd.

Mitt Romney, who earlier in the day officially secured the Republican nomination, made a brief cameo, stepping on stage to personally congratulate his wife, thanking her for her remarks. She electrified and prepped the audience for Christie with her words, which focused from several aspects on her view that the Romneys “don’t have a storybook marriage… but a real marriage.” The boldest statement of the evening from Ann Romney was that her husband “Will not fail.” Ann Romney was the ideal message bearer of this conviction, and with those words she deftly moved the crowd to a roaring applause.

Christie energized the crowd by speaking about responsible government, making hard choices, and the need to agree with leaders in the Democratic Party without forfeiting conservative principles.

Noticeably absent from last night’s speeches was any substantive talk about the policies that affect our nation’s military and our veterans. With vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan speaking tonight, and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney speaking tomorrow, the VFW fully hopes and expects concrete ideas and policy positions on these important issues to be front and center.

Check back tomorrow for more VFW highlights from the Republican National Convention.

(Image: The floor of the Republican National Convention when Mitt Romney officially secured the Republican nomination for president. Photo by Ray Kelley.)

VFW Touches Down in Tampa for GOP Convention

VFW legislative staff landed safely in Tampa, Fla., yesterday to carry the voice of 22 million veterans and 2.3 million service members to the 2012 Republication National Convention. VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley and VFW Senior Legislative Associate Shane Barker will be on hand all week, listening to keynote speakers and speaking directly with GOP leadership on issues concerning veterans, service members and their families.

These issues include improving military and VA mental and behavioral health treatment options; streamlining VA’s benefits delivery system to ensure swift and accurate claims-processing; fostering service member success after service through education, employment and entrepreneurship opportunities; and preserving military and veterans’ benefits programs during a time of budget constraints. To learn about each of these issues in detail, and to read VFW’s proposed solutions, click here.

Your VFW will also be on hand next week in Charlotte, N.C., for the Democratic National Convention, continuing the long-standing VFW tradition of ensuring candidates for the highest office in the land fully understand the needs and concerns of our nation’s diverse veterans’ and military communities.

Once the conventions conclude, VFW’s work will not stop, as delegates from the VFW National Legislative Committee will report to Capitol Hill to meet with every House and Senate office, pushing Congress to “Finish Strong For Veterans” by passing comprehensive veterans’ legislation before the end of the 112th Congress.

VFW advocates participating in both the Republican and Democratic national conventions will file regular reports on this blog, bringing you up-to-date information on how each party plans to meet the needs of all generations of our nation’s veterans. Check back regularly over the next two weeks for updates from Tampa and Charlotte.

VFW Calls For International Treaty for Disablity Rights

Your VFW was on hand yesterday morning for a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hear testimony from U.S. State Department officials, senators, and others in support of Senate ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, or CRPD.

“As evidenced today by all who spoke in favor of ratification, disabled veterans face pretty steep challenges in other countries across the world when it comes to accessibility or securing a job,” said VFW Senior Legislative Associate Shane Barker. Barker went on to stress the importance of the convention because it “espouses the inherent dignity of all people, including veterans, and the conviction that we should work to include disabled men and women in all facets of societies across the world.”

After the hearing, Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and John McCain, R-Ariz., hosted a press conference to highlight the importance of this convention, where VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley offered words of support. Kelley reminded the audience of the sacrifices veterans have made not only for Americans, but for the numerous countries on behalf of which we have fought. Kelley also spoke about how future generations would be led by today’s veterans, stressing the importance of those men and women being able to visit, learn, and work in other countries as they see fit. Ratifying the CRPD is vital to such goals, and that is why the VFW has led the charge within the disability community to ensure Senate ratification, he said.

Because America has long been a global leader in disability rights, CRPD will require no financial cost and no changes to domestic law. According to the State Department, it provides no right of action by any party – individual or group – for legal recourse in the courts, and could be an economic boon for American companies providing consultation or construction opportunities overseas. For more information on the treaty, visit the U.S. International Council on Disabilities by clicking here.

(Image: VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley discusses CRPD alongside Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and advocates for people with disabilities and veterans. Photo by Shane Barker.)

House Passes Two Veterans' Bills

*Update: This week the Senate also passed H.R. 4155, meaning the "Veterans Skills to Jobs Act" now awaits the signature of the President. Stay tuned for details. 

Congress returned from the Fourth of July recess yesterday, and wasted no time in taking action on two pieces of pending veterans' legislation. Last night the House of Representatives passed two VFW-supported veterans’ bills, increasing cost-of-living allowances, or COLA, for veterans in 2013 and directing federal agencies to recognize military training for federal licenses.

The federal licensing bill, H.R. 4155, entitled the “Veterans Skills to Jobs Act,” was introduced by Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., and spells out how federal agencies must recognize military training and military certifications when evaluating veterans for federal licenses. The VFW sent a letter of support to Denham back in March, urging for the quick passage of the Veterans Skills to Jobs Act.

Currently, the federal government can issue licenses across various sectors, like aerospace operations and maintenance. Denham, who served as an Air Force crew chief, said he personally encountered the challenges to federal licensure when he was forced to attend an additional three years of school to receive a federal license for a field in which the military had already trained him.

In an official statement yesterday, Denham went on to say that his bill would finally close this loophole, ensuring that veterans with highly technical military training could easily secure federal licenses to continue their careers with the federal government.

A Senate companion bill, introduced by Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., is also scheduled to be voted on this week.

The COLA bill, H.R. 4114, entitled the “Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2012,” was introduced by Rep. John Runyan, R-N.N., and ensures that VA compensation for disabled veterans and surviving spouses increases at the same rate as Social Security for 2013; a current projected increase of 1.9 percent.

In March, VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley generally supported the Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act in testimony before the House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, but clarified that the VFW disagreed with the provision to round down any increases to the nearest dollar amount.

In his remarks, Kelley called it “a money-saving gimmick that comes at the expense of our veterans.”

Kelley went to say that the committee should also advance another piece of Runyan legislation, the “American Heroes COLA Act,” or H.R. 4142, which would permanently tie annual COLA increases to Social Security increases. Currently, the House must vote each year to link veterans’ COLA to Social Security growth. In his remarks, Kelley called the process “an added step that confuses and leaves veterans feeling uneasy until the COLA bill is passed.”

Both the Veterans Skills Jobs Act and the Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act will now move on to the Senate. Your VFW will continue to track both pieces of legislation. Check back regularly with this blog for updates.

Watch: VFW Testifies on Veterans’ Assistance Bills

*Update: The archived webcast of yesterday's hearing is now available online by clicking here. 

Yesterday afternoon the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs hosted a hearing on pending legislation, and VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley shared VFW’s thoughts with the subcommittee on each bill under consideration.

The hearing came to order at 2 p.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office building on Capitol Hill. To view a full list of the bills under consideration, a full list of witnesses, and to read their prepared remarks, click here.

During his remarks, Kelley voiced the VFW’s support for bills ranging from properly honoring fragmented remains of our nation’s fallen heroes to extending critical benefit-delivery programs for veterans, such as the authority of VA to contract with non-VA doctors to perform examinations and the authority of VA to offer adaptive housing accommodations for veterans under the care of family members.

Kelley also expressed cautious support to a proposal that would allow congressional staffers and local government officials to access veteran-specific information on pending VA disability claims, calling for provisions in the bill to ensure information privacy and proper oversight on access.

Texas VFW District 4 Senior Vice Commander Jay Sanders also testified on the Houston VA Cemetery controversy and proposed legislation designed to clarify veterans’ burial rights. Sanders was on hand to offer his local perspective on the issue.

(Images: Top: House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Chairman John Runyan, R-N.J., delivers his opening remarks during yesterday's legislative hearing. Bottom: VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley, left, shares the VFW's thoughts on each bill under consideration during yesterday's hearing. Photos by Chase Collram.)

VFW Discusses Veterans Issues With House Democrats

Yesterday VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley joined leaders from many of the nation’s top veterans’ organizations at the U.S. Capitol for a roundtable discussion on military and veterans’ issues with House Democratic leadership.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., hosts the discussions each quarter to hear first-hand from veterans’ organizations about issues affecting service members, veterans and their loved ones. More than 30 organizations representing diverse interests across the military and veterans’ community were invited to join in the discussion on topics ranging from mental health care and surviving spouse benefits to Agent Orange exposure, the Post-9/11 GI Bill and federal budget constraints.

In his remarks, Kelley called attention to the recent VA Inspector General report on VA’s failure to deliver timely mental health care to veterans suffering from invisible wounds like post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Kelley recognized that VA planned to hire 1,900 additional staff in an effort to overcome shortfalls, but asked Democrats and fellow veterans’ advocates what more could be done to ensure that veterans who need care can receive it in a timely and efficient manner.

In response to Kelley’s comments, Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., said he remains VA’s biggest advocate, but also its harshest critic. As a retired Army National Guard sergeant major and vocal advocate on the House Veterans Affairs Committee, Walz said he and his fellow committee members will continue to hold VA accountable for their obligation to meet the mental health needs of the veterans’ community, and that if the agency needed more resources to accomplish its mission, his committee would continue to fight for them.

The VFW always welcomes dialogue over veterans’ issues with leaders on both sides of the aisle, which is why Kelley thanked each of the members in attendance for their attention to the issues facing the American veterans’ community. As the current conflicts draw down and Americans ask Congress to make difficult decisions on the national budget, your VFW will continue to advocate to continually improve and preserve the quality-of-life programs and benefits earned through the sacrifices of American military men and women. Check back regularly with this blog for updates.

(Images: Top: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, center, welcomes veterans' advocates and House Democratic leaders to the quarterly roundtable discussion on veterans' issues. Middle: VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley discusses PTSD during yesterday's roundtable. Bottom: Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., shares his thoughts on PTSD treatment issues at yesterday's roundtable. Photos by Ryan Gallucci.)

Why VA Programs Will Be Exempt from Sequestration Cuts

Yesterday afternoon the U.S. Office of Management and Budget released a letter to the Government Accountability Office unequivocally stating that all Department of Veterans Affairs programs would be exempt from budget cuts resulting from sequestration set to take effect in early 2013. The VFW had expressed concerns that VA programs -- particularly VA health care -- could be subject to deep budget cuts as a result of unclear language in last year's Budget Control Act of 2011, or BCA.

In yesterday’s letter, OMB explained that BCA amendments to the Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 had no effect on preexisting exemptions of VA programs, including a specific exemption added through tht Pay-As-You-Go, or PAYGO, Act of 2010, which effectively ensured that all VA programs would be exempt from any budget sequestration, to include health care programs.

The letter, however, did not address whether VA administration accounts would be exempt from sequestration of “Federal Administrative Expenses.” Even with potential cuts to VA administration, the VFW stresses that this decision is a win for the veterans’ community that will ensure preservation of the earned care and benefits millions of veterans rely on each day.

“Disabled veterans can breathe a sigh of relief today knowing that VA programs are exempt from sequestration,” said VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer in a statement yesterday afternoon. “Today’s decision means the healthcare plans and programs the VA currently provides to millions of disabled veterans will continue unabated, as will claims processing and veterans’ burial benefits.”

With assurances that VA programs are now safe from sequestration, the VFW must now focus its efforts on preserving military personnel and quality-of-life programs, which face serious cuts in this year's defense budget cycle as a way to avoid deep cuts through sequestration.

To contact your members in Congress and tell them to support and preserve military quality-of-life, visit the VFW Action Corps by clicking here, and check back regularly with this blog for updates.

(Image: First two pages of OMB's three-page letter explaining why VA programs would be exempt from sequestration in 2013.)

WATCH: VFW Testifies on Veterans' Jobs, Education and Cemetery Issues

Just a day after the 2012 VFW Legislative Conference came to a close, the VFW Washington office was still at it. VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci testified before the House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity this morning. Gallucci discussed bills on veterans' jobs and education, several of which VFW played a major role in drafting, like H.R. 4057, which will improve consumer education for potential student-veterans and H.R. 3670, which will close a loophole in Transportation Security Administration policy that exempts the agency from USERRA.

Military Times discussed VFW's testimony in a story late yesterday afternoon, which you can read here.

Yesterday afternoon, Legislative Director Ray Kelley also testified before the House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs. The hearing followed up on a recent National Cemetery Administration, or NCA, audit that discovered mismarked graves in VA cemeteries. Kelley asked the committee to review VA performance measures for NCA and to close gaps in funding so that veterans and their families have burial options and cemeteries remain protected and pristine.

Click here to watch a webcast of Gallucci's hearing.

Read Gallucci's testimony here, and learn more about the hearing here.

Click here to watch a webcast of Kelley's hearing.

Read Kelley's testimony here, and learn more about the hearing here.

Watch Live: VFW to Testify Before House and Senate

*Update: Archived webcasts of Wednesday's hearings are now available. To view Joe Davis' testimony on Stolen Valor, click here. To view Ray Kelley's testimony on the 2013 VA budget, click here. 

The VFW will testify at two hearings this morning. VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley will testify before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee alongside the Independent Budget partners to discuss the fiscal year 2013 VA budget. VFW Public Affairs Director Joe Davis will testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security Homeland Defense, and Foreign Operations to discuss Stolen Valor and military record-keeping.

Kelley’s hearing will take place in room 418 of the Russell Senate Office Building. Davis’ hearing will take place in room 2154 of the Rayburn House Office Building. Both hearings commence at 10 a.m. Live video from Kelley’s hearing will be available on the committee’s home page by clicking here, and Davis’ hearing can be viewed live by clicking here.

Stolen Valor:

The VFW has been a vocal proponent of preserving Stolen Valor legislation, the law that prohibits the false display of military awards and decorations that is currently under review by the Supreme Court. During his remarks, Davis will not only discuss why preserving Stolen Valor laws are critical to the veterans’ community, but also how the Department of Defense must also play a role in ensuring that military records are accurate and properly maintained. Testifying alongside Davis will be award and decorations experts from the military services, National Personnel Records Center Director Scott Levins, and Military Times Hall of Valor curator Doug Sterner. Sterner, a decorated Vietnam War veteran, is considered the nation’s most prominent expert on military award record-keeping and maintains the most accurate database of valor awards for U.S. military personnel.

Subcommittee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, decided to call the hearing after his own experiences in his district where constituents had made false claims of military awards.

VA Budget:

Similar to last week’s hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Committee, Kelley will focus his remarks on potential shortfalls in construction and infrastructure investment in the VA’s 2013 budget proposal.

The Independent Budget is a roadmap drafted by some of the nation’s leading veterans’ advocates, which Congress has used for more than a quarter century to help determine how to best fund VA. The Independent Budget partner organizations include AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the VFW. The document also has the support of more than 50 other veterans’ organizations which have endorsed the Independent Budget recommendations. To learn more about the Independent Budget and to read this year’s specific budget proposal, click here.

Your VFW will bring you highlights and updates from both of today’s hearings. Check back later for updates.

Watch Live: VFW, Shinseki to Testify on VA Budget

*Update: To view the archived webcast of the hearing, click here. To read Stars & Stripes coverage of VFW's testimony, click here. 

This morning VA Secretary Eric Shinseki will appear before the House Veterans Affairs Committee to discuss the fiscal year 2013 VA budget. The VFW and our partners in the Independent Budget will also appear before the committee to present the veterans’ community’s views on how Congress should fund the department in the coming year.

The hearing will commence at 10:30 a.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building. To view a live webcast of the hearing, click here.

The Independent Budget is a roadmap drafted by some of the nation’s leading veterans’ advocates, which Congress has used for more than a quarter century to help determine how to best fund VA. The Independent Budget partner organizations include AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the VFW. The document also has the support of more than 50 other veterans’ organizations which have endorsed the Independent Budget recommendations. To learn more about the Independent Budget and to read this year’s specific budget proposal, click here.

National Legislative Director Ray Kelley will testify on behalf of the VFW, focusing on the VA’s construction and capital investment budget; an area in which the Independent Budget partners noticed considerable discrepancies between their analysis and VA’s budget proposal announced earlier this week.

Over the last two years, the VA budget has significantly scaled back capital investment projects in an effort to control spending during difficult fiscal times. In his remarks, Kelley plans to focus on why VA needs to properly invest in infrastructure to meet the ever-changing needs of a veterans’ population in flux.

To view a full list of panelists for this morning’s hearing, click here. Prepared remarks should also be available later today. Check back this afternoon for updates.

(Image: Cover of the FY2013 Independent Budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs.)

VFW Denounces Survey on Military Benefits; What do You Think?

This week Stars & Stripes reported that a defense think tank, the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, was looking to conduct a survey of current and former military service members to gather data on which benefits remain top priorities for those who volunteer to serve. The survey comes in the wake of announcements from Department of Defense officials that personnel benefits and programs – particularly retirement pensions and health care – could face potential cuts in the coming years. The VFW has vowed to fight these potential cuts at all costs.

After reading through the CSBA survey, VFW leaders balked at the tone of the questions, which asked participants to rate certain military benefits over others, and then determine the kinds of benefit packages that would be preferable to service members in the future. The survey also asked for pointed demographic information such as service branch, years active, overseas deployments, and age. The VFW is discouraging its members from participating in the survey, since the data will likely be used as an endorsement of certain benefit cuts by service members, themselves.

“Our military men and women have earned these benefits through their honorable wartime service over the last decade, and the VFW is insulted that these same men and women would now be asked to put their heads in a noose by tacitly admitting cuts to their earned benefits are somehow acceptable,” said VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley. “The VFW does not accept the notion that cuts to personnel programs and benefits are the only viable solution. We have an obligation to provide for our war-fighters and their loved ones, and the VFW will not let Congress or the Pentagon shirk that obligation.”

Kelley went on to say that the survey’s pointed questions on specific cuts and proposed changes actually pit different demographic groups of service members and veterans against each other – enlisted versus officer, retiree versus separated service member, or even young versus old – by asking questions like whether a one-time pay raise would be worth deferring all retiree benefits until 65.

“These kinds of questions are loaded from the beginning,” said Kelley. “Since 92 percent of military men and women choose to leave before retirement, the likely answer will favor a pay raise, which would essentially endorse cutting benefits for those who choose career military service. We shouldn't be asked to choose one over the other.”

At first glance, the survey looks like it offers service members and veterans a voice in the debate on potential cuts to the DoD budget. However, the VFW believes that the CSBA has already made up its mind that quality-of-life cuts are on the way, and data compiled from the survey will offer a military endorsement to move forward with specific recommendations.

In testimony before the House Budget Committee in 2010, CSBA equated military personnel benefit costs to pension costs for companies like General Motors. Though the testimony did not recommend specifics, the tone implied that providing for the needs of war-fighters was a wasteful venture for the Pentagon.

The VFW was the first major veterans organization to see these kinds of cuts on the horizon as part of last summer’s “10 for 10” campaign. Since the program’s roll-out, VFW leaders have consistently sought input from VFW members and veterans around the country, calling to preserve earned military and veterans’ benefits.

"Service members and veterans already have a voice in this debate, and they've consistently used that voice to say 'no' to proposed benefit cuts through advocates like the VFW and through direct outreach to Congressional offices," said Kelley. "We’ll do everything in our power to make sure their voices continue to be heard over the voices of those looking for a quick fix."

VFW is in the process of assessing the military retirement system and plans to make recommendations that can start a conversation on cost savings while maintaining the integrity of the system. The VFW wants to demonstrate that the Pentagon may actually be able to offer improved benefits for military personnel and at the same time save money simply by implementing smarter business practices. Be on the look-out for these specific recommendations in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, we want to know what you think about proposed changes to military benefits and which courses of action would be the most responsible. Take our short poll and please leave your comments below.

What should Congress do about military retirement benefits?

Keep earned benefits the same. Find savings elsewhere.Keep benefits the same, but defer all pensions to 65Keep the 20-year system, but offer some benefits for non-career serviceChange over to a 401(k)-style system for allIncrease pay, but cut all benefitsOther (details in comments)

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