BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1505
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1505 (Pan)
As Amended August 6, 2012
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |54-6 |(May 21, 2012) |SENATE: |32-1 |(August 23, |
| | | | | |2012) |
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Original Committee Reference: V. A.
SUMMARY : Requires the California Department of Veterans
Affairs (CDVA) to grant certain benefits to certain veterans
upon reinstatement by the federal government. Specifically,
this bill :
1)States that it is the intent of the Legislature to extend fair
and equal treatment with regard to the administration of
veterans' services and programs to California's veteran
population regardless of sexual orientation.
2)States that it is the intent of the Legislature to respond to
any federal reinstatement of benefits for discharged veterans,
regardless of their discharge status, who were denied those
benefits because of any federal policy prohibiting homosexual
personnel from serving in the United States Armed Forces, by
reinstating state-offered benefits for the same veterans.
3)Provides that if the federal government acts to reinstate
benefits to discharged veterans, regardless of their discharge
classification, who were denied those benefits solely on the
basis of sexual orientation pursuant to any federal policy
prohibiting homosexual personnel from serving in the Armed
Forces of the United States, the state shall reinstate to
those veterans any state-offered benefits they were denied due
to those federal policies.
4)Directs the CDVA, to the extent practicable, to do the
following:
a) On the department's Internet Web site, provide Internet
resources or links to Internet resources that provide
information regarding veterans' legal services
organizations that specialize in military discharge
AB 1505
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upgrades; and,
b) In the department's offices and walk-in locations,
provide printed resources, to the extent available, created
by veterans' legal services organizations that specialize
in military discharge upgrades.
The Senate amendments are technical and non-substantive.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill was substantially the same.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, section 2 (a) results in unknown, likely minor state
costs to conform to federal law and (b) would result in minor
absorbable state costs to CDVA to create an Internet link and
make printed information available in CDVA offices.
COMMENTS : In 1949, the US Department of Defense issued a
memorandum stating that: "homosexual personnel, irrespective of
sex, should not be permitted to serve in any branch of the Armed
Services in any capacity, and prompt separation of known
homosexuals from Armed Forces be made mandatory."
According to the author, since "Don't Ask Don't Tell" (DADT) was
adopted, approximately 85% of related discharges were made on
the basis of statements by the servicemember, while about 15%
were based on other evidence. From 1980 until the repeal of
DADT, over 32,000 servicemembers were separated under DADT and
its predecessor policies.
This bill would create a contingency that, if a servicemember
has been denied federal benefits due to DADT (or a predecessor
policy) and the federal government reverses that decision, the
state shall follow suit. This contingent action would be
consistent with California polices that prohibit discrimination
based on sexual orientation.
In addition, to the extent that there are servicemembers who
received a more negative character of discharge simply because
of homosexuality, the bill facilitates those servicemembers
accessing resources that may assist them in upgrading their
discharge characterization based on the repeal of DADT. Again,
these actions would be consistent with California polices that
prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.
AB 1505
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Analysis Prepared by : John Spangler / V. A. / (916) 319-3550
FN: 0005264