BILL NUMBER: SJR 9	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Committee on Veterans Affairs (Senators Correa
(Chair), Berryhill, Calderon, Cannella, Lieu, Negrete McLeod, Rubio,
and Runner)

                        MAY 25, 2011

   Relative to veterans' health care.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SJR 9, as introduced, Committee on Veterans Affairs. Veterans'
health care.
   This measure would urge Congress to require the United States
Department of Veterans Affairs not abrogate the desires of President
Lincoln to care for those most needy and to remember the promises
made to WWII veterans.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, As President Lincoln declared, at the conclusion of the
Civil War, now is the time to care for those who have borne the
battle and their widows and orphans; and
   WHEREAS, This statement was the foundation for the establishment
of the Veterans Administration (VA) and hospitals, clinics, veterans'
homes, and other necessary facilities in various states; and
   WHEREAS, Many of the veterans who use the VA facilities enlisted
during World War II (WWII) and were promised healthcare for the rest
of their lives if they enlisted to serve in WWII; and
   WHEREAS, Congress has expressed its desire to reduce the number of
veterans who use VA facilities in Enrollment Priority Groups 7 and
8. Priority 8 veterans have no service-connected or annual incomes
that exceed VA means; test thresholds and VA "geographic income"
thresholds that are set by family size; and
   WHEREAS, Priority 7 veterans also do not have service-connected
disabilities and their incomes are above the means-test thresholds.
In essence, these veterans' incomes or net worth fall below the
geographic index, but because they live in high-cost areas, they
struggle financially; and
   WHEREAS, Despite President Lincoln's direction for assisting Civil
War veterans and the promises provided to WWII enlistees, it appears
that Congress is ignoring the needs of those individuals who have
risked their lives and, in some instances, the livelihoods with which
they support their families; and
   WHEREAS, Congress has chosen to ignore both these promises given
to veterans with limited incomes and the reality that the use of VA
facilities by Priority 7 and 8 veterans may be their only means of
medical support; and
   WHEREAS, Countless veterans who may be categorized as Priority 7
or 8 veterans are subsequently diagnosed with posttraumatic stress
disorder, yet they retain the same priority for service; and
   WHEREAS, It is anticipated that many veterans affected by the
congressional budget proposal may increase the already overburdened
numbers of homeless veterans who may need to be cared for; now,
therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of
California, jointly, That Legislature of the State of California
respectfully recommends the Congress of the United States not
abrogate the desires of President Lincoln to care for those most
needy and to remember the promises made to WWII veterans; and be it
further
   Resolved, That the Congress of the United States establish a clear
and concise measure to clarify any previous laws affecting veterans
that are currently subject to legal challenges; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States,
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority
Leader of the Senate, to the minority leader of each house, and to
each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of
the United States.