Amended in Assembly April 23, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 13, 2015

Amended in Assembly March 26, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 75

Introduced by Assembly Member Mathis

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(Coauthor: Assembly Member Brough)

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January 5, 2015

An act relating to veterans, and making an appropriation therefor.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 75, as amended, Mathis. Veterans.

Existing law, the Budget Act of 2014, appropriates $3,000,000 to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purpose of assisting the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in processing veterans’ claims.

This bill would begin insert continuously end insert appropriate $3,000,000 begin insert from the General Fund each fiscal year end insert to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purpose of funding begin delete those Veteran end delete begin insert 36 Veterans end insert Claims Representative positions.

Vote: ²⁄₃. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares:

(a) The Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) works to serve
California veterans and their families. With nearly two million
veterans living in the state, CalVet strives to ensure that its veterans
of every era and their families receive the state and federal benefits
and services they have earned and deserve as a result of their
selfless and honorable military service. CalVet strives to serve
veterans and their families with dignity and compassion and to
help them achieve their highest quality of life.

(b) In 2013, the Legislature and Governor Jerry Brown
authorized $3 million and 36 limited-term positions that allowed
CalVet to coordinate with the United States Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) to assist in reducing its massive veterans’
claims backlog in the three California VA Regional Offices.

(c) The funds appropriated were used to hire three teams of 12
Veterans Claims Representatives (VCR), one team for each of the
VA’s regional offices in the Cities of Los Angeles, Oakland, and
San Diego to focus on backlogged claims, ensuring they are
properly developed and have all necessary documentation needed
for adjudication.

(d) At the time the CalVet Strike Teams were initially deployed
in the Fall of 2013, the national average wait time for benefits from
the federal government was 349.6 days. This meant the average
veteran waited nearly a year before receiving benefits that they
had earned through their honorable military service. The average
wait times in the Cities of Los Angeles and Oakland were
significantly worse than the national average, at 619.4 days and
617.8 days, respectively.

(e) As of January 29, 2015, CalVet Strike Team claims review
efforts in the Cities of Los Angeles, Oakland, and San begin delete Diego end delete begin insert Diego, end insert
including reviewing 44,921 claims, begin delete resulting end delete begin insert have resulted end insert in
one-time lump sum payments to California veterans totaling
$45,603,451, begin insert and end insert monthly award payments totaling $5,878,940,
which result in annualized award payments of $70,547,276 going
to California veterans every year for the rest of their lives.

(f) While the Strike Teams have done remarkable work, the
mission is still not complete as the VA is still not on pace to fully
eliminate its claims backlog by the end of next year, a goal long
promised by the VA officials.

(g) Whereas the Strike Teams have addressed the initial claims
backlog for the VA’s three regional offices in California, the
appeals of claims decisions and the dependent claims have been
pushed back and will remain unresolved for many months, if not
years, should the Strike Team positions are not further funded.

(h) It is the intent of the Legislature to provide the CalVet with
the requisite staff to review and ensure quality, timeliness, and
accuracy of claims filed on behalf of the veterans of California
and their families.

(i) California veterans have served their country and their
communities with honor and distinction, and deserve the benefits
that have been promised to them.

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SEC. 2.  

The sum of three million dollars ($3,000,000) is hereby
appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purpose
of permanently funding 36 full-time equivalent Veterans Claims
Representative positions in the Department of Veterans Affairs’
Veteran Services Division. These 36 Veterans Claims
Representatives shall have oversight by the California Department
of Veterans Affairs, and ensure the quality and timeliness of claims
filed through the federal Department of Veterans Affairs on behalf
of California veterans and their families.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government
Code, the sum of three million dollars ($3,000,000) is hereby
continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, from
the General Fund each fiscal year to the Department of Veterans
Affairs, exclusively for the purpose of funding 36 full-time
equivalent Veterans Claims Representative positions in the
Department of Veterans Affairs’ Veteran Services Division. These
36 Veterans Claims representatives shall have oversight by the
California Department of Veterans Affairs, and ensure the quality
and timeliness of claims filed through the federal Department of
Veterans Affairs on behalf of California veterans and their families.

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