FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 15, 2008
CONTACT: Matt Mackowiak
Sen. Hutchison: Measure to Forgive Debt of Troops Killed in Combat Passes Key Committee
Hutchison Bill Will Block VA from Sending Debt Collection Letters
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Ranking Member of the Senate Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations subcommittee, today announced that her legislation to forgive the debt owed to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) by service members killed in combat, has been included in the Supplemental Appropriations bill that was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
“Our troops deserve nothing short of the utmost respect and gratitude for the sacrifices they make in serving our nation. By changing this law, we can honor our fallen heroes by treating the families they leave behind with dignity and respect,” said Sen. Hutchison.
Under current law, if a member of our Armed Forces is killed in combat and has outstanding debts owed to the VA, the Secretary of VA is required to contact the family for collection. Though the law does allow the VA Secretary some discretion for waiving certain cases, Sen. Hutchison’s bill would remove that discretion and forgive all debts that fall into this category.
“To compound the grief and sacrifice of bereaved military families with attempts to collect, in some cases, just a few hundred dollars, is the wrong thing to do,” Senator Hutchison said.
To date the VA has sought to receive over $56,000 from 22 deceased soldiers, with most debt resulting from college education loans. There are cases in Wisconsin, North Carolina, Illinois, Iowa, Connecticut, Nebraska, Colorado, Michigan, Washington, California, New York, Kentucky, Georgia and South Carolina. Three of the 22 cases occurred in the State of Texas, more than any other state:
· An Army soldier was killed by a sniper’s bullet on his third tour of duty in Iraq. He owed the government $389 for an education overpayment. The family paid this debt in full because they believed it was the right thing to do.
· An Army Sergeant who had served in the U.S. Marine Corps before enlisting in the Army attended two different colleges with VA education benefits. After serving one tour of duty in Afghanistan, he was serving his second tour in Iraq when he was killed by a bomb explosion. He owed the VA $2,282 in student loans. The family, including his wife and four children, also fulfilled this legal obligation.
· A Marine reservist who received education assistance to attend Texas A&M University was killed in an explosion in Iraq. The VA informed his mother of his death with a collection letter that his estate owed the VA $845.
S. 2550, the Combat Veterans Debt Elimination Act, would relieve grieving families from paying such debt and remove the provision in law that requires the VA to seek the collection of such debt. It is retroactive to September 11, 2001.
With Appropriations Committee passage of the legislation, it will next be considered by the full Senate as part of the FY 2008 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill.
Sen. Hutchison is a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee.
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