Washington, D.C. - Congressman Howard L. Berman (D-Van Nuys) along with Representatives Waxman, Waters, Becerra, Roybal-Allard, Millender-McDonald, Sherman, Napolitano, Harman, Schiff, Solis, Watson, and Sanchez released a House of Representatives Committee on Government Reform report detailing disturbing analysis of the effect of the Disabled Veterans Tax in Los Angeles.

 

Berman stated, "This report clearly shows how disabled veterans in our community are given short shrift by our current tax policy and it forcefully illustrates why we need to repeal the 'Disabled Veterans Tax.'"

 

Berman, a cosponsor of a measure to repeal this tax - the Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2003 (H.R. 303) - further stated, "I hope this report will finally convince the Bush Administration to stop throwing up roadblocks and instead work with the Congress to right this wrong. Our disabled Veterans deserve better.

Under current law, veterans with 20 years of miliary service are entitled to receive retirements benefits from the Department of Defense. In addition, veterans who incurred service-related disabilities are entitled to receive disability compensation benefits from the Department of Veteran Affairs. If a veteran has both 20 years of military service and a service-related disability, however, the veteran's military retirement benefit is reduced on a dollar-for-dollar basis by the amount the veteran receives in disability compensation. This reduction is known as the "Disabled Veterans Tax." Effectively, the disability compensation received by these veterans is taxed at a I00% rate.

 

In 2002, both the House and Senate passed legislation to end restrictions on concurrent receipt of military retiree and VA disability benefits and thereby restore benefits to many veterans, but the Bush Administration used a veto threat to block inclusion of the provision into the DOD authorization bill.

The Government Reform Committee Report found: