Jerry Moran: “I chair the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and my colleague, the ranking member of that committee, Senator…”

“I chair the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and my colleague, the ranking member of that committee, Senator Blumenthal was just here on the Senate floor discussing the importance of the Major Richard Star Act. That bill is not in the jurisdiction, at least at this point, of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. It is a matter for the Armed Services Committee. But it is one that is important to veterans across the country. The issue behind the Richard Star Act is hugely important to veterans across the country. We saw that today with the joint hearings that we have annually with the House Veterans' Committee. The VFW and other veterans service organizations highly prioritize the Richard Star Act's passage. That act--this legislation--would make certain that veterans who are medically retired due to combat or combat-related injuries would receive their earned VA disability compensation and their full retirement pay without one payment being reduced because of the other. So, today, there is an offset. The Richard Star Act would eliminate that offset. No veteran, in my mind, should have their retirement that they earned decreased because they also were eligible for disability compensation due to an injury that they sustained during their military service. So you earn your retirement by years of service, but then that is diminished if you have a disability as a result of the service.”