I am writing to urge you not to veto the FY 2003 Defense Authorization Bill over Congress' support for concurrent receipt of military retired pay and VA disability compensation. Military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation are two entirely different things. Each is earned in its own right--retired pay for a career of arduous service and disability compensation for the pain and suffering, and lost future earnings, resulting from service-connected disabilities. In many cases, military members with decades of service must forfeit most or all of their earned retired pay to receive the same disability compensation paid to a similarly disabled member with just a few years of service. 90% of House members and 83% of senators recognize the right answer and have made it a national priority to fix this major inequity. In this time of heightened national awareness of the sacrifices inherent in military service, I cannot conceive that you would veto the defense bill for the express purpose of denying disabled military retirees their earned retired pay. I urge you most strongly to ignore any such misguided advice and to help bring closure to the great disservice our disabled military retirees now suffer. Sincerely,
You can do the same though the DAV at Disabled American Veterans
Press the Go button in the TAKE ACTION NOW box.
The Retired Military are the only people who pay their own disability; my DOD Civil Service coworkers who served a few years draw both their full Civil Service Pay Checks and their VA Disability and have the nerve to think a Retiree is double dipping.... I sometimes feel that it would be only fair to endorse taking Civil Servant's pay to offset their VA Disability Compensation just to shut them up.
Senate Oks pay for Disabled Vets
Let's End Inequity to Disabled Vets