I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3971 

To amend titles 5 and 38, United States Code, to clarify the veteran status 

of an individual based on the attendance of the individual at a preparatory school of a service academy, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 5, 2015 

Mr. ISSA (for himself and Ms. DUCKWORTH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, for a period 

to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To amend titles 5 and 38, United States Code, to clarify 

the veteran status of an individual based on the attendance of the individual at a preparatory school of a service 

academy, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Support Earned Rec5 ognition for Veterans Act’’ or the ‘‘SERV Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. CLARIFICATION OF VETERAN STATUS. 

2 (a) CLARIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF MILITARY

3 SERVICE.—Section 101 of title 38, United States Code, 

4 is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (21)(D), by inserting after 

6 ‘‘Naval Academy’’ the following: ‘‘(but, except for 

7 purposes of chapter 17 of this title in accordance 

8 with section 107(e)(2), does not include any service 

9 performed by a student at a preparatory school of 

10 a service academy who is not otherwise a member of 

11 the Armed Forces)’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (22), by inserting before the 

13 period at the end the following: ‘‘or, except for pur14 poses of chapter 17 of this title in accordance with 

15 section 107(e)(2), duty performed by a student at a 

16 preparatory school of a service academy who is not 

17 otherwise a member of the Armed Forces’’; and 

18 (3) in paragraph (23), by adding after the pe19 riod at the end the following: ‘‘Except for purposes 

20 of chapter 17 of this title in accordance with section 

21 107(e)(2), such term does not include duty per22 formed by a student at a preparatory school of a 

23 service academy who is not otherwise a member of 

24 the Armed Forces.’’. 

25 (b) SERVICE DEEMED NOT TO BE ACTIVE SERV26 ICE.—Section 107 of title 38, United States Code, is 


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1 amended by adding at the end the following new sub2 section: 

3 ‘‘(e)(1) Except as provided by paragraph (2), duty 

4 performed by a student at a preparatory school of a serv5 ice academy who is not otherwise a member of the Armed 

6 Forces shall not be deemed to have been active military, 

7 naval, or air service for the purposes of any of the laws 

8 administered by the Secretary, regardless of whether the 

9 student was injured or disabled as a result of such duty. 

10 ‘‘(2) Chapter 17 of this title shall apply to an indi11 vidual described in paragraph (1) with respect to fur12 nishing hospital care and medical services solely for an in13 jury or disability incurred by the individual as a result 

14 of military training related to future active duty service 

15 performed as a student during the course of required 

16 training at a preparatory school of a service academy. An 

17 individual who receives such care and services under this 

18 paragraph may not be treated as a veteran for the pur19 poses of any other provision of law solely by reason of re20 ceiving such care and services under this paragraph.’’. 

21 (c) SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.—Section 8127(l) 

22 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

23 the end the following new paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(3) The term ‘veteran’, in accordance with sec25 tions 101 and 107 of this title, does not include an 


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1 individual whose veteran status is based solely on 

2 the attendance of the individual as a student at a 

3 preparatory school of a service academy, regardless 

4 of whether the individual was injured or disabled as 

5 a result of duty performed as such a student.’’. 

6 (d) PREFERENCE ELIGIBLE.—Section 2108 of title 

7 5, United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

9 and inserting a semicolon; 

10 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

11 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

13 paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(6) an individual whose veteran status is based 

15 solely on the attendance of the individual as a stu16 dent at a preparatory school of a service academy, 

17 regardless of whether the individual was injured or 

18 disabled as a result of duty performed as such a stu19 dent, may not be treated as a ‘veteran’, ‘disabled 

20 veteran’, or ‘preference eligible’.’’. 

Æ 


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