II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5324 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure veterans of secrecy oath 

programs receive the full benefits they have earned, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 14, 2024 

Mr. BLUMENTHAL introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure veterans 

of secrecy oath programs receive the full benefits they 

have earned, 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 ‘‘Obligations to Aber5 deen’s Trusted Heroes Act of 2024’’ or the ‘‘OATH Act 

6 of 2024’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) From 1948 to 1975, more than 7,000 

10 United States Army personnel participated in a proVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:36 Nov 15, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5324.IS S5324

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1 gram under which they were subjected to secret 

2 chemical warfare testing at Edgewood Arsenal at 

3 Aberdeen Proving Ground, an Army base in Mary4 land. 

5 (2) Government-employed scientists, including 

6 former Nazi Germany scientists, tested mustard 

7 agents, psychedelics, nerve agents, and other dan8 gerous chemicals on the Army members. 

9 (3) When the members of the Army entered the 

10 program at Edgewood, they were sworn to secrecy— 

11 a violation of their oath came with the threat of 

12 court-martial or criminal prosecution. 

13 (4) Upon leaving service in the Army, veterans 

14 of the program could not seek benefits provided by 

15 the Department of Veterans Affairs for disabilities 

16 relating to the program without violating their se17 crecy oaths. 

18 (5) In 2006, the Department of Defense re19 leased the veterans of the program from their se20 crecy oaths, allowing them to apply for veterans’ 

21 benefits. 

22 (6) Because the statute governing veterans’ 

23 benefits requires veterans to apply within one year 

24 of discharge to receive retroactive benefits, veterans 


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1 of the program could only receive benefits beginning 

2 from the date of their disability application. 

3 (7) By complying with their secrecy oaths, the 

4 veterans of the program lost the ability to receive 

5 the full veterans’ benefits they earned. 

6 (8) Veterans of other secrecy oath programs 

7 may face the same hurdles to obtaining benefits. 

8 (9) While some veterans of secrecy oath pro9 grams received limited relief in the courts, there is 

10 uncertainty about the scope of benefits available to 

11 those veterans. 

12 (10) Congress has the power and obligation to 

13 ensure that heroes of the United States are not pun14 ished for upholding their secrecy oaths. 

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF SECRECY OATH PROGRAM. 

16 Section 5100 of title 38, United States Code, is 

17 amended by adding at the end the following new para18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(3) The term ‘secrecy oath program’ means a 

20 United States Government program in which partici21 pants are required to sign a non-disclosure agree22 ment preventing the disclosure of any information 

23 regarding the program under penalty of court-mar24 tial or criminal punishment.’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. NOTICE TO VETERANS OF SECRECY OATH PRO2 GRAMS REGARDING BENEFITS. 

3 (a) NOTICE REQUIRED.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6303 of title 38, 

5 United States Code, is amended— 

6 (A) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), 

7 and (e) as subsections (d), (e), and (f), respec8 tively; and 

9 (B) by inserting after subsection (b) the 

10 following new subsection (c): 

11 ‘‘(c) NOTICE TO VETERANS OF SECRECY OATH PRO12 GRAMS.—(1) Not later than 90 days after the date on 

13 which participants in a secrecy oath program are released 

14 from the oath taken under such program, the Secretary 

15 shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) identify the veterans who participated in 

17 the program; 

18 ‘‘(B) notify each such veteran of all benefits 

19 and services under laws administered by the Depart20 ment for which the veteran may be eligible; and 

21 ‘‘(C) distribute the information described in 

22 subsection (d)(1) as required by such subsection. 

23 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary identifies any veterans who are 

24 entitled to notice under paragraph (1) and did not receive 

25 such notice, the Secretary shall, not later than 90 days 

26 after the date of any such identification— 


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1 ‘‘(A) notify each such veteran of all benefits 

2 and services under laws administered by the Depart3 ment for which the veteran may be eligible; and 

4 ‘‘(B) distribute the information described in 

5 subsection (d)(1) as required by such subsection. 

6 ‘‘(3) In this subsection, the term ‘secrecy oath pro7 gram’ has the meaing given that term in section 5100 of 

8 this title.’’. 

9 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 6303 

10 of such title is further amended— 

11 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘through 

12 (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘through (e)’’; and 

13 (B) in subsection (e), as redesignated by 

14 subsection (a)(1)(A), by striking ‘‘subsections 

15 (b) and (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections (b), (c), 

16 and (d)’’. 

17 (b) EDGEWOOD ARSENAL PROGRAM.—Not later than 

18 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

19 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall— 

20 (1) identify the veterans who participated in the 

21 secrecy oath program at Edgewood Arsenal at Aber22 deen Proving Ground, Maryland, at any time during 

23 the period beginning on January 1, 1948, and end24 ing on December 31, 1975; 


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1 (2) notify each such veteran of all benefits and 

2 services under laws administered by the Department 

3 of Veterans Affairs for which the veteran may be eli4 gible; and 

5 (3) distribute the information described in sec6 tion 6303(d)(1) of title 38, United States Code, as 

7 amended by subsection (a), as required by such sec8 tion. 

9 SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATES OF AWARDS OF DISABILITY COM10 PENSATION FOR PARTICIPANTS IN SECRECY 

11 OATH PROGRAMS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5110(b) of title 38, 

13 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(5)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the 

16 effective date of an award of disability compensation to 

17 a veteran who participated in a secrecy oath program shall 

18 be the day following the date of the veteran’s discharge 

19 or release if— 

20 ‘‘(i) application therefor is received on or before 

21 the date that is one year after the date on which no22 tice is sent to the veteran pursuant to— 

23 ‘‘(I) section 6303(c) of this title; or 

24 ‘‘(II) section 4(b)(2) of the Obligations to 

25 Aberdeen’s Trusted Heroes Act of 2024; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the disability for which compensation is 

2 sought was incurred or aggravated in line of duty in 

3 the active military, naval, air, or space service while 

4 participating in such secrecy oath program. 

5 ‘‘(B)(i) The effective date of an award of disability 

6 compensation to a veteran described in clause (ii) shall 

7 be the day of receipt of the application therefor. 

8 ‘‘(ii) A veteran described in this clause is a veteran 

9 who— 

10 ‘‘(I) participated in the secrecy oath program at 

11 Edgewood Arsenal at Aberdeen Proving Ground, 

12 Maryland, at any time during the period beginning 

13 on January 1, 1948, and ending on December 31, 

14 1975; and 

15 ‘‘(II) submits to the Secretary an application 

16 for disability compensation for a disability that was 

17 incurred or aggravated in line of duty in the active 

18 military, naval, air, or space service while partici19 pating in such secrecy oath program after the date 

20 that is one year after the date on which notice is 

21 sent to the veteran pursuant to section 4(b)(2) of 

22 the Obligations to Aberdeen’s Trusted Heroes Act of 

23 2024.’’. 

24 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND APPLICABILITY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (5) of section 

2 5110(b) of such title, as added by subsection (a), 

3 shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act and shall apply to claims for disability com5 pensation received on, before, or after the date of 

6 the enactment of this Act. 

7 (2) MODIFICATION OF PRIOR AWARDS.—Not 

8 later than 90 days after the date of the enactment 

9 of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

10 review all awards made by the Department of Vet11 erans Affairs on or before the date of the enactment 

12 of this Act of compensation under chapter 11 of 

13 such title to veterans for a disability that was in14 curred or aggravated in line of duty in the active 

15 military, naval, air, or space service while partici16 pating in a secrecy oath program (as defined in sec17 tion 5100 of such title) and adjust such awards of 

18 compensation such that the claim for such com19 pensation is treated as if— 

20 (A) paragraph (5)(A) of section 5110(b) of 

21 such title, as added by subsection (a), were in 

22 effect on the date of the filing of the claim for 

23 the compensation; and 


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1 (B) application for such compensation was 

2 received in compliance with clause (i) of such 

3 paragraph. 

Æ 


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