IIB 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 23 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 13, 2009 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

AN ACT 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Merchant 

Mariner Equity Compensation Fund to provide benefits 

to certain individuals who served in the United States 

merchant marine (including the Army Transport Service 

and the Naval Transport Service) during World War 

II. 


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HR 23 RFS

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 ‘‘Belated Thank You 

5 to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PAYMENTS TO INDIVIDUALS WHO SERVED DURING 

7 WORLD WAR II IN THE UNITED STATES MER8 CHANT MARINE. 

9 (a) Establishment of Compensation Fund- Sub10 chapter II of chapter 5 of title 38, United States Code, 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 533 MERCHANT MARINER EQUITY COMPENSATION 

13 FUND. 

14 ‘‘(a) COMPENSATION FUND.—(1) There is in the gen15 eral fund of the Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Mer16 chant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund’ (in this sec17 tion referred to as the ‘compensation fund’). 

18 ‘‘(2) Subject to the availability of appropriations for 

19 such purpose, amounts in the compensation fund shall be 

20 available to the Secretary without fiscal year limitation to 

21 make payments to eligible individuals in accordance with 

22 this section. 

23 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—(1) An eligible indi24 vidual is an individual who— 


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1 ‘‘(A) during the one-year period beginning on 

2 the date of the enactment of the Belated Thank You 

3 to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 

4 2009, submits to the Secretary an application con5 taining such information and assurances as the Sec6 retary may require; 

7 ‘‘(B) has not received benefits under the Serv8 icemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (Public Law 

9 78–346); and 

10 ‘‘(C) has engaged in qualified service. 

11 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), a person has en12 gaged in qualified service if, between December 7, 1941, 

13 and December 31, 1946, the person— 

14 ‘‘(A) was a member of the United States mer15 chant marine (including the Army Transport Service 

16 and the Naval Transport Service) serving as a crew17 member of a vessel that was— 

18 ‘‘(i) operated by the War Shipping Admin19 istration or the Office of Defense Transpor20 tation (or an agent of the Administration or Of21 fice); 

22 ‘‘(ii) operated in waters other than inland 

23 waters, the Great Lakes, and other lakes, bays, 

24 and harbors of the United States; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) under contract or charter to, or prop2 erty of, the Government of the United States; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(iv) serving the Armed Forces; and 

5 ‘‘(B) while so serving, was licensed or otherwise 

6 documented for service as a crewmember of such a 

7 vessel by an officer or employee of the United States 

8 authorized to license or document the person for 

9 such service. 

10 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.—The Secretary shall 

11 make a monthly payment out of the compensation fund 

12 in the amount of $1,000 to an eligible individual. The Sec13 retary shall make such payments to eligible individuals in 

14 the order in which the Secretary receives the applications 

15 of the eligible individuals. 

16 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—(1) 

17 There are authorized to be appropriated to the compensa18 tion fund amounts as follows: 

19 ‘‘(A) For fiscal year 2010, $120,000,000. 

20 ‘‘(B) For fiscal year 2011, $108,000,000. 

21 ‘‘(C) For fiscal year 2012, $97,000,000. 

22 ‘‘(D) For fiscal year 2013, $85,000,000. 

23 ‘‘(E) For fiscal year 2014, $75,000,000. 

24 ‘‘(2) Funds appropriated to carry out this section 

25 shall remain available until expended. 


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1 ‘‘(e) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall include, in docu2 ments submitted to Congress by the Secretary in support 

3 of the President’s budget for each fiscal year, detailed in4 formation on the operation of the compensation fund, in5 cluding the number of applicants, the number of eligible 

6 individuals receiving benefits, the amounts paid out of the 

7 compensation fund, the administration of the compensa8 tion fund, and an estimate of the amounts necessary to 

9 fully fund the compensation fund for that fiscal year and 

10 each of the three subsequent fiscal years. 

11 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

12 regulations to carry out this section.’’. 

13 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

15 prescribe the regulations required under section 532(f) of 

16 title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

17 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

18 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

19 after the item related to section 532 the following new 

20 item: 

‘‘533. Merchant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 12, 2009. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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