I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 154 

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. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2019 

Mr. GREEN of Texas (for himself, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, 

Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. KILMER, Mrs. BUSTOS, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. PERLMUTTER, and Mr. KING

of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

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. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Honoring Our WWII 

3 Merchant Mariners Act of 2019’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PAYMENTS TO INDIVIDUALS WHO SERVED DURING 

5 WORLD WAR II IN THE UNITED STATES MER6 CHANT MARINE. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMPENSATION FUND.— 

8 Subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 38, United States Code, 

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

10 ‘‘§ 533. Merchant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund 

11 ‘‘(a) COMPENSATION FUND.—(1) There is in the gen12 eral fund of the Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Mer13 chant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund’ (in this sec14 tion referred to as the ‘compensation fund’). 

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

16 such purpose, amounts in the compensation fund shall be 

17 available to the Secretary without fiscal year limitation to 

18 make payments to eligible individuals in accordance with 

19 this section. 

20 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—(1) An eligible indi21 vidual is an individual who— 

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

23 the date of the enactment of this section, submits to 

24 the Secretary an application containing such infor25 mation and assurances as the Secretary may require; 


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1 ‘‘(B) has not received benefits under the Serv2 icemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (Public Law 

3 78–346); and 

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

5 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), a person has en6 gaged in qualified service if, between December 7, 1941, 

7 and December 31, 1946, the person— 

8 ‘‘(A) was a member of the United States mer9 chant marine (including the Army Transport Service 

10 and the Naval Transport Service) serving as a crew11 member of a vessel that was— 

12 ‘‘(i) operated by the War Shipping Admin13 istration or the Office of Defense Transpor14 tation (or an agent of the Administration or Of15 fice); 

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

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

18 and harbors of the United States; 

19 ‘‘(iii) under contract or charter to, or prop20 erty of, the Government of the United States; 

21 and 

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

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

24 documented for service as a crewmember of such a 

25 vessel by an officer or employee of the United States 


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1 authorized to license or document the person for 

2 such service. 

3 ‘‘(3) In determining the information and assurances 

4 required in the application pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), 

5 the Secretary shall accept a DD–214 form as proof of 

6 qualified service. 

7 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—The Secretary shall 

8 make one payment out of the compensation fund in the 

9 amount of $25,000 to an eligible individual. The Secretary 

10 shall make such a payment to eligible individuals in the 

11 order in which the Secretary receives the applications of 

12 the eligible individuals. 

13 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2020 

15 $125,000,000 for the compensation fund. Such amount 

16 shall remain available until expended. 

17 ‘‘(e) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall include, in docu18 ments submitted to Congress by the Secretary in support 

19 of the President’s budget for each fiscal year, detailed in20 formation on the operation of the compensation fund, in21 cluding the number of applicants, the number of eligible 

22 individuals receiving benefits, the amounts paid out of the 

23 compensation fund, the administration of the compensa24 tion fund, and an estimate of the amounts necessary to 


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1 fully fund the compensation fund for that fiscal year and 

2 each of the three subsequent fiscal years. 

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

4 regulations to carry out this section.’’. 

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

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

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

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

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

10 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

11 after the item related to section 532 the following new 

12 item: 

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

Æ 


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