II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 874 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to modify the provision of compensation and pension to surviving spouses of veterans in the months of 

the deaths of the veterans, to improve housing loan benefits for veterans, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 3, 2011 

Mr. AKAKA 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 modify the provision of compensation and pension to surviving spouses 

of veterans in the months of the deaths of the veterans, 

to improve housing loan benefits for veterans, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. MODIFICATION OF MONTH OF DEATH BENEFIT 

2 FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES OF VETERANS WHO 

3 DIE WHILE ENTITLED TO COMPENSATION OR 

4 PENSION. 

5 (a) SURVIVING SPOUSE BENEFIT FOR MONTH OF

6 VETERAN’S DEATH.—Subsections (a) and (b) of section 

7 5310 of title 38, United States Code, are amended to read 

8 as follows: 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) A surviving spouse of a vet10 eran is entitled to a benefit for the month of the veteran’s 

11 death if at the time of the veteran’s death— 

12 ‘‘(A) the veteran was receiving compensation or 

13 pension under chapter 11 or 15 of this title; or 

14 ‘‘(B) the veteran was not receiving compensa15 tion or pension under chapter 11 or 15 of this title 

16 but the veteran had a claim pending for the month 

17 of the veteran’s death for which benefits would have 

18 been payable under chapter 11 or 15 of this title 

19 had the veteran not died. 

20 ‘‘(2) The amount of benefit under paragraph (1) is 

21 the amount that the veteran would have received under 

22 chapter 11 or 15 of this title for the month of the vet23 eran’s death had the veteran not died. 

24 ‘‘(3) Any benefits payable under this section on be25 half of a veteran who was not in receipt of such benefits 


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1 as of the month of the veteran’s death shall be paid to 

2 the surviving spouse as accrued benefits. 

3 ‘‘(b) CLAIMS PENDING ADJUDICATION.—If a claim 

4 for entitlement to compensation or additional compensa5 tion under chapter 11 of this title or pension or additional 

6 pension under chapter 15 of this title is pending at the 

7 time of a veteran’s death and the check or other payment 

8 issued to the veteran’s surviving spouse under subsection 

9 (a) is less than the amount of the benefit the veteran 

10 would have been entitled to for the month of death pursu11 ant to the adjudication of the pending claim, an amount 

12 equal to the difference between the amount to which the 

13 veteran would have been entitled to receive under chapter 

14 11 or 15 of this title for the month of the veteran’s death 

15 had the veteran not died and the amount of the check or 

16 other payment issued to the surviving spouse shall be 

17 treated in the same manner as an accrued benefit under 

18 section 5121 of this title.’’. 

19 (b) MONTH OF DEATH BENEFIT EXEMPT FROM DE20 LAYED COMMENCEMENT OF PAYMENT.—Section 

21 5111(c)(1) of such title is amended by striking ‘‘apply to’’ 

22 and all that follows through ‘‘death occurred’’ and insert23 ing the following: ‘‘not apply to payments made pursuant 

24 to section 5310 of this title’’. 


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1 (c) PROHIBITION ON REQUESTS FOR RETURN OF

2 CERTAIN CHECKS AND PAYMENTS.—In the case of a sur3 viving spouse who was a dependent with respect to whom 

4 additional compensation for dependents was payable under 

5 section 1115 of title 38, United States Code, or additional 

6 pension as a married veteran under chapter 15 of such 

7 title, as of the date of the veteran’s death, if a check or 

8 other payment issued to the veteran as a benefit payment 

9 under chapter 11 or 15 of title 38, United States Code, 

10 for the month in which death occurs is negotiated, depos11 ited, or otherwise accessed by the surviving spouse— 

12 (1) the check or payment shall be considered to 

13 be the benefit payable to the surviving spouse under 

14 section 5310(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code 

15 (as amended by subsection (a)), to the extent that 

16 the check or payment equals the amount which 

17 would otherwise be payable under such section; and 

18 (2) the Secretary may not require the surviving 

19 spouse to return the check or payment. 

20 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

21 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act, and shall apply with respect to deaths that 

23 occur on or after that date. 


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1 SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY FOR PRESIDENTIAL MEMORIAL CER2 TIFICATES OF INDIVIDUALS WHO DIE WHILE 

3 SERVING IN THE ACTIVE MILITARY, NAVAL, 

4 OR AIR SERVICE. 

5 Section 112 of title 38, United States Code, is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol8 lows: 

9 ‘‘(a)(1) At the request of the President, the Secretary 

10 may conduct a program for honoring the memory of cov11 ered individuals by preparing and sending to eligible re12 cipients a certificate bearing the signature of the Presi13 dent and expressing the country’s recognition of the cov14 ered individual’s service in the Armed Forces. 

15 ‘‘(2) The award of a certificate to one eligible recipi16 ent shall not preclude authorization of another certificate 

17 if a request is received from some other eligible recipient.’’; 

18 (2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

19 subsections (c) and (d), respectively; and 

20 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol21 lowing new subsection (b): 

22 ‘‘(b) For purposes of this section, a covered individual 

23 is any of the following: 

24 ‘‘(1) A deceased veteran discharged under hon25 orable conditions. 


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1 ‘‘(2) An individual who dies while serving in the 

2 active military, naval, or air service.’’. 

3 SEC. 3. MODIFICATION TO AUTHORIZE SATISFACTION OF 

4 OCCUPANCY REQUIREMENT ON PROPERTY 

5 FINANCED WITH HOUSING LOAN BENEFITS 

6 FOR VETERANS BY OCCUPANCY OF DEPEND7 ENT CHILDREN. 

8 Paragraph (2) of section 3704(c) of title 38, United 

9 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(2) In any case in which a veteran is in active duty 

11 status as a member of the Armed Forces and is unable 

12 to occupy a property because of such status, the occupancy 

13 requirements of this chapter shall be considered to be sat14 isfied if— 

15 ‘‘(A) the veteran’s spouse occupies or intends to 

16 occupy the property as a home and the spouse 

17 makes the certification required by paragraph (1); or 

18 ‘‘(B) the veteran’s dependent child occupies or 

19 will occupy the property as a home and the veteran’s 

20 attorney-in-fact or a legal guardian of the veteran’s 

21 dependent child makes the certification required by 

22 paragraph (1).’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. COVENANTS AND LIENS CREATED BY PUBLIC ENTI2 TIES IN RESPONSE TO DISASTER-RELIEF AS3 SISTANCE. 

4 Paragraph (3) of section 3703(d) of title 38, United 

5 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(3)(A) Any real estate housing loan (other than for 

7 repairs, alterations, or improvements) shall be secured by 

8 a first lien on the realty. In determining whether a loan 

9 is so secured, the Secretary may either disregard or allow 

10 for subordination to a superior lien created by a duly re11 corded covenant running with the realty in favor of— 

12 ‘‘(i) a public entity that has provided or will 

13 provide assistance in response to a major disaster as 

14 declared by the President under section 401 of the 

15 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

16 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170); or 

17 ‘‘(ii) a private entity to secure an obligation to 

18 such entity for the homeowner’s share of the costs 

19 of the management, operation, or maintenance of 

20 property, services, or programs within and for the 

21 benefit of the development or community in which 

22 the veteran’s realty is located, if the Secretary deter23 mines that the interests of the veteran borrower and 

24 of the Government will not be prejudiced by the op25 eration of such covenant. 


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1 ‘‘(B) With respect to any superior lien described in 

2 subparagraph (A) created after June 6, 1969, the Sec3 retary’s determination under clause (ii) of such subpara4 graph must have been made prior to the recordation of 

5 the covenant.’’. 

Æ 


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