I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1067 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the temporary expansion 
of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, to ensure 
that judges of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims 
may enroll in the Federal Employee Group Life Insurance program, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 25, 2015 
Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and in addition to the 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be sub-
sequently 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 title 38, United States Code, to extend the tem-
porary expansion of the United States Court of Appeals 
for Veterans Claims, to ensure that judges of the United 
States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims may enroll 
in the Federal Employee Group Life Insurance program, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘U.S. Court of Appeals 
for Veterans Claims Reform Act’’. 
SEC. 2. EXTENDING TEMPORARY EXPANSION OF UNITED 
STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS 
CLAIMS. 
Section 7253(i)(2) of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended by striking ‘‘January 1, 2013’’ and inserting 
‘‘January 1, 2020’’. 
SEC. 3. RECALL OF RETIRED JUDGES OF UNITED STATES 
COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS. 
Paragraph (1) of section 7257(b) of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(1)(A) The chief judge may recall for further service 
on the Court a recall-eligible retired judge in accordance 
with this section. Such a recall shall be made upon written 
certification by the chief judge that substantial service is 
expected to be performed by the retired judge for such 
period, not to exceed 90 days (or the equivalent), as deter-
mined by the chief judge to be necessary to meet the needs 
of the Court. 
‘‘(B)(i) A recall-eligible judge may request that the 
chief judge recall the recall-eligible judge for a period of 
service not to exceed 90 days (or the equivalent). 
‘‘(ii) The chief judge shall approve a request made 
by a recall-eligible judge pursuant to clause (i) unless the 
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chief judge certifies, in writing, that the Court does not 
have— 
‘‘(I) sufficient work to assign such recall-eligible 
judge during the period of recalled service; or 
‘‘(II) sufficient resources to provide to such re-
call-eligible judge appropriate administrative and of-
fice support. 
‘‘(iii) At any time during the period of recalled service 
of a judge who is recalled pursuant to clause (i), the chief 
judge may terminate such recalled service if the chief 
judge makes a written certification described in clause 
(ii).’’. 
SEC. 4. LIFE INSURANCE PROGRAM RELATING TO JUDGES 
OF UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR 
VETERANS CLAIMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7281 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(j) For purposes of chapter 87 of title 5, a judge 
who is in regular active service and a judge who is retired 
under section 7296 of this title or under chapter 83 or 
84 of title 5 shall be treated as an employee described 
in section 8701(a)(5) of title 5.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any payment 
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made on or after the first day of the first applicable pay 
period beginning on or after the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
SEC. 5. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO ENLARGE SUR-
VIVORS’ ANNUITY. 
Section 7297 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(p)(1) A covered judge who makes an election under 
subsection (b) may purchase, in three-month increments, 
up to an additional year of service credit for each year 
of Federal judicial service completed, under the terms set 
forth in this section. 
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘covered judge’ 
means any of the following: 
‘‘(A) A judge in regular active service. 
‘‘(B) A retired judge who is a recall-eligible re-
tired judge pursuant to subsection (a) of section 
7257 of this title. 
‘‘(C) A retired judge who would be a recall-eli-
gible retired judge pursuant to subsection (a) of sec-
tion 7257 but for— 
‘‘(i) meeting the aggregate recall service 
requirements under subsection (b)(3) of such 
section; or 
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‘‘(ii) being permanently disabled as de-
scribed by subsection (b)(4) of such section.’’. 
SEC. 6. SALARIES OF JUDGES OF UNITED STATES COURT 
OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS. 
Section 7253(e) of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ‘‘district courts’’ and inserting 
‘‘courts of appeals’’. 
Æ 
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