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(d), or (e) of section 1541 of this title on account of a 
child by reason of the application of subsection (a)(2), 
(a)(4), or (b)(2) of this section to the disposal of resources 
by an individual to the extent that— 
‘‘(A) a satisfactory showing is made to the Sec-
retary (in accordance with regulations promulgated 
by the Secretary) that all resources disposed of for 
less than fair market value have been returned to 
the individual who disposed of the resources; or 
‘‘(B) the Secretary determines, under proce-
dures established by the Secretary, that the denial 
or discontinuance of payment would work an undue 
hardship as determined on the basis of criteria es-
tablished by the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) At the time a surviving spouse or child applies 
for pension under section 1541 or 1542 of this title or 
increased pension under subsection (c), (d), or (e) of sec-
tion 1541 of this title on account of a child, and at such 
other times as the Secretary considers appropriate, the 
Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) inform such surviving spouse or child of 
the provisions of subsections (a)(2), (a)(4), and 
(b)(2), as applicable, providing for a period of ineli-
gibility for payment of pension or increased pension 
under such sections for individuals who make certain 
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dispositions of resources for less than fair market 
value; and 
‘‘(B) obtain from such surviving spouse or child 
information which may be used in determining 
whether or not a period of ineligibility for such pay-
ments would be required by reason of such sub-
sections. 
‘‘(d) Paragraphs (2) and (4) of subsection (a) and 
subsection (b)(2) shall not apply with respect to the dis-
posal of resources or the transfer of an asset if such dis-
posal or transfer is to a trust described in section 
1917(d)(4) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396p(d)(4)) that is established for the benefit of a child 
of the veteran or surviving spouse.’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsections (a)(2), (b)(2), 
and (c) of section 1522 of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), and subsections (a)(2), (a)(4), 
(b)(2), and (c) of section 1543 of such title, as added by 
subsection (b), shall take effect on the date that is one 
year after the date of the enactment of this Act and shall 
apply with respect to payments of pension and increased 
pension applied for after such date and to payments of 
pension and increased pension for which eligibility is rede-
termined after such date, except that no reduction in pen-
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sion shall be made under such subsections because of any 
disposal of covered resources made before such date. 
(d) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than two years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act and not 
less frequently than once each year thereafter 
through 2018, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
shall submit to the appropriate committees of Con-
gress a report on the administration of subsections 
(a)(2), (b)(2), and (c) of section 1522 of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by subsection (a), and 
subsections (a)(2), (a)(4), (b)(2), and (c) of section 
1543 of such title, as added by subsection (b), dur-
ing the most recent 12-month period. 
(2) ELEMENTS.—Each report submitted under 
paragraph (1) shall include the following, for the pe-
riod covered by the report: 
(A) The number of individuals who applied 
for pension under chapter 15 of such title. 
(B) The number of individuals who re-
ceived pension under such chapter. 
(C) The number of individuals with respect 
to whom the Secretary denied or discontinued 
payment of pension under the subsections re-
ferred to in paragraph (1). 
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(D) A description of any trends identified 
by the Secretary regarding pension payments 
that have occurred as a result of the amend-
ments made by this section. 
(E) Such other information as the Sec-
retary considers appropriate. 
(3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS 
DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘appro-
priate committees of Congress’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
and the Select Committee on Aging of the Sen-
ate; and 
(B) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 
the House of Representatives. 
SEC. 203. BIFURCATED PAYMENTS OF COMPENSATION BEN-
EFITS UNDER LAWS ADMINISTERED BY THE 
SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 51 of 
title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
‘‘§ 5127. Bifurcated payments of compensation bene-
fits 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—During the eight-year period be-
ginning on the date of the enactment of this section, in 
the case of a claim described in subsection (b), prior to 
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adjudicating the claim, the Secretary shall make payments 
of monetary benefits to the claimant based on any dis-
ability for which the Secretary has made a decision. Upon 
the adjudication of the claim, the Secretary shall pay to 
the claimant any monetary benefits awarded to the claim-
ant for the period of payment under section 5111 of this 
title less the amount of such benefits paid to the claimant 
under this section. 
‘‘(b) CLAIM DESCRIBED.—A claim described in this 
subsection is a claim for disability compensation under 
chapter 11 of this title— 
‘‘(1) the adjudication of which requires the Sec-
retary to make decisions with respect to two or more 
disabilities; and 
‘‘(2) for which, before completing the adjudica-
tion of the claim, the Secretary makes a decision 
with respect to a disability that would result in the 
payment of monetary benefits to the claimant upon 
the adjudication of the claim.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 
at the end of the items relating to such subchapter the 
following new item: 
‘‘5127. Bifurcated payments of compensation benefits.’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 5127 of title 38, 
United State Code, as added by subsection (a) shall take 
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effect on the date that is one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 204. PENSION FOR CERTAIN VETERANS COVERED BY 
MEDICAID PLANS FOR SERVICES FURNISHED 
BY NURSING FACILITIES. 
Section 5503(d)(7) of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended by striking ‘‘November 30, 2016’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘September 30, 2018’’. 
TITLE III—OTHER MATTERS 
SEC. 301. REVIEW OF OPERATION OF CERTAIN SHIPS DUR-
ING THE VIETNAM ERA. 
(a) REVIEW REQUIRED.—By not later than one year 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Defense shall review the logs of each ship under the 
authority of the Secretary of the Navy that is known to 
have operated in the waters near Vietnam during the pe-
riod beginning on January 9, 1962, and ending on May 
7, 1975, to determine— 
(1) whether each such ship operated in the ter-
ritorial waters of the Republic of Vietnam during 
such period; and 
(2) for each such ship that so operated— 
(A) the date or dates when the ship so op-
erated; and 
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(B) the distance from the shore of the lo-
cation where the ship operated that was the 
closest proximity to shore. 
(b) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO THE SECRETARY 
OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.—Upon a determination that any 
such ship so operated, the Secretary of Defense shall pro-
vide such determination, together with the information de-
scribed in subsection (a)(2) about the ship, to the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs. 
(c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—The 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall make publicly available 
all unclassified information provided to the Secretary 
under subsection (b). 
SEC. 302. METHODS FOR VALIDATING CERTAIN SERVICE 
CONSIDERED TO BE ACTIVE SERVICE BY THE 
SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find-
ings: 
(1) The Merchant Marine Act, 1936 established 
the United States Maritime Commission, and stated 
as a matter of policy that the United States should 
have a merchant marine that is ‘‘capable of serving 
as a naval and military auxiliary in time of war or 
national emergency’’. 
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(2) The Social Security Act Amendments of 
1939 (Public Law 76–379) expanded the definition 
of employment to include service ‘‘on or in connec-
tion with an American vessel under contract of serv-
ice which is entered into within the United States or 
during the performance of which the vessel touches 
at a port in the United States, if the employee is 
employed on and in connection with such vessel’’. 
(3) The Joint Resolution to repeal sections 2, 
3, and 6 of the Neutrality Act of 1939, and for 
other purposes (Public Law 77–294; 55 Stat. 764) 
repealed section 6 of the Neutrality Act of 1939 (re-
lated to the arming of United States vessels) and 
authorized the President during the national emer-
gency to arm or permit to arm any United States 
vessel. 
(4) On February 7, 1942, President Franklin 
D. Roosevelt, through Executive Order Number 
9054, established the War Shipping Administration 
that was charged with building or purchasing, and 
operating the civilian shipping vessels needed for the 
war effort. 
(5) During World War II, United States mer-
chant mariners transported goods and materials 
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through ‘‘contested waters’’ to the various combat 
theaters. 
(6) At the conclusion of World War II, United 
States merchant mariners were responsible for 
transporting several million members of the United 
States Armed Forces back to the United States. 
(7) The GI Bill Improvement Act of 1977 
(Public Law 95–202) provided that the Secretary of 
Defense could determine that service for the Armed 
Forces by organized groups of civilians, or contrac-
tors, be considered ‘‘active service’’ for benefits ad-
ministered by the Veterans Administration. 
(8) Department of Defense Directive 1000.20 
directed that the determination be made by the Sec-
retary of the Air Force, and established the Civilian/ 
Military Service Review Board and Advisory Panel. 
(9) In 1987, three merchant mariners along 
with the AFL–CIO sued Edward C. Aldridge, Sec-
retary of the Air Force, challenging the denial of 
their application for veterans status. In Schumacher 
v. Aldridge (665 F. Supp. 41 (D.D.C. 1987)), the 
Court determined that Secretary Aldridge had failed 
to ‘‘articulate clear and intelligible criteria for the 
administration’’ of the application approval process. 
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(10) During World War II, women were repeat-
edly denied issuance of official documentation af-
firming their merchant marine seaman status by the 
War Shipping Administration. 
(11) Coast Guard Information Sheet #77 
(April 1992) identifies the following acceptable 
forms of documentation for eligibility meeting the 
requirements set forth in the GI Bill Improvement 
Act of 1977 (Public Law 95–202) and Veterans 
Programs Enhancement Act of 1998 (Public Law 
105–368): 
(A) Certificate of shipping and discharge 
forms. 
(B) Continuous discharge books (ship’s 
deck or engine logbooks). 
(C) Company letters showing vessel names 
and dates of voyages. 
(12) Coast Guard Commandant Order of March 
20, 1944, relieved masters of tugs, towboats, and 
seagoing barges of the responsibility of submitting 
reports of seamen shipped or discharged on forms, 
meaning certificates of shipping and discharge forms 
are not available to all eligible individuals seeking to 
document their eligibility. 
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(13) Coast Guard Information Sheet #77 
(April 1992) states that ‘‘deck logs were tradition-
ally considered to be the property of the owners of 
the ships. After World War II, however, the deck 
and engine logbooks of vessels operated by the War 
Shipping Administration were turned over to that 
agency by the ship owners, and were destroyed dur-
ing the 1970s’’, meaning that continuous discharge 
books are not available to all eligible individuals 
seeking to document their eligibility. 
(14) Coast Guard Information Sheet #77 
(April, 1992) states ‘‘some World War II period log 
books do not name ports visited during the voyage 
due to wartime security restrictions’’, meaning that 
company letters showing vessel names and dates of 
voyages are not available to all eligible individuals 
seeking to document their eligibility. 
(b) METHODS FOR VALIDATING CERTAIN SERVICE 
CONSIDERED
TO BE ACTIVE SERVICE
BY
THE SEC-
RETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.— 
(1) 
IN
GENERAL.—For 
the 
purposes 
of 
verifying that an individual performed service under 
honorable conditions that satisfies the requirements 
of a coastwise merchant seaman who is recognized 
pursuant to section 401 of the GI Bill Improvement 
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