H. R. 4183 
One Hundred Sixteenth Congress 
of the 
United States of America 
AT THE SECOND SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and twenty 
An Act 
To direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study on 
disability and pension benefits provided to members of the National Guard and 
members of reserve components of the Armed Forces by the Department of Vet-
erans Affairs, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Identifying Barriers and Best 
Practices Study Act’’. 
SEC. 2. COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY ON DISABILITY AND PENSION 
BENEFITS PROVIDED TO MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL 
GUARD AND MEMBERS OF RESERVE COMPONENTS OF THE 
ARMED FORCES BY THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
AFFAIRS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 36 months after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall complete a study on disability and pension benefits 
provided to members of the National Guard and members of reserve 
components of the Armed Forces by the Department of Veterans 
Affairs. In conducting such study, the Comptroller General shall 
review, for the period beginning on January 1, 2008, and ending 
on December 31, 2018, each of the following: 
(1) The number of members of the National Guard and 
the number of members of reserve components of the Armed 
Forces who received disability compensation or pension pro-
vided by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 
(2) A comparison of each of the following between veterans 
who served only in the National Guard or reserve components 
and veterans who served in the regular components of the 
Armed Forces: 
(A) The percentage of each group of such veterans 
with service-connected disabilities. 
(B) The number of veterans in each group with each 
disability rating. 
(C) The number of veterans in each group with a 
service-connected disability, including the number of each 
of the following types of such veterans in each group: 
(i) Pilots. 
(ii) Veterans who served in the special forces. 
(iii) Veterans who participated in the Personnel 
Reliability Program.
H. R. 4183—2 
(iv) Veterans who underwent diving or flight 
physicals as a regular component of their service in 
the Armed Forces and who have a muscular-skeletal 
or mental health condition. 
(D) The number of total claims for disability compensa-
tion and pension submitted, approved, and disapproved 
for each group of veterans. 
(3) An identification of common barriers for members of 
the National Guard and members of reserve components in 
obtaining disability benefits under the laws administered by 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, including barriers relating 
to documentation of injuries incurred while serving, such as 
line of duty letters. 
(b) REPORTS.— 
(1) PRELIMINARY REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the 
Senate and House of Representatives a preliminary report on 
the findings of the study required by subsection (a). 
(2) FINAL
REPORT.—Upon completion of the study, the 
Comptroller General shall submit to such Committees a final 
report on such study. 
Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.