I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1641 
To amend title 36, United States Code, to authorize The American Legion 
to determine the requirements for membership in The American Legion, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 8, 2019 
Mr. CORREA (for himself, Mr. CLINE, and Mr. CISNEROS) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend title 36, United States Code, to authorize The 
American Legion to determine the requirements for 
membership in The American Legion, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Let Everyone Get In-
volved in Opportunities for National Service Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find-
ings: 
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(1) Since the end of World War II, the Federal 
Government has designated specific periods of war, 
the dates of which are important for qualification for 
certain benefits or membership in veterans organiza-
tions established by Congress. 
(2) In between those recognized periods of war, 
during so-called peacetime eras, the United States 
military has been involved in not fewer than 12 
known eras, which are unrecognized by the United 
States Government as periods of war, resulting in 
numerous United States personnel combat casual-
ties. 
(3) Those 12 unrecognized war eras occurred at 
the direction of the then President of the United 
States, with full knowledge and consent of the then 
Congress. 
(4) The first of those 12 unrecognized war eras 
involving active United States military personnel was 
the Greek Civil War, fought in Greece from 1946 to 
1949 between the army of the Government of 
Greece, supported by active military personal of the 
United States and the United Kingdom, and the 
Democratic Army of Greece, the military branch of 
the Communist Party of Greece. 
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(5) During the Greek Civil War, one member of 
the Armed Forces of the United States sacrificed his 
life in service to the United States, and five others 
suffered non-combat deaths. 
(6) The second of those unrecognized war eras 
involving active United States military personnel was 
the Chinese Civil War, which occurred during the 
aftermath of World War II. 
(7) During the Chinese Civil War, the United 
States military equipped, trained, transported, and 
supplied the Kuomintang-led Government of the Re-
public of China with approximately $4,430,000,000 
in its resistance to the Communist Party of China. 
(8) During the Chinese Civil War, 14 members 
of the Armed Forces of the United States sacrificed 
their lives in service to the United States, 150 non- 
combatants of the United States lost their lives in 
the war, and 51 were wounded, resulting in 215 
United States military casualties. 
(9) The third unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel is known as 
the Cold War. 
(10) The Cold War was a period spanning from 
approximately 1947 until 1991 when the Soviet 
Union collapsed. 
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(11) Although no direct large-scale military 
fighting occurred between the militaries of the 
United States and the Soviet Union, active United 
States military personnel served in multiple regional 
conflicts during the Cold War, resulting in the 
deaths of not fewer than 32 members of the Armed 
Forces who sacrificed their lives in service to the 
United States and not fewer than 12 additional cas-
ualties. 
(12) The fourth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel is known as 
the China Cold War. 
(13) The China Cold War started when the 
Kuomintang-led Government of the Republic of 
China retreated to the island of Taiwan and lasted 
until 1972, after President Richard Nixon conducted 
a landmark state visit to China. 
(14) During the military operations of the 
China Cold War, not fewer than 16 members of the 
Armed Forces of the United States sacrificed their 
lives in service to the United States. 
(15) The fifth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel was the Leb-
anon Crisis of 1958, which involved more than 
14,000 United States personnel and resulted in the 
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death of one member of the Armed Forces who sac-
rificed his life in service to the United States and 
five non-combat deaths. 
(16) The sixth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel was the Bay 
of Pigs invasion in April 1961. 
(17) The Bay of Pigs invasion was a failed mili-
tary invasion of Cuba undertaken by a United 
States military group sponsored by the Central In-
telligence Agency that resulted in not fewer than one 
death of a member of the Armed Forces who sac-
rificed his life in service to the United States and 19 
non-combat deaths. 
(18) The seventh unrecognized war era involv-
ing active United States military personnel was the 
Cuban Missile Crisis, which took place between Oc-
tober 16 and October 28, 1962. 
(19) The Cuban Missile Crisis directly related 
to homeland protection against the deployment of a 
Soviet ballistic missile in Cuba. 
(20) During the Cuban Missile Crisis, one 
member of the Armed Forces sacrificed his life in 
service to the United States and 19 others died as 
non-combatants. 
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(21) The eighth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel was the Do-
minican Civil War in 1965. 
(22) Operations during the Dominican Civil 
War resulted in the deaths of 27 members of the 
Armed Forces who sacrificed their lives in service to 
the United States, 20 non-combat-related deaths, 
and 283 wounded. 
(23) The ninth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel was the Iran 
Hostage Crisis, which lasted from November 4, 
1979, through January 20, 1981. 
(24) The Iran Hostage Crisis involved military 
intervention by the United States which resulted in 
the deaths of 8 members of the Armed Forces who 
sacrificed their lives in service to United States. 
(25) The tenth unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel was the Sal-
vadoran Civil War. 
(26) The Salvadoran Civil War lasted more 
than 12 years, through the terms of two Presidential 
administrations of the United States, and resulted in 
the deaths of 22 members of the Armed Forces who 
sacrificed their lives in service to the United States, 
15 non-combat deaths, and 35 other casualties. 
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(27) The 11th unrecognized war era involving 
active United States military personnel started on 
April 5, 1986, when the La Belle discotheque in 
West Berlin, Germany, was bombed, killing two 
United States soldiers and wounding 79 other mem-
bers of the Armed Forces, which triggered what be-
came known as the Libyan Conflict. 
(28) The military operations of the Libyan Con-
flict included numerous air strikes by United States 
military forces and resulted in the deaths of two 
members of the Armed Forces who sacrificed their 
lives in service to the United States. 
(29) The Libyan Conflict led to the 12th unrec-
ognized war era involving active United States mili-
tary personnel, known collectively as the Persian 
Gulf Conflicts, which lasted from July 24, 1987, 
through September 26, 1988. 
(30) The Persian Gulf Conflicts resulted in nu-
merous military operations and the deaths of not 
fewer than 39 members of the Armed Forces who 
sacrificed their lives in service to the United States 
and 31 wounded. 
(31) Since the armistice that ended the hos-
tilities of the Korean War on January 31, 1955, 
nearly 100 active United States military personnel 
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have sacrificed their lives in service to the United 
States in South Korea, and more than 132 people of 
the United States have been wounded in-country. 
(32) Since January 1, 1947, through all of the 
unrecognized war eras involving active United States 
military personnel, not fewer than 778 combat and 
non-combat members of the Armed Forces have sac-
rificed their lives in service to the United States and 
not fewer than 797 have been wounded. 
(33) Since January 1, 1947, the unrecognized 
war eras involving active United States military per-
sonnel who were wounded and killed serving their 
country were administered under orders from the 
commander in chief and with the consent of Con-
gress, proving that the United States has been con-
ducting deadly wartime service to protect the coun-
try consistently since December 7, 1941. 
(34) Eligibility for membership in The Amer-
ican Legion is determined by Congress through the 
establishment of specific dates of declared and offi-
cially recognized hostilities in which United States 
military personnel are on active service. 
(35) The American Legion provides invaluable 
services to its members and supports the community 
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of veterans who sacrificed in service of the United 
States. 
(36) Membership in The American Legion al-
lows veterans to engage in public service activities, 
such as supporting Boys and Girls State and Na-
tion, youth mentorship programs, and benefit assist-
ance, career fairs, and employment assistance for 
veterans. 
(37) The American Legion has gone on record 
as supporting the 12 unrecognized war eras involv-
ing active United States military personnel since the 
beginning of World War II. 
(38) The American Legion has aided, assisted, 
and comforted the families of the men and women 
who were called to serve or volunteered to serve dur-
ing all of the unrecognized war eras and continues 
to provide support to veterans of those eras. 
(39) The American Legion has commended the 
heroic actions of all military personnel who risked 
their lives in defense of freedom during each of the 
unrecognized war eras involving active United States 
military personnel. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that, in accordance with the history, tradition, and 
purposes of The American Legion, it is fair, proper, and 
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reasonable that the privilege of membership in The Amer-
ican Legion should be extended to all military personnel 
who served on active military duty during all of the unrec-
ognized war eras involving active United States military 
personnel. 
SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY FOR MEMBERSHIP IN THE AMERICAN 
LEGION. 
Section 21703(1)(A) of title 36, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) in clause (vi), by striking ‘‘or’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following new 
clause: 
‘‘(viii) such other beginning dates 
through such other ending dates as are 
provided in the constitution and bylaws of 
the corporation; or’’. 
Æ 
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