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105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1399
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide a presumption of service
connection for injuries classified as cold weather injuries which occur
in veterans who while engaged in military operations had sustained
exposure to cold weather.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 17, 1997
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide a pre-
sumption of service connection for injuries classified as
cold weather injuries which occur in veterans who while
engaged in military operations had sustained exposure
to cold weather.
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 ‘‘Veterans Cold Weather
Injury Compensation Act’’.
SEC. 2. COLD WEATHER INJURY REGISTRY.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall establish and
maintain a registry of veterans who while in active mili-
tary, naval, or air service were exposed for a significant
period of time to sustained periods of extremely cold
weather. The Secretary shall use the registry to compile
and analyze, on a continuing basis, all clinical data that
is obtained by the Department of Veterans Affairs in con-
nection with examinations and treatment furnished to vet-
erans and that is likely to be scientifically useful in deter-
mining the association, if any, between the disabilities of
such veterans and sustained exposure to cold weather dur-
ing military operations.
SEC. 3. PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE CONNECTION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Chapter 11 of title 38, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end of sub-
chapter II the following new section:
‘‘§ 319. Presumptions of service connection for inju-
ries and diseases associated with sus-
tained exposure to cold weather
‘‘(a) For the purposes of section 310 of this title, and
subject to section 313 of this title, a cold-weather injury
becoming manifest in a veteran who during active military,
naval, or air service and while engaged in a military oper-
ation in the field was exposed to a period of qualifying
cold weather shall be considered to have been incurred in
or aggravated by such service, notwithstanding that there
is no record of evidence of such disease during the period
of such service.
‘‘(b) For purposes of this section, a cold-weather in-
jury is any injury or disease that the Secretary determines
in regulations prescribed under this section has a positive
association with sustained exposure to cold weather.
‘‘(c) For purposes of this section, the term ‘qualifying
cold weather’ means a period of 15 consecutive days or
more during which the mean average temperature was 32
degrees or lower.’’.
(2) The table of sections at the beginning of such
chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating
to section 317 the following new item:
‘‘319. Presumptions of service connection for injuries and diseases associated
with sustained exposure to cold weather.’’.
(b) DEADLINE
FOR INITIAL REGULATIONS.—The
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe the initial
regulations for purposes of subsection (b) of section 319
of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection
(a), not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
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