An Act to deny entitlement to veterans' benefits to certain persons who would otherwise become so entitled solely by virtue of the administrative upgrading under temporarily revised standards of other than honorable discharges from service during the Vietnam era; to require case-by-case review under uniform, historically consistent, generally applicable standards and procedures prior to the award of veterans' benefits to persons administratively discharged under other than honorable conditions from active military, naval, or air service; and for other purposes.
PL 95-126 (S.1307), enacted 10/08/1977

91 STAT. 1106 
PUBLIC LAW 95-126—OCT. 8, 1977 
Public Law 95-126 
95th Congress 
Oct. 8, 1977 
[S. 1307] 
Veterans' 
benefits. 
Entitlement, 
denial to certain 
veterans with 
upgraded 
discharges. 
Review. 
10 u s e 1553. 
Application. 
Benefits 
entitlement, 
limitation. 
Review. 
50 u s e app. 
462 note. 
An Act 
To deny entitlement to veterans' benefits to certain persons who would otherwise 
become so entitled solely by virtue of the administrative upgrading under 
temporarily revised standards of other than honorable discharges from service 
during the Vietnam era; to require case-by-case review under uniform, his-
torically consistent, generally applicable standards and procedures prior to 
the award of veterans' benefits to persons administratively discharged under 
other than honorable conditions from active military, naval, or air service; 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and the House of Representatives 
of the 
United States 
of America 
in Congress assembled, 
That (a) section 
3103 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by— 
(1) inserting "or on the basis of an absence without authority 
from active duty for a continuous period of at least one hundred 
and eighty days if such person was discharged under conditions 
other than honorable unless such person demonstrates to the satis-
faction of the Administrator that there are compelling circum-
stances to warrant such prolonged unauthorized absence," after 
"deserter," in subsection (a), and by inserting a comma and "not-
withstanding any action subsequent to the date of such discharge 
by a board established pursuant to section 1553 of title 10" before 
the period at the end of such subsection; and 
(2) adding at the end of such section the following new sub-
section : 
"(e) (1) Notwithstanding an}- other provision of law, (A) no bene-
fits under laws administered by the Veterans' Administration shall 
be provided, as a result of a change in or new issuance of a discharge 
under section 1553 of title 10, except upon a case-by-case review by 
the board of review concerned, subject to review by the Secretary 
concerned, under such section, of all the evidence and factors in each 
case under published uniform standards (which shall be historically 
consistent with criteria for determining honorable service and shall 
not include any criterion for automatically granting or denying such 
change or issuance) and procedures generally applicable to all persons 
administratively discharged or released from active military, naval, 
or air service under other than honorable conditions; and (B) any 
such person shall be afforded an opportunity to apply for such review 
under such section 1553 for a period of time terminating not less than 
one year after the date on which such uniform standards and pro-
cedures are promulgated and published. 
" (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law— 
"(A) no person discharged or released from active military, 
naval, or air service under other than honorable conditions who 
has been awarded a general or honorable discharge under revised 
standards for the review of discharges, (i) as implemented by the 
President's directive of January 19,1977, initiating further action 
with respect to the President's Proclamation 4313 of Septem-
ber 16,1974, (ii) as implemented on or after April 5,1977, under 
the Department of Defense's special discharge review program, or 
(iii) as implemented subsequent to April 5, 1977, and not made 
applicable to all persons administratively discharged or released 
from active military, naval, or air service under other than 
PUBLIC LAW 95-126—OCT. 8, 1977 
91 STAT. 1107 
honorable conditions, shall be entitled to benefits under laws 
administered by the Veterans' Administration except upon a 
determination, based on a case-by-case review, under standards 
(meeting the requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection) 
applied by the board of review concerned under section 1553 of 
title 10, subject to review by the Secretary concerned, that such 
person would be awarded an upgraded discharge under such 
standards; and 
"(B) such determination shall be made by such board (i) on 
an expedited basis after notification by the Veterans' Administra-
tion to the Secretary concerned- that such person has received, 
is in receipt of, or has applied for such benefits or after a written 
request is made by such person or such determination, (ii) on its 
own initiative within one year after the date of enactment of this 
paragraph in any case where a general or honorable discharge has 
been awarded on or prior to the date of enactment of this para-
graph under revised standards referred to in clause (A) (i), (ii), 
or (iii) of this paragraph, or (iii) on its own initiative at the time 
a general or honorable discharge is so awarded in any case where 
a general or honorable discharge is awarded after such enactment 
date. 
If such board makes a preliminary determination that such person 
would not have been aAvarded an upgraded discharge under standards 
meeting the requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection, such 
person shall be entitled to an appearance before the board, as provided 
for in section 1553 (c) of title 10, prior to a final determination on such 
question and shall be given written notice by the board of such pre-
liminary determination and of his or her right to such appearance. 
The Administrator shall, as soon as administratively feasible, notify 
the appropriate board of review of the receipt of benefits under laws 
administered by the Veterans' Administration, or of the application 
for such benefits, by any person awarded an upgraded discharge under 
revised standards referred to in clause (A) (i), (ii), or (iii) of this 
paragraph with respect to whom a favorable determination has not 
been made under this paragraph.". 
(b) (1) The Secretary of Defense shall fully inform each person 
awarded a general or honorable discharge under revised standards for 
the review of discharges referred to in section 3103(e)(2)(A) (i), 
(ii), or (iii) of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection 
(a) (2) of this section, of his or her right to obtain an expedited deter-
mination under section 3103(e) (2) (B) (i) of such title and of the 
implications of the provisions of *this Act for each such person. 
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of 
Defense shall inform each person who applies to a board of review 
under section 1553 of title 10, United States Code, and who appears 
to have been discharged under circumstances which might constitute 
a bar to benefits under section 3103(a) of title 38, United States Code, 
(A) that such person might possibly be administratively found to be 
entitled to benefits under laws administered by the Veterans' Admin-
istration only through the action of a board for the correction of 
military records under section 1552 of such title 10 or the action of 
the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs under section 3103 of such 
title 38, and (B) of the procedures for making application to such 
section 1552 board for such purpose and to the Administrator of Vet-
erans' Affairs for such purpose (including the right to proceed con-
currently under such sections 3103, 1552, and 1553). 
SEC. 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Adminis-
trator of Veterans' Affairs shall provide the type of health care and 
10 use 1553. 
Expedited 
determination. 
Appearance 
before board. 
Notice. 
Board of 
review, 
notification. 
Information, 
notification. 
38 u s e 3103 
note. 
Health care 
and benefits. 
38 u s e 3103 
note. 
91 STAT. 1108 
PUBLIC LAW 95-126—OCT. 8, 1977 
38 use 601 
et seq. 
38 use 3103. 
"Discharge 
or release." 
38 use 
3103 note. 
Effective dates. 
38 u s e 3103 
note. 
related benefits authorized to be provided under chapter 17 of title 38, 
United States Code, for any disability incurred or aggravated during 
active military, naval, or air service in line of duty by a person other 
than a person barred from receiving benefits by section 3103(a) of 
such title, but shall not provide such health care and related benefits 
pursuant to this section for any disability incurred or aggravated 
during a period of service from which such person was discharged by 
reason of a bad conduct discharge. 
SEC. 3. Paragraph (18) of section 101 of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended to read as follows: 
" (18) The term 'discharge or release' includes (A) retirement from 
the active military, naval, or air service, and (B) the satisfactory 
completion of the period of active military, naval, or air service for 
which a person was obligated at the time of entry into such service in 
the case of a person who, due to enlistment or reenlistment, was not 
awarded a discharge or release from such period of service at the 
time of such completion thereof and who, at such time, would other-
wise have been eligible for the award of a discharge or release under 
conditions other than dishonorable.". 
SEC. 4. In promulgating, or making any revisions of or amendments 
to, regulations governing the standards and procedures by which the 
Veterans' Administration determines whether a person was discharged 
or released from active military, naval, or air service under conditions 
other than dishonorable, the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs shall, 
in keeping with the spirit and intent of this Act, not promulgate any 
such regulations or revise or amend any such regulations for the pur-
pose of, or having the effect of, (1) providing any unique or special 
advantage to veterans aw^arded general or honorable discharges under 
revised standards for the review of discharges described in section 
3103(e)(2)(A) (i), (ii), or (iii) of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by section 1(a) (2) of this Act, or (2) otherwise making any 
special distinction between such veterans and other veterans. 
SEC. 5. This Act shall become effective on the date of its enactment, 
except that— 
(1) section 2 shall become effective on October 1, 1977, or on 
such enactment date, whichever is later; and 
(2) the amendments made by section 1(a) shall apply retro-
actively to deny benefits under laws administered by the Veterans' 
Administration, except that, notwithstanding any other provision 
of law— 
(A) with respect to any person who, on such enactment 
date is receiving benefits under laws administered by the Vet-
t,, . 
erans' Administration, (i) such benefits shall not be termi-
.,, , 
nated under paragraph (2) of section 3103(e) of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by section 1 (a) (2) of this Act, 
until (I) the day on which a final determination not favor-
able to the person concerned is made on an expedited basis 
under paragraph (2) of such section 3103(e), (II) the day 
following the expiration of ninety days after a preliminary 
determination not favorable to such person is made under 
L 
such paragraph, or (III) the day following the expiration 
of one hundred and eighty days after such enactment date, 
whichever day is the earliest, and (ii) the United States shall 
. . / 
not make any claim to recover the value of any benefits 
i ,, 
provided to such person prior to such earliest day * 
(B) with respect to any person awarded a general or hon-
orable discharge under revised standards for the review of 
^; 
discharges referred to in clause (A) (i), (ii),or (iii) of such 
PUBLIC LAW 95-126—OCT. 8, 1977 
91 STAT. 1109 
paragraph who has been provided any such benefits prior to 
such enactment date, the United States shall not make any 
claim to recover the value of any benefits so provided; and 
(C) the amendments made by clause (1) of section 1(a) 
shall apply (i) retroactively only to persons awarded general 
,, I- 
or honorable discharges under such revised standards and to 
persons who, prior to the date of enactment of this Act, had 
not attained general eligibility for such benefits by virtue of 
(1) a change in or new issuance of a discharge under section 
1553 of title 10, United States Code, or (II) any other pro-
vision of law, and (ii) prospectively (on and after such 
enactment date) to all other persons. 
'"'•"•' 
Approved October 8, 1977. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 
HOUSE REPORT No. 95-580 accompanying H.R. 8698 (Coram, on Veterans' Affairs). 
SENATE REPORT No. 95-305 (Coram, on Veterans'Affairs). 
.. 
/. 
..-. 
. . . 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, VoL 123 (1977): 
"' 
- • 
Sept. 8, considered and passed Senate. 
Sept. 12, considered and passed House, amended, in lieu of H.R. 8698. 
Sept. 22, Senate agreed to House amendments with an amendment. 
Sept. 23, House concurred in Senate araendraent. 
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, VOL. 13, NO. 42: 
Oct. 8, Presidential stateraent.