House
Study
Bill
155
-
Introduced
HOUSE
FILE
_____
BY
(PROPOSED
COMMITTEE
ON
VETERANS
AFFAIRS
BILL
BY
CHAIRPERSON
HOLT)
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
concerning
the
duties
of
the
department
of
veterans
1
affairs
relative
to
veteran
exposure
to
Agent
Orange.
2
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
3
TLSB
1966YC
(3)
87
ec/nh
H.F.
_____
Section
1.
Section
36.1,
subsection
3,
Code
2017,
is
amended
1
by
striking
the
subsection.
2
Sec.
2.
REPEAL.
Sections
36.2,
36.3,
36.4,
36.6,
36.7,
3
36.8,
and
36.9,
Code
2017,
are
repealed.
4
EXPLANATION
5
The
inclusion
of
this
explanation
does
not
constitute
agreement
with
6
the
explanation’s
substance
by
the
members
of
the
general
assembly.
7
Code
chapter
36
concerns
exposure
to
chemicals
by
certain
8
veterans.
Specifically,
it
deals
with
exposure
to
Agent
Orange
9
by
Iowa
veterans
of
the
Vietnam
Conflict.
10
Code
section
36.7
provides
that
if
an
agency
of
the
federal
11
government
is
providing
the
referral
and
genetic
services
12
required
pursuant
to
Code
section
36.6,
the
department
or
the
13
general
assembly
by
specific
action
may
discontinue
all
or
part
14
of
the
services
and
requirements
in
the
Code
chapter.
15
In
1991,
the
federal
Agent
Orange
Act,
Pub.
L.
No.
102-4,
16
codified
at
38
U.S.C.
§1116,
established
a
presumption
of
17
service
connection
for
diseases
associated
with
herbicide
18
exposure.
The
federal
Act
directed
the
federal
Veterans
19
Administration
(VA)
to
“prescribe
regulations
providing
that
20
a
presumption
of
service
connection
is
warranted
for
[a]
21
disease”
when
a
positive
statistical
association
exists
between
22
Agent
Orange
exposure
and
the
occurrence
of
that
disease
in
23
humans.
In
making
this
determination,
Pub.
L.
No.
102-4,
24
authorized
the
VA
to
contract
with
the
institute
of
medicine
25
of
the
national
academy
of
sciences
to
review
and
summarize
26
the
scientific
evidence
concerning
the
association
between
27
exposure
to
herbicides
used
in
support
of
military
operations
28
in
Vietnam
during
the
Vietnam
era
and
each
disease
suspected
to
29
be
associated
with
such
exposure.
30
This
bill
repeals
those
Code
sections
in
Code
chapter
36
31
requiring
the
department
of
veterans
affairs
to
perform
certain
32
duties
relative
to
Iowa
veterans’
exposure
to
Agent
Orange.
33
Code
sections
36.5,
concerning
attorney
general
powers,
and
34
36.10,
concerning
veterans’
litigation
awards,
are
not
repealed
35
-1-
LSB
1966YC
(3)
87
ec/nh
1/
2
H.F.
_____
by
this
bill.
1
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LSB
1966YC
(3)
87
ec/nh
2/
2