Veterans' Benefits, Child Protection For Adoptive Parents and Against Child Pornography
Weekly Congressional Highlights From June 25 -29th, 2012 and a Hearing on Veterans' Benefits, courtesy of Women's Policy, Inc.
Child Protection
H.R. 6021 — Rep. John Conyers (D-MI)/Ways and Means (6/26/12) — A bill to require states to follow certain procedures in placing a child who has been removed from the custody of his or her parents.
H.R. 6063 — Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX)/Judiciary (6/29/12) — A bill to amend title 18 of the United States Code with respect to child pornography and child exploitation offenses.
Family Support
H.R. 6035 — Rep. Laura Richardson (D-CA)/Ways and Means (6/27/12) — A bill to promote permanent families for children, privacy and safety for unwed mothers, responsible fatherhood, and security for adoptive parents by establishing a National Responsible Father Registry and encouraging states to enter into agreements to contribute the information contained in the state's Responsible Father Registry to the National Responsible Father Registry, and for other purposes.
International
H.R. 6027 — Rep. Albio Sires (D-NJ)/Foreign Affairs (6/26/12) — A bill to provide for universal intercountry adoption accreditation standards, and for other purposes.
H. Res. 713 — Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL)/Foreign Affairs, Energy and Commerce (6/28/12) — A resolution expressing support for the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) and the sense of the House of Representatives that continued commitment by the United States to HIV/AIDS research, prevention, and treatment programs is crucial to protecting global health.
Tax Policy
H.R. 6074 — Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL)/Ways and Means (6/29/12) — A bill to deny the refundable portion of the child tax credit to individuals who are not authorized to be employed in the United States and to terminate the use of certifying acceptance agents to facilitate the application process for individual taxpayer identification numbers.
Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Veterans’ Health and Benefits
On June 27, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee held a hearing on health and benefits legislation. The hearing covered a number of bills relating to veterans, including S. 3313, the Women Veterans and Other Health Care Improvements Act of 2012. The measure would increase reproductive health and fertility treatment services offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), improve facilities for women veterans, and introduce child care pilot programs for veterans.
Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) opened the discussion on S. 3313 by saying, “The Women Veterans and Other Health Care Improvements Act of 2012 builds upon previous laws to improve VA services for women veterans and veterans with families. My bill will create a child care pilot program for veterans seeking readjustment counseling at vet centers and increase outreach to women veterans.” She continued with a discussion of fertility treatment: “Many of these veterans dream of one day starting a family. But with the injuries they’ve sustained on the battlefield that may not be possible without some extra help. While the Department of Defense (DoD) and Tricare are now able to provide advanced fertility treatment to injured servicemembers, today VA can only provide limited treatment. VA’s services do not even begin to meet the needs of our most seriously injured veterans or their families. My bill will help make real the dream of starting a family by authorizing VA to provide advanced fertility treatment to severely wounded veterans. By authorizing these treatments, we will bring VA services in line with what DoD and Tricare already provide. It’s the right thing to do and it’s what our veterans deserve.”
Photo: US Army Spc. Rebecca Buck, a medic from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, provides perimeter security outside an Iraqi police station in the Tarmiya Province of Iraq. (US Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. William Greer)
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