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General
Assembly
Raised Bill No. 340
February Session, 2022
LCO No. 2338
Referred to Committee on VETERANS' AFFAIRS
Introduced by:
(VA)
AN ACT CONCERNING APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS QUALIFYING REVIEW
BOARD.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 27-103 of the 2022 supplement to the general 1
statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 2
(Effective from passage): 3
(a) As used in the general statutes, except chapter 504, and except as 4
otherwise provided: (1) "Armed forces" means the United States Army, 5
Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Air Force and any reserve 6
component thereof, including the Connecticut National Guard 7
performing duty as provided in Title 32 of the United States Code, as 8
amended from time to time; (2) "veteran" means any person honorably 9
discharged from, released under honorable conditions from or released 10
with an other than honorable discharge based on a qualifying condition 11
from, active service in, the armed forces; (3) "service in time of war" 12
means service of ninety or more cumulative days during a period of war 13
unless separated from service earlier because of an injury incurred or 14
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aggravated in the line of duty or a service-connected disability rated by 15
the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, except that if the 16
period of war lasted less than ninety days, "service in time of war" 17
means service for the entire period of war unless separated because of 18
any such injury or disability; (4) "period of war" has the same meaning 19
as provided in 38 USC 101, as amended from time to time, except that 20
the "Vietnam Era" means the period beginning on February 28, 1961, and 21
ending on July 1, 1975, in all cases; and "period of war" shall include 22
service while engaged in combat or a combat support role in Lebanon, 23
July 1, 1958, to November 1, 1958, or September 29, 1982, to March 30, 24
1984; Grenada, October 25, 1983, to December 15, 1983; Operation 25
Earnest Will, involving the escort of Kuwaiti oil tankers flying the 26
United States flag in the Persian Gulf, July 24, 1987, to August 1, 1990; 27
and Panama, December 20, 1989, to January 31, 1990, and shall include 28
service during such periods with the armed forces of any government 29
associated with the United States; and (5) "qualifying condition" means 30
(A) a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain 31
injury made by an individual licensed to provide health care services at 32
a United States Department of Veterans Affairs facility, (B) an 33
experience of military sexual trauma, as [described in 38 USC 1720D] 34
defined in 38 USC 1166, as amended from time to time, disclosed to an 35
individual licensed to provide health care services at a United States 36
Department of Veterans Affairs facility, or (C) a determination, in 37
accordance with the provisions of subsections (c) and (d) of this section, 38
that sexual orientation, gender identity, [or] gender expression, post-39
traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or military sexual 40
trauma was more likely than not the primary reason for an other than 41
honorable discharge. [, as determined in accordance with subsections (c) 42
and (d) of this section.] 43
(b) As used in this part, "Veterans Residential Services facility" means 44
the Veterans Residential Services facility in Rocky Hill maintained by 45
the Department of Veterans Affairs that provides temporary and other 46
supported residential services for qualifying veterans; "long-term care 47
facility" means a facility that has been federally certified as a skilled 48
nursing facility or intermediate care facility; "Healthcare Center" means 49
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the long-term care facility in Rocky Hill maintained by the Department 50
of Veterans Affairs; "veteran" means any veteran, as defined in 51
subsection (a) of this section, who is a resident of this state; "eligible 52
dependent" means any parent, wife or husband, or child of a veteran 53
who has no adequate means of support; and "eligible family member" 54
means any parent, brother or sister, wife or husband, or child or children 55
under eighteen years of age, of any veteran whose cooperation in the 56
program is integral to the treatment of the veteran. 57
(c) Not later than October 1, 2021, the Commissioner of Veterans 58
Affairs shall establish a Qualifying Review Board, which shall review 59
applications of veterans submitted under subsection (d) of this section. 60
Said board shall be part of the Executive Department and shall consist 61
of five voting members who, by education or experience, shall be 62
knowledgeable of veterans benefits and programs and who shall have a 63
demonstrated interest in the concerns of veterans. A majority of the 64
members of the board shall be veterans. 65
(1) The membership of the board shall consist of the following 66
members: 67
(A) One member appointed by the Commissioner of Veterans Affairs 68
in consultation with the chairperson of the Department of Veterans 69
Affairs Board of Trustees, who shall be a member of said board; 70
(B) The manager of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of 71
Advocacy and Assistance, or the manager's designee; and 72
(C) Three members appointed by the Commissioner of Veterans 73
Affairs. 74
(2) All initial appointments to the board shall be made not later than 75
December 1, 2021, and shall terminate on November 31, 2023, or 76
November 31, 2024, as applicable, regardless of when the initial 77
appointment was made. Any member of the board may serve more than 78
one term. 79
(3) Members first appointed shall have the following terms: (A) The 80
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member of the Department of Veterans Affairs Board of Trustees and 81
the manager of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Advocacy 82
and Assistance, or the manager's designee, shall initially serve a term of 83
three years, and (B) the three members appointed by the Commissioner 84
of Veterans Affairs shall initially serve a term of two years. Members 85
shall serve a term of four years thereafter. Members shall continue to 86
serve until their successors are appointed. 87
(4) Any vacancy shall be filled by the Commissioner of Veterans 88
Affairs. Any vacancy occurring other than by expiration of term shall be 89
filled for the balance of the unexpired term. 90
(5) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of section 4-9a, 91
the Commissioner of Veterans Affairs shall select the chairperson of the 92
board from among the members of the board. Such chairperson shall 93
schedule the first meeting of the board, which shall be held not later 94
than January 1, 2022. 95
(6) A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum for the 96
transaction of any business. 97
(7) The members of the board shall serve without compensation. 98
(8) The board shall meet at least monthly or as often as deemed 99
necessary by the chairperson based on the number of applications 100
pending before the board. 101
(d) (1) Any veteran who receives an other than honorable discharge 102
and who believes such discharge characterization was based on such 103
veteran's sexual orientation, gender identity, [or] gender expression, 104
post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or military sexual 105
trauma may file an application for state-based veterans benefits. Such 106
veteran may include evidence supporting his or her claim that such 107
discharge characterization was based on such veteran's sexual 108
orientation, gender identity, [or] gender expression, post-traumatic 109
stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or military sexual trauma. 110
(2) The commissioner shall promulgate a standardized application 111
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form enumerating the required documentation necessary for filing an 112
application under this subsection and shall make such form available on 113
the Department of Veterans Affairs' Internet web site along with 114
instructions for filing the application. 115
(3) The commissioner shall promulgate a standardized request for 116
reconsideration form enumerating the required documentation 117
necessary for filing a request for reconsideration pursuant to 118
subdivision (5) of this subsection and shall make such form available on 119
the Department of Veterans Affairs' Internet web site along with 120
instructions for filing the request for reconsideration. 121
(4) The board shall review each application submitted and render a 122
recommendation to the commissioner as to whether the veteran's sexual 123
orientation, gender identity, [or] gender expression, post-traumatic 124
stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or military sexual trauma was 125
more likely than not the primary reason for an other than honorable 126
discharge. The board shall review each application not later than thirty 127
days after receipt and render a written recommendation to the 128
commissioner not later than thirty days after such review. The 129
commissioner shall issue a written decision not later than ten days after 130
receipt of the board's recommendation, approving or denying the 131
application. If the commissioner approves the application, such veteran 132
shall be eligible for state-based veterans benefits. 133
(5) A veteran aggrieved by the commissioner's decision may file a 134
request for reconsideration with the commissioner not later than fifteen 135
days after receipt of the commissioner's decision. Such veteran may 136
include supplemental documentation in support of the request for 137
reconsideration. The commissioner shall provide due consideration to 138
the request for reconsideration and render a decision not later than ten 139
days after receipt of such request for reconsideration. The 140
commissioner's decision shall be a final decision by the Department of 141
Veterans Affairs and may be appealed to the Superior Court in 142
accordance with the provisions of section 4-183. 143
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This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage 27-103
Statement of Purpose:
To expand the types of applications that may be reviewed by the
Department of Veterans Affairs Qualifying Review Board.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]