State Legislators Seek $3M To Help Relieve Veteran Claims Backlog

The joint Assembly-Senate Budget Conference Committee has agreed on a plan to spend $3 million to help clear a backlog of veteran benefits claims in California, U-T San Diego reports.

According to U-T San Diego, some observers consider the move a direct challenge to Gov. Jerry Brown (D), who has argued during budget negotiations that the state should not provide supplemental funding for such issues because of other demands on the general fund.

Details of Plan

The plan would establish three "strike teams" to help veterans apply for health care benefits and disability pay, among other services.

The teams -- each of which would be made up of 12 individuals -- would be assigned to federal Veterans Affairs offices in three cities:

• Los Angeles;
• Oakland; and
• San Diego.

According to the committee, California veterans would stand to gain a total of about $886 million in benefits if all stalled claims are approved.

Comments From Brown Representative

Michael Cohen -- a Brown representative -- said that the governor has the ability to unilaterally pare down the $3 million sought by lawmakers when approving the larger budget..

Cohen said that "there are many competing demands for dollars." He said, "We are concerned about adding funding for a federal responsibility. We are hopeful it can be resolved by the federal government's work."

Comments From Legislators

Assembly member Bob Blumenfield (D-Los Angeles) said, "The feds are failing our veterans. … It's the least we can do to ensure that they receive much-needed medical care for wartime injuries and have the tools to build new lives back home."

Assembly member Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) said the state's general fund would benefit from the plan because some veterans who currently cannot access their federal benefits are relying on state assistance.