"(1) The provisions of the act of March 9, 1928 (45 Stat. 251), as amended, relating to funeral expenses; "(2) Provisions of law authorizing the payment to enlisted men of a travel allowance upon discharge; "(3) Provisions of law authorizing retirement and prescribing or governing pay for Philippine Scouts placed on the retired list; "(4) The provisions of the act of December 17, 1919 (41 Stat. 367), as amended, authorizing the payment of a death gratuity equal to 6 months' active-duty pay to the dependents of milltary personnel whose death occurs while on active duty; "(5) The provisions of the Mustering-Out Payment Act of 1944 (Public Law 225, 78th Cong.), except that for the purpose of computing such payments for service in the Philippine Scouts, service wholly performed in the Philippine Islands shall be compensated for on the same basis as service wholly performed within the United States; and "(6) The provisions of laws administered by the Veterans' Administration providing for the payment of pensions on account of service-connected disability or death." Provided further, That payments made under the provisions of any law referred to in clauses (5) and (6) above shall be paid at the rate of one Philippine peso for each dollar authorized by such law: And provided further, That the provisions of the National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940, as amended, shall apply to persons who serve in the Philippine Scouts under the provisions of section 14 of the act approved October 6, 1945, only insofar as such provisions relate to contracts of insurance heretofore entered into. Administrator's Decision No. 696 (May 15, 1946) on INTERPRETATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF TITLE II, PUBLIC, NO. 301, 79TH CONGRESS states: * It has been suggested that the act may be applicable to persons other than those who came clearly within its terms as reflected by the language employed. There is no reason to suppose that such is the case. Only those persons who (1) served in the organized military forces of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, (2) while such forces were in the service of the armed forces of the United States (3) pursuant to the military order of the President dated July 26, 1941, are affected by the pertinent provisions of Public No. 301. * * * In an opinion of May 23, 1946, approved May 29, 1946, concerning— Payment for hospitalization of veterans of the Philippine Army the language in Public Law 301, Seventy-ninth Congress, which provided that for the purposes of any law of the United States conferring rights, privileges, or benefits except (2) laws administered by the Veterans' Administration providing for the payment of pensions on account of service-connected disability or death: was construed as requiring that except as to those who were in contract hospitals under the authority of the Veterans' Administration on February 18, 1946, the date of the enactment of Public Law 301, medical treatment and hospital care should not be furnished under the laws governing the Veterans' Administration for veterans of the Philippine Commonwealth Army. This identical language was employed in Public Law 391, Seventy-ninth Congress, as to Philippine Scouts enlisted under Public Law 190, Seventy-ninth Congress. Since the controlling language has already been defined as precluding furnishing medical treatment or hospital care at the expense of the Veterans' Administration, it follows that members of the Philippine Scouts, in such service under section 14, Public Law 190, Seventy-ninth Congress, are not entitled to medical treatment or hospital care under the laws governing the Veterans' Administration for diseases or injuries or the sequelae thereof, incurred in such enlistments. The fact of the independence of the Philippine Commonwealth as of July 4, 1946, does not in anywise affect the consideration of the effect of this legislation. The conclusion is based solely on the quoted language of the applicable statute. HELD: (a) Public Law 301, Seventy-ninth Congress, by its specific provisions applies only to: * service in the organized military forces of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, while such forces were in the service of the armed forces of the United States pursuant to the military order of the President of the United States dated July 26, 1941 * It, therefore, has no application to service in the Philippine Scouts since that force was not, and is not, a part of the "organized military forces of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines" but is a component part of the Army of the United States (31 Stat. 757). (b) Title II, Public Law 391, Seventy-ninth Congress, by the specific language thereof has reference only to service in the Philippine Scouts under the provisions of section 14 of the act approved October 6, 1945 (Public Law 190, 79th Cong.): It follows, therefore, that Public Law 391, Seventy-ninth Congress, does not apply to service in the Philippine Scouts in an enlistment other than one entered into under section 14, Public Law 190, Seventyninth Congress. (Opinion of the Solicitor, dated July 17, 1946, approved Aug. 20, 1946.) ADMINISTRATOR'S DECISION, VETERANS' ADMINISTRATION, NO. 722 SEPTEMBER 27, 1946. Subject: Interpretation of paragraph 2, part VIII, title II, Public Law 346, Seventy-eighth Congress, as amended. QUESTION PRESENTED: May a veteran be permitted to complete a unit course of flight instruction if his entitlement expires after he has completed a major part of such course, where the school does not normally provide instruction on the basis of quarters or semesters? COMMENT: Section 5 (b), Public Law 268, Seventy-ninth Congress, is as follows: “Paragraph 2 of part VIII of such regulation is amended to read as follows: 2. Any such eligible person shall be entitled to education or training at an approved educational or training institution for a period of 1 year plus the time such person was in the active service on or after September 16, 1940, and before the termination of the war, exclusive of any period he was assigned for a course of education or training under the Army specialized training program or the Navy college training program, which course was a continuation of his civilian course and was pursued to completion, or as a cadet or midshipman at one of the service academies, but in no event shall the total period of education or training exceed 4 years: Provided, That his work continues to be satisfactory throughout the period, according to the regularly prescribed standards and practices of the institution: Provided further, That wherever the period of eligibility ends during a quarter or semester and after a major part of such quarter or semester has expired, such period shall be extended to the termination of such unexpired quarter or semester." The language of the last proviso of paragraph 2, part VIII, Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), which was added by section 400, Public Law 346, Seventy-eighth Congress, was the forerunner of the language used in the last proviso of section 5 (b), supra. It is as follows: Provided, however, That wherever the additional period of instruction ends during a quarter or semester and after a major part of such quarter or semester has expired, such period of instruction shall be extended to the termination of such unexpired quarter or semester. The above-quoted proviso was added to S. 1767, which was enacted as Public Law 346, Seventy-eighth Congress, as an amendment from the floor of the House, being offered by Congressman Barden, Chairman of the Committee on Education. (Congressional Record, House, May 18, 1944, p. 4721.) When the provisions of part VIII, Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), were being debated in the House, Congressman Barden said, among other things, that:' The reason I suggest 54 weeks instead of the calendar year is because the standard college year is 36 weeks and the standard semester, which is half of the college year, is 18 weeks, and 36 and 18 make 54. If you leave it at a calendar year, the boy will leave 2 weeks before his examination. Maybe that is what the House wants, but it looks to me as if he will be getting mighty close to the successful solution of something and then leave it incomplete. Mr. KEARNEY. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield? Mr. KEARNEY. Is not the proposed amendment covered in the original Barden bill? Mr. BARDEN. That was the policy adopted in the original so-called Barden bill. That is the time the Committee on Education approved, but we were just as uncertain about that time as probably many of you are. In measuring time in a school or college you should not apply a rule that is never used by a college. They do not use calendar years. Yet you are dealing exclusively with schools. So if we are going to use the school, then the gage of time the school employs should be used, otherwise it would be like trying to measure cloth by the peck. If you were going to send these boys for 1 school year, you would find that it would be 36 weeks, and if you were going to send them for 1 school year and a semester it would be 54 weeks instead of 52 weeks, which constitutes a calendar year. And Congressman Rohrbough said, in part, that: A calendar year, of course, is 52 weeks, while a school year is generally recognized as 36 weeks. Nearly all standard schools operate on the semester plan, 18 weeks to a semester. A calendar year of 52 weeks would equal two semesters and eight-tenths of a third semester. So, instead of specifying a calendar year, I think a period of 54 weeks would be much better. Otherwise, the veteran's attendance at school would terminate 2 weeks before the end of his third semester. He would receive no credit for the work done in this semester as he would be unable to take his final examinations and the work would be incomplete. I have still graver doubts of the wisdom of providing schooling in addition to the 1-year basic training for all who qualify, to be determined by the length of his military service. Some would have this additional training for 3 or 4 weeks, some for 5 or 6, some for 7 or 8, and in varying lengths of time up to 3 years. I can conceive of nothing that would be more distracting to a student to know that he could enter school and not continue to the end of his term or semester. I can think of nothing that would be more demoralizing to the institution than to have students dropping out probably at the end of each week throughout the semester. A class might be organized with 25 members at the opening of school and before the semester is over the number might have dwindled to less than half. From the viewpoint of the student and from the viewpoint of the institution the arrangement would be entirely unsatisfactory. Consequently, I think that the only solution for a problem of this kind is a specific and definite determination of the length of time a student may attend, and this should be in terms of school years or semesters. The amendment provides that a student may have 54 weeks or 3 semesters of schooling or training and that in case his work has been well done he may receive additional training not to exceed another 54 weeks. This would be the equivalent of six semesters or 3 full school years. Such an arrangement would safeguard the interests of the student and the interests of the educational institution, and the plan would be possible of administration. The plan provided in the bill is not possible of successful administration. * * (Congressional Record-House-May 17, 1944. P. 4708 for Congressman Barden, and p. 4710 for Congressman Rohrbough.) The last proviso of section 5 (b), supra, relates to any approved educational or training institution *" which includes an approved flight school in which a veteran may be enrolled at the date his period of eligibility ends; and the terms of the proviso and the legislative history of similar language used in section 400, Public Law 346, Seventy-eighth Congress, justify the conclusion that Congress intended the proviso to apply irrespective of whether a school divides its courses of study into quarters or semesters, if otherwise applicable. The opposite view would result in depriving a veteran of substantial rights granted by the proviso, solely because the school in which he is enrolled at the time his period of eligibility ends has not gone through the form of dividing its courses of study into quarters or semesters. HELD: In view of the clear intent of the Congress to grant further benefits under the proviso in question to all veterans when the requirements thereof have been met, when a veterans' period of eligibility ends while he is attending an educational or training institution which does not divide its courses of study into quarters or semesters, determination as to whether such veteran is entitled to the extension provided for by section 5 (b), supra, will be made by applying to the courses of study of such educational or training institution being pursued by such veteran, the criteria ordinarily applied by educational institutions in dividing their courses of study into quarters or semesters. (Opinion of the Solicitor, dated Aug. 7, 1946, approved Aug. 22, 1946.) ADMINISTRATOR'S DECISION, VETERANS' ADMINISTRATION, NO. 723 SEPTEMBER 27, 1946. Subject: Concurrent payment of compensation under section 202 (3), World War Veterans' Act, 1924, as amended, and reenacted by Public Law 141, Seventy-third Congress, and Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), part I. QUESTIONS PRESENTED: (a) May an award of a statutory allowance provided by section 202 (3), World War Veterans' Act, 1924, as amended, and reenacted by Public Law 141, Seventy-third Congress, be made concurrently with the payment of compensation (pension) for disability incurred in World War II? (b) What is the total amount payable in the instant case? FACTS: The veteran performed honorable military service from June 3, 1918, to March 18, 1919, and at the time of reentrance into service, February 4, 1942, he was being paid the statutory allowance of $25 monthly for loss of the use of a creative organ under the provisions of section 202 (3), World War Veterans' Act, 1924, as amended, and reenacted by Public Law 141, Seventy-third Congress. The testicular condition is not one for which a pensionable evaluation may be assigned under the Schedule for Rating Disabilities, 1933. During World War II service the veteran incurred another disability and after final discharge, April 6, 1945, a rating of 10 percent was assigned for arthritis, under the provisions of Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), part I. The award of $25 monthly for loss of the use of a creative organ was authorized, effective the day following the date of last discharge, but compensation (pension) on the basis of the 10 percent rating for arthritis, the lesser benefit, was denied. |