Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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SIGNED INTO LAW: Sens. Moran, Tester’s Bill to Increase Transparency of VA Health Record Modernization

Source: United States Senator for Kansas – Jerry Moran

WASHINGTON – Today, President Joe Biden signed into law the VA Electronic Health Record Transparency Act of 2021, legislation introduced by Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) – ranking member and chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee – to increase transparency surrounding the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) program.

Last summer, the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) released three reports that raised concerns surrounding the deployment of the EHRM program. Two of the reports raised issues with cost estimates and reporting. The VA Electronic Health Record Transparency Act would hold the VA accountable and increase transparency by requiring the VA Secretary to submit periodic reports to Congress regarding the costs, performance metrics and outcomes for EHRM.

“The VA, and consequently our nation, has invested a great deal of time and money into the VA Electronic Health Record Modernization program,” said Ranking Member Moran. “The potential benefits of this program are important, and it is vital to get it right. Now that this legislation has been signed into law, we can make certain the VA is providing the proper transparency throughout the EHRM implementation. This will better allow the committee to conduct oversight during the deployment process to ensure veterans receive the care they deserve and hold the VA accountable for taxpayer dollars.”

“It’s clear that VA’s Electronic Health Record Modernization program is not working for veterans, VA employees, or taxpayers,” said Chairman Tester. “I’m proud to have worked with Senator Moran and our colleagues to get our bipartisan bill across the finish line, allowing us to increase oversight and transparency on behalf of the VA medical staff using this program, so we can better provide our nation’s veterans the quality care they have earned.”

Senators John Boozman (R-Ark.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), along with Mike Braun (R-Ind.), cosponsored the legislation.

Following the release of the third VA OIG report earlier this year, Sen. Moran released a statement available here and Sen. Tester released a statement available here. Sens. Moran and Tester also held a hearing titled, “VA Electronic Health Records: Modernization and the Path Ahead” with VA Secretary Denis McDonough

The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee plans to hold a hearing on the EHRM program on July 20.

U.S. Representatives Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Mike Bost (R-Ill.) and Frank J. Mrvan (D-Ind.) introduced companion legislation that passed the U.S. House of Representatives last November.

Bill text of H.R. 4591, the VA Electronic Health Record Transparency Act of 2021, can be found here. 

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Rounds’ South Dakota Nominees Starting at U.S. Service Academies

Source: United States Senator for South Dakota Mike Rounds

06.23.22

Deadline for Class of 2027 Applications is October 1, 2022

PIERRE – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) announced that seven South Dakota students he nominated to the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Military Academy and the U.S. Air Force Academy have been accepted as members of the graduating class of 2026 at their respective academies. Rounds’ office is currently accepting nomination applications for the graduating class of 2027. Applications must be submitted by October 1, 2022. More information on the nomination process can be found HERE.

“Each year, I am honored to nominate individuals to U.S. service academies,” said Rounds. “By attending an academy, students have the opportunity to serve our nation while receiving an excellent education at a top-notch institution. I encourage young South Dakotans looking to answer the call of duty to consider applying to one of our prestigious military academies. These young men and women become our nation’s future military leaders.”

The following students were nominated by Rounds and are joining the 2022-2023 freshman class at their respective academies later this month.

U.S. Naval Academy

Aiden Kasten, Brandon

Daniel Colby, Sioux Falls

Halle Fjelland, Spearfish

U.S. Military Academy

Luke Jegeris, Rapid City

Grace Kaiser, Aberdeen

U.S. Air Force Academy

John Costello, Sioux Falls

Gunnar Kvistad, Clark

Each year, Rounds is able to nominate South Dakota students to the U.S. service academies. Each academy then gives full and fair consideration to these nominations when selecting applicants. Nominations are available for the following institutions: the United States Air Force Academy, United States Military Academy at West Point, United States Naval Academy at Annapolis and United States Merchant Marines Academy. Questions about the academy nomination process can be directed to Rounds’ Sioux Falls office by emailing Academy_Nominations@rounds.senate.gov or by calling (605) 336-0486. An informational packet and the application packet can be found HERE.

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Sen. Johnson Introduces Resolution Designating July 2022 as National Sarcoma Awareness Month

Source: United States Senator for Wisconsin Ron Johnson

WASHINGTON—On Thursday, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) introduced a resolution designating July 2022 as National Sarcoma Awareness Month, to raise awareness of sarcoma, a form of cancer, and to honor the life of Melissa Locke and the many other Americans that this disease affects. Sen. Johnson first introduced this resolution last year designating July 2021 as National Sarcoma Awareness Month, and it was passed in the Senate by unanimous consent

“I am pleased to re-introduce this resolution to honor Melissa Locke and the countless other Americans who have struggled with the life-threatening disease sarcoma,” said Senator Johnson. “I hope we can continue to increase awareness of this complex form of cancer that is diagnosed thousands of times each year.”

 

Sen. Johnson with Melissa and Brendan Locke

 

“In the United States about 16,000 individuals are diagnosed with sarcoma each year; approximately 7,000 individuals die from sarcoma each year; about 50,000 individuals struggle with sarcoma at any 1 time; each year, about 1 percent of cancers diagnosed in adults and around 20 percent of cancers diagnosed in children are sarcoma,” the resolution read in part.

“July 2022 would be an appropriate month to designate as National Sarcoma Awareness Month to raise awareness about sarcoma, and to encourage more individuals in the United States to get properly diagnosed and treated.”

A copy of the resolution can be found here.

 

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Sen. Johnson Joins Sen. Hagerty, Colleagues in Bicameral Joint Statement Calling on Biden Admin to Reverse Plan to Create an Unofficial U.S. Consulate to the Palestinians in Jerusalem

Source: United States Senator for Wisconsin Ron Johnson

WASHINGTON—On Thursday, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) joined U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Representative Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) and more than 80 Members of Congress in releasing a bicameral joint statement, calling on the Biden Administration to reverse course on its plan to erode the full and faithful implementation of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 by moving the Palestinian Affairs Unit (PAU) out of the U.S. Ambassador to Israel’s reporting chain of command and renaming it the “U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs” which would serve as an unofficial U.S. consulate to the Palestinians in Jerusalem:

“It is alarming that the Biden Administration has opened what amounts to be a separate U.S. diplomatic office to the Palestinians in Israel’s capital. This decision is wholly inconsistent with the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 that Congress passed into law and has repeatedly reaffirmed with overwhelming bipartisan support over the years. We strongly supported the Trump Administration’s decision to fully and faithfully implement the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 by formally recognizing Jerusalem as the eternal and undivided capital of Israel, by moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and by closing the U.S. Consulate General for the Palestinians in Jerusalem and merging its functions into the U.S. Embassy’s ‘Palestinian Affairs Unit’ within one diplomatic mission under the authority the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. The Biden Administration’s disregard for that law, however, undermines our nation’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and signals support for dividing Jerusalem.

“Let there be no misunderstanding: this unprecedented arrangement—to turn the Palestinian Affairs Unit into a ‘U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs’ that will no longer report to the U.S. Ambassador to Israel but instead report directly to the State Department in Washington, D.C., and to appoint a Special Envoy to the Palestinians—is an effort to open an unofficial and de facto U.S. consulate to the Palestinians in Jerusalem. In fact, the Biden Administration admits this decision is one step closer to opening an official U.S. consulate, a plan it refuses to stop pushing despite the Government of Israel’s adamant opposition and Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Brian McKeon’s admission to Congress in October 2021 that the United States, under international law, would ‘need to get the consent of the host government to open any diplomatic facility.’

“The Biden Administration’s decision is wrong and not how America should treat Israel, one of our closest allies in the world. As sponsors of the Upholding the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Law Act of 2021 to withhold funding for a U.S. consulate to the Palestinians in Israel’s capital, we unequivocally oppose the Biden Administration’s decision and will use every tool at our disposal to stop it in the 117th Congress and afterwards.”

Sen. Johnson, Sen. Hagerty and Rep. Zeldin were joined on the statement by Senators Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Mike Lee (R-Utah), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and 55 members of the House of Representatives.

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Manchin, Capito Announce More Than $3.6 Million in PILT Payments to West Virginia

Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Joe Manchin

June 23, 2022

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) today announced $3,617,997 from the U.S. Department of Interior’s Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program to 36 West Virginia counties. These payments are made annually to counties with non-taxable Federal land within their borders to offset the lost property tax revenue.

“For more than 40 years, PILT payments have helped ensure local governments across the Mountain State have the resources they need to help offset budget shortfalls caused by their inability to collect taxes on Federal lands. These critical payments provide our communities with crucial support for essential services, such as law enforcement, education, firefighting, road maintenance and public health. I am pleased to announce this significant funding, and I look forward to seeing the positive impacts of this investment. As Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will always fight for vital programs like PILT that invest in West Virginia,” said Chairman Manchin.

“Funding through the PILT program helps offset shortfalls that our municipalities face in serving their residents, and invests into our communities. It is welcome news to see this support heading to West Virginia, and I look forward to seeing the positive impact this will have in our counties across the state,” Senator Capito said.

Full list of funding by county below:

  • Barbour – $3,114
  • Braxton – $77,108
  • Cabell – $6,601
  • Fayette – $107,903
  • Grant – $47,110
  • Greenbrier – $317,466
  • Hampshire – $9,995
  • Hardy – $151,464
  • Jefferson – $14,972
  • Kanawha – $940
  • Lewis – $60,024
  • Marion – $656
  • Mason – $2,271
  • Mercer – $344
  • Mineral – $10,342
  • Mingo – $10,301
  • Monongalia – $265
  • Monroe – $61,840
  • Morgan – $338
  • Nicholas – $109,901
  • Ohio – $250
  • Pendleton – $296,370
  • Pleasants – $132
  • Pocahontas – $914,685
  • Preston – $11,540
  • Putnam – $1,199
  • Raleigh – $39,424
  • Randolph – $596,784
  • Summers – $69,746
  • Taylor – $6,094
  • Tucker – $299,199
  • Wayne – $105,814
  • Webster – $193,376
  • Wetzel – $126
  • Wood – $362
  • Wyoming – $89,941

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Manchin: It’s the Child Protection Bill, As Far As I’m Concerned

Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Joe Manchin

June 23, 2022

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) spoke on the Senate Floor on the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

Senator Manchin said in part, “Something has to be done. It’s not open season on children…If you can’t, as a parent, or grandparent send your child off to school, knowing full well they’re going to return home safe. If you have that doubt in your mind, and that child has that doubt, and they’re scared to go to school, then something is wrong with our system in America…But the bottom line is, we have got to take a position that we’re going to protect our children, this is what it’s about. It’s the child protection bill, as far as I’m concerned. And if you can’t protect the children in America, if you can’t protect the children in your neighborhood, in your school system, that go to school, the same school as your children and grandchildren, then God help us all.”

The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act will:

  • Support state crisis intervention orders
  • Increase protections for victims of domestic violence
  • Clarify definition of ‘federally licensed firearms dealer’
  • Strengthen review process for 18-21 year olds
  • Reinforce penalties for ‘straw purchasing’
  • Support violence interruption funding
  • Invest in children and family mental health services
  • Increase funding for school safety
To watch Senator Manchin’s floor speech, click here
Background one pager on the bill can be found here

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Manchin Statement on the 6th Anniversary of 2016 Flood in West Virginia

Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Joe Manchin

June 23, 2022

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) released the following statement on the 6th anniversary of the 2016 flood that devastated communities across West Virginia and killed 23 West Virginians.

“Every West Virginian remembers the terrible flooding that ravaged the southern region of our state, killing 23 of our fellow West Virginians and destroying thousands of homes. Gayle and I join all West Virginians in continuing to pray for the families whose lives were forever changed by the loss of their loved ones. West Virginia continues to prove that we can overcome anything when we come together as a state, and I am incredibly proud of our strong, resilient statewide community. I encourage every West Virginian to take a moment today to remember the lives lost during the flood and to continue helping our neighbors rebuild after this horrible tragedy.”

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Murkowski Announces Investment in Critical Minerals Mapping from Infrastructure Law

Source: United States Senator for Alaska Lisa Murkowski

06.23.22

U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announced that the Department of the Interior will direct $74 million into mapping areas with potential for critical mineral production under the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI). The majority of this funding – $64 million – is made possible by the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which Senator Murkowski helped write, negotiate, and shepherd into law. This investment will be distributed among 30 states, including Alaska.

“Allowing America’s foreign mineral dependence to continue is not only a risk to our national security but is a hindrance to our ability to maintain a robust domestic supply chain. I’ve been working diligently to educate my colleagues and the administration about the vast potential of states like Alaska, and the importance of allowing us to use the resources that are in our own backyard. I’m proud that the funding I helped secure through the bipartisan infrastructure law will take us one step closer to doing just that,” said Senator Murkowski. “By improving the research and data surrounding critical minerals, we will be able to better pinpoint what locations in the U.S. hold the greatest opportunities for responsible resource production. We will also further improve our ability to harvest those resources in the most environmentally responsible and sustainable manner possible. I will continue to use my leadership in the Senate to help ensure that U.S. critical mineral supply chains are robust and responsibly produced for the sake of every American who relies on them.”

For more information on Earth MRI, click here.

For more information on the initiatives this funding will support, follow the links below.

Background: As a resource development state, Alaska has immense potential at a local, national and global scale. But, despite growing interest to bring domestic resources to market, America continues to rely on foreign countries to meet our oil, gas, and mineral needs. This announcement builds on Senator Murkowski’s diligent efforts to drive policy initiatives to create greater opportunities for America’s domestic energy and critical mineral markets. Recognizing that permitting times in the U.S. rank among some of the longest in the world, in April 2021, Murkowski introduced legislation to improve the quality and timeliness of Federal permitting and review processes with respect to critical mineral production on Federal land. Portions of this legislation were adopted into law in the IIJA, which will improve the timeliness and efficiency for the permitting of critical mineral projects, like the proposed development of graphite near Nome, cobalt in the Ambler region, or rare earths in Southeast.

Senator Murkowski also delivered a speech on the U.S. Senate floor expressing concern with the direction of the Biden administration with regards to energy security, citing detrimental actions such as placing additional federal lands and waters off limits. During her speech she discussed concerns over America’s dependence on foreign nations to meet our resource needs and stressed the importance of allowing responsible resource development in the United States. She then introduced the Strategic Energy and Minerals Initiative (SEMI) Act in May of 2021. Her bill enables U.S. companies to better compete in global markets by promoting the responsible, domestic production of oil, gas, and minerals. The bill positions the United States to compete in global energy and critical mineral markets by supporting an all-of-the-above energy strategy, pushing back against multilateral development banks restricting fossil fuel and coal development, and promoting energy and mineral exports.  

Within the IIJA, Senator Murkowski helped secure language which makes critical mineral development projects eligible for DOE’s Title 17 Loan Guarantee to receive financing. 

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Myth vs Fact: Bipartisan Safer Communities Act

Source: United States Senator for Alaska Lisa Murkowski

06.23.22

MYTH: This measure creates a national, federal red flag law, and forces states who don’t have red or yellow flag laws to adopt them.

THE FACTS

  • This does not create a national, federal red flag law.
  • This legislation does not require or incentivize states to adopt red or yellow flag laws.
  • States without red flag laws, such as Alaska, will receive funding and can use it to implement other programs like Veterans’ Courts, Drug and DUI Courts, and Mental Health Courts.
  • This measure forces states who choose to use grant funding for red flag laws to comply with strict and comprehensive due process requirements.

MYTH: This measure gives Alaskans’ taxpayer dollars to liberal states to take Americans’ guns away without due process. 

THE FACTS

  • Every state will receive grant funding based on an existing formula, and have flexibility to use these funds on crisis intervention court programs that work best for them.
  • This bill would force states with red flag laws to adopt due process procedures, such as the right to an in-person hearing and an unbiased adjudicator, before they could spend any grant funding on those programs.
  • It does not require or incentivize any state to adopt red flag laws, or penalize states for not having those laws.

MYTH: Red flag laws let anyone tell the police or health care professional that someone is crazy and they immediately have their guns taken away.

THE FACTS

  • The bill ensures that won’t happen through strict and comprehensive due process requirements.
  • In order to have a firearm taken away, a person will first have go through an adjudicatory process, including rights to an in-person hearing, unbiased adjudicator, to present evidence and know opposing evidence, confront witnesses, right to counsel, and heightened evidentiary standards and proof.
  • This would force states who use federal funds to implement red flag laws to adopt strict and comprehensive due process procedures in order to use grant funding on those programs.

MYTH: The bill requires background and mental health checks for 18- to 21-year-olds.

THE FACTS

  • The bill does not mandate mental health checks.
  • Background checks are already required for anyone who wants to purchase a gun from a federally licensed dealer, including those in the 18-21 age range.
  • For buyers under 21 years of age, it expands the background check requirement to include review of juvenile records, including checks with state databases and local law enforcement, only for the purpose of determining whether the individual has a juvenile record that meets criteria under existing law that disqualifies them from purchasing a firearm, such as having been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year.

MYTH: Closing the “boyfriend loophole” is a new restriction and limits Americans’ gun rights.

THE FACTS 

  • Unless you are convicted of domestic violence, this will have no impact on your gun rights.
  • This provision narrowly applies to individuals in current or recently-ended continuing relationships of a romantic or intimate nature with their victim.
  • It is not retroactive.
  • Even if you are convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence against a non-spouse, you will automatically get your gun rights back five years after the end of your criminal sentence, if you committed no further crimes of violence during this time period.

MYTH: This bill creates universal background checks.

THE FACTS

  • This is not true.
  • In the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, background checks through the NICS system are still only required for firearm purchases from a federally licensed dealer (a.k.a. a Federal Firearm Licensee).

MYTH: This bill creates mandatory waiting periods.

THE FACTS

  • This legislation does not create mandatory waiting periods.
  • Under existing law, when an individual goes to purchase a firearm from a federally licensed dealer, they undergo a background check through the NICS system, which can take up to 72 hours.
  • In the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, for individuals between 18-20 years of age, the NICS check is expanded to also look at juvenile records. If there is a juvenile record that could potentially disqualify someone from purchasing a gun, the FBI must investigate the record within three days, but can request up to seven additional days if they show cause for needing more time to make a determination. If the FBI does not act within those seven days, the individual can automatically purchase a firearm.

MYTH: This bill incentivizes domestic violence survivors to get an abortion.

THE FACTS

  • That is false. Under no circumstance does the bill incentivize anyone to get an abortion.

 

 

Related Issues: Second Amendment

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Cortez Masto, Rosen Applaud Over $29 Million in PILT Payments to Nevada Counties

Source: United States Senator for Nevada Cortez Masto

June 23, 2022

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) announced that the Department of the Interior (DOI) had awarded $29,146,696 under the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program to rural counties in Nevada for Fiscal Year 2022.

“Rural counties across Nevada rely on PILT payments to support local law enforcement and first responders and to fund housing, education, and conservation projects that strengthen our communities,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “I’ve worked throughout my time in Congress to stabilize and support the PILT program because I’ve seen firsthand how vital it is for rural Nevadans.” 

“These PILT payments will allow many of Nevada’s rural communities to afford essential services, including those provided by first responders,” said Senator Rosen. “I’m glad to see that communities across Nevada will receive over $29 million in funds this year, and I will continue working to ensure Nevada receives its fair share of federal resources.”

PILT payments are federal payments to local governments that help offset losses in property taxes due to non-taxable federal lands within those governments’ boundaries. PILT payments help local governments carry out such vital services as firefighting and police protection, construction of public schools and roads, and search-and-rescue operations. The payments are made annually for tax-exempt federal lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (all agencies of the Department of the Interior), the U.S. Forest Service (part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture), and for federal water projects and some military installations.

Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen have been champions of the PILT program, and they have repeatedly called for a long-term solution to secure PILT program for the future. Both Senators are also cosponsors of the Small County PILT Parity Act, legislation that would modify the PILT formula so that counties with populations under 5,000 would receive increased PILT payments.

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