IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 3, 2004

Sponsor: Rep. Brandon Long (KY-6)
Co-Sponsor's: Wilt, Lalli, Harper, Heath, Devlin, Juckett

A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to require that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs establish a single toll free telephone number for access by the public to veterans benefits counselors of the Department of Veterans Affairs and to ensure that such counselors have available to them information about veterans benefits provided by all Federal departments and agencies and by State governments.


Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

That section 7723 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

`�(1) The Secretary shall provide for a single toll-free telephone number to be available for access by the public to veterans benefits counselors of the Department.

`(2) The Secretary shall ensure that (in addition to information about benefits provided under laws administered by the Secretary) veterans benefits counselors of the Department have available to them information about veterans benefits provided by--

`(A) all other departments and agencies of the United States and

`( State governments.

`(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term `veterans benefits' means benefits provided to persons based upon their own service or the service of someone else in the Armed Forces.'.