Amendment #31 to H4661

Establishing a Commission to Research and Improve Veterans’ Quality of Life in the Commonwealth

Mr. Capano of Lynn moves to amend the bill by adding the following 2 sections:

"SECTION XXXX. Section 14 of chapter 94G of the General Laws,  as amended by section 21 of chapter 77 of the acts of 2023, is hereby further amended by inserting after the words “section 14A” the following words:- ; and provided further, that, annually, 5 per cent of the fund shall be transferred to the Veterans Research Trust Fund, established in section 18 of chapter 115.

SECTION YYYY. Chapter 115 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-

Section 18. (a) There shall be a commission to study and develop proposals for ways to improve veteran quality of life in the Commonwealth. The commission shall collaborate with non-profit organizations and public and private academic institutions to conduct and aggregate research on the challenges facing veterans and the spouses and families of veterans and develop proposals to improve the lives of veterans in the Commonwealth.

(b) The commission shall consist of 11 members: the secretary of veterans’ services or a designee; the veteran advocate, appointed pursuant to section 3 of chapter 115B, or a designee; a representative and an observer from BRAVE for Veterans, Inc.; 2 persons with experience in veterans’ advocacy, to be appointed by the governor; 3 faculty or staff members from public institutions of higher education with research experience in veterans’ issues, to be appointed by the governor; an attorney with knowledge or the Commonwealth’s legal and regulatory framework pertaining to veterans, to be appointed by the governor; 1 person who is a veteran or the spouse or family member of a veteran, to be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives; and 1 person who is a veteran or the spouse or family member of a veteran, to be appointed by the president of the senate.

(c) The commission shall meet at least twice per calendar year. Not later than November 30 of every odd-numbered year, the commission shall submit to the joint committee on veterans and federal affairs and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate a report on its research activities, which shall include: (i) a summary of the commission’s findings; (ii) a breakdown of any money expended on research and operational costs; and (iii) proposals for any necessary legislative or regulatory changes based on its research findings.

(d) There shall be a Veterans Research Trust Fund to be expended, without further appropriation, by the commission established in this section. The fund shall consist of: (i) monies received under subsection (b) of section 14 of chapter 94G; (ii) money transferred to the fund by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund; (iii) funds from public and private sources, including, but not limited to, gifts, grants and donations; and (iv) interest earned on such money. Amounts credited to the fund that are unexpended at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund. The commission shall use money from the fund for the research of veterans’ issues and its members’ individual operational costs as a base amount at the beginning of each Fiscal Year. The commission’s operation costs shall not exceed 10 per cent of the money it expends in a fiscal year.”.