Veterans Communication Improvement Act

Floor Speech

Mr. HEINRICH. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today to introduce the Veterans Communication Improvement Act. This bill will provide for a smoother transition for servicemembers moving to veteran status, and it will help facilitate the communication between all veterans and veterans' services.

Currently, when a servicemember concludes his service to our country, he fills out a form known as the DD-214. This form is essentially a compilation of a member's time in the military. It includes awards and medals and other pertinent service information such as promotions, combat service or service overseas. The DD-214 also contains information needed to verify military service for benefits, retirement, employment, and membership in veterans' organizations, which makes it one of the most important documents in the military.

As to be expected, the DD-214 contains the current physical address and phone number of the veteran, but there is no place on the form for a veteran to include his or her e-mail as the best way to be contacted. Far too often, however, when servicemembers return home from active duty or if a veteran has simply moved to a new home, they lose contact with the Department of Veterans Affairs. This bill will enable one more avenue of communication, an e-mail address, to be included on each servicemember's DD-214 form.

For many veterans, particularly for our youngest veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, a personal e-mail address is the most common and efficient way to communicate with them. In utilizing modern e-mail technology, this legislation will make great strides in expediting the delivery of benefits that our country's veterans unquestionably deserve. These brave Americans and their families have made immeasurable sacrifices to our Nation's well-being. I am honored to sponsor this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

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