Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

From The VA

Foster Homes for Vets

VA’s Medical Foster Home program finds a caregiver in the community who is willing to provide a Veteran with 24-hour supervision and personal assistance. Read about the program in the Wall Street Journal

Top Veterans Stories in Today’s News

1. Treasury Moves to Protect Federal Benefits Washington, DC – The Treasury Department is releasing new rules preventing banks from seizing Social Security and other federal benefits from customers facing debt collectors. Federal law prohibits creditors from taking Social Security to recover a debt, but the law doesn’t say how money deposited directly into bank accounts is to be protected.
2. National Cemetery construction begins this week Florence, South Carolina – A new project will begin at the Florence National Cemetery as part of the Veteran’s Affairs National Shrine Commitment. “VA’s National Shrine Commitment is an initiative to maintain the appearance of national cemeteries in a manner befitting their status as national shrines,” Florence National Cemetery Director Lynnette Parker said.
3. Bill Would Help Veterans With VA Deadlines Washington, DC – Specter Seeks to Help Disabled Veterans by Keeping Courts Open to Benefits Appeals. Bill would give veterans fair access to courts; Recent Court of Appeals decision punishes veterans trying to adjudicate cases who don’t meet rigid deadlines – often because of service-related injuries
4. El Paso site tops list for new veterans’ cemetery Fountain, Colorado (AP) – A ranch near Fountain is the leading candidate for a new veterans cemetery in southern Colorado. In a statement Tuesday, Rep. Doug Lamborn says the Department of Veterans’ Affairs considers Kane Ranch the “leading potential site” out several southern Colorado sites considered. The VA has initiated and environmental assessment and construction could begin in two years.
5. Veterans Affairs executive to join Honor Flight Martin County, Florida – The executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs, retired Rear Admiral LeRoy Collins Jr. is scheduled to welcome World War II veterans to the Honor Flight Veteran Orientation on May 1, at the Blake Library in Stuart.
   Honor Flight is making arrangements for the first of three flights in 2010 to the WWII Memorial in Washington DC on May 8.
6. Veterans Lobby Day against DADT is set for May Washington DC – Servicemembers United and the Human Rights Campaign today announced expanded plans for a national Veterans Lobby Day to be held on May 10-11 in Washington as Congress begins to focus on the defense authorization bill – the likely vehicle for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) repeal. The lobby day, which will bring hundreds of gay and lesbian veterans and their straight veteran allies from around the nation to Capitol Hill, is expected to be the largest lobbying event on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” to date.
7. Vermont VA administrator on trial over test finances Brattleboro, Vermont – A Veterans Affairs administrator who also worked at Dartmouth College went on trial Monday for allegedly using his dual roles to steer federal research money into a faculty account that he controlled, in violation of federal conflict-of-interest laws.
8. Cleland says Reid has done so much for veterans Mesquite, Nevada – Senator Harry Reid has worked hard for the veterans of Nevada, and his efforts include winning approval for a $600-million veterans hospital and nursing home for Southern Nevada somewhere around 2012. That’s what Max Cleland, former Georgia senator and disabled veteran, told a group of veterans in Mesquite Saturday. The meeting was organized by local Democrats. Cleland is campaigning for Reid, who is seeking re-election this year.
9. Duckworth speech marks peak of Veterans Summit Las Vegas, Nevada – Retired Maj. Tammy Duckworth, one of the National Guard’s most famous veterans, was recently in the spotlight in Las Vegas as she shared a powerful message about her personal quest for success as a veterans advocate at the Third annual Nevada Women Veterans Summit. Duckworth, now an assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, was the first keynote speaker of the event. The summit was open to all female National Guard soldiers and airmen, active duty servicemembers, reservists, and veterans.
10. Foreclosure looms for VA-leased building in Baltimore Baltimore, Maryland – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs could be kicked out of a building on Baltimore’s west side, six months before it even moves into the seven-story structure. That’s because the building’s owner has defaulted on the loan it took out two years ago to buy the former Catholic Relief Services headquarters at 209 W. Fayette St.