This release by Senator Daniel Akaka
today may very well be the closest
he can get to an official reaction
to the posted video story below
on the shocking barracks conditions
at Fort Bragg. This issued does not
fall squarely under the authority
of the Senate Veterans Affairs
Committee of which he chairs. But
to that end, this release does
suggest or imply that he is
interested and trying to do something
important to help stave off any
other future instances of it's
kind until the next Administration
takes it's official seat.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Kawika Riley (Veterans’ Affairs)


April 29, 2008 (202) 224-9126



AKAKA INTRODUCES BILL TO CONTINUE OVERSIGHT FOR TROOPS RETURNING FROM COMBAT INTO NEXT ADMINISTRATION

Bill calls for three-year extension for VA/DoD Senior Oversight Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI), Chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, introduced a bill yesterday to ensure the continuation of the VA/DOD Senior Oversight Committee (SOC), the entity responsible for improving transition from military service to veteran status for severely wounded and injured servicemembers. The SOC was formed in the wake of last year’s Walter Reed scandal and is scheduled to be terminated in January 2009.

“The conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan will outlast the current Administration. So too should the Defense and Veterans Affairs Departments combined efforts to assist servicemembers returning from war,” said Akaka. “I am committed to sustaining this effort as long as our troops are in combat.”

The proposed Senior Oversight Committee Extension Act of 2008 would require a three-year extension of the SOC, ensuring that it would continue to oversee and assist in shaping VA and DOD oversight and transition activities. The Administration’s current plan is to eliminate the SOC and shift its responsibilities to the existing VA/DOD Joint Executive Council (JEC). The JEC has neither full-time staff nor the senior-level involvement that exists in SOC (which is co-chaired by the VA and DOD Deputy Secretaries).

Chairman Akaka has long advocated for the continuity of VA and DOD’s SOC. Earlier this year, he called on the Departments to develop a succession plan for the upcoming change in Administration. Last week, he held his eleventh hearing on VA and DOD cooperation and collaboration, in which he pressed the Departments on the need for stronger oversight and improved transition for returning service men and women.

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END of Akaka Release via email today