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38 USC Sec. 1310 01/03/05
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TITLE 38 - VETERANS' BENEFITS
PART II - GENERAL BENEFITS
CHAPTER 13 - DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION FOR
SERVICE-CONNECTED DEATHS
SUBCHAPTER II - DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION
-HEAD-
Sec. 1310. Deaths entitling survivors to dependency and indemnity
compensation
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(a) When any veteran dies after December 31, 1956, from a service-
connected or compensable disability, the Secretary shall pay
dependency and indemnity compensation to such veteran's surviving
spouse, children, and parents. The standards and criteria for
determining whether or not a disability is service-connected shall
be those applicable under chapter 11 of this title.
(b) Dependency and indemnity compensation shall not be paid to
the surviving spouse, children, or parents of any veteran dying
after December 31, 1956, unless such veteran (1) was discharged or
released under conditions other than dishonorable from the period
of active military, naval, or air service in which the disability
causing such veteran's death was incurred or aggravated, or (2)
died while in the active military, naval, or air service.
(c) A person who receives a payment under the provisions of the
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 2210 note)
shall not be deprived, by reason of the receipt of that payment, of
receipt of dependency and indemnity compensation to which that
person is otherwise entitled, but there shall be deducted from
payment of such dependency and indemnity compensation the amount of
the payment under that Act.
-SOURCE-
(Pub. L. 85-857, Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1127, Sec. 410; Pub. L. 94-
433, title IV, Sec. 405(7), Sept. 30, 1976, 90 Stat. 1379; Pub. L.
95-479, title II, Sec. 204, Oct. 18, 1978, 92 Stat. 1564; Pub. L.
97-306, title I, Sec. 112(a), Oct. 14, 1982, 96 Stat. 1432; Pub. L.
100-687, div. B, title XIV, Sec. 1403(b), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat.
4131; renumbered Sec. 1310 and amended Pub. L. 102-83, Secs.
4(b)(1), (2)(E), 5(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 404-406; Pub. L. 108-
454, title III, Sec. 302(b), Dec. 10, 2004, 118 Stat. 3610.)
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REFERENCES IN TEXT
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, referred to in subsec.
(c), is Pub. L. 101-426, Oct. 15, 1990, 104 Stat. 920, as amended,
which is set out as a note under section 2210 of Title 42, The
Public Health and Welfare.
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AMENDMENTS
2004 - Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 108-454 added subsec. (c).
1991 - Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(a), renumbered section 410 of this
title as this section.
Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(b)(1), (2)(E), substituted
"Secretary" for "Administrator".
1988 - Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 100-687 redesignated subsec.
(c) as (b) and struck out former subsec. (b) which read as follows:
"(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this
section, when any veteran dies, not as the result of the veteran's
own willful misconduct, if the veteran was in receipt of or
entitled to receive (or but for the receipt of retired or
retirement pay was entitled to receive) compensation at the time of
death for a service-connected disability that either (A) was
continuously rated totally disabling for a period of ten or more
years immediately preceding death, or (B) if so rated for a lesser
period, was so rated continuously for a period of not less than
five years from the date of such veteran's discharge or other
release from active duty, the Administrator shall pay benefits
under this chapter to the veteran's surviving spouse, if such
surviving spouse was married to such veteran for not less than two
years immediately preceding such veteran's death, and to such
veteran's children, in the same manner as if the veteran's death
were service connected.
"(2) If a surviving spouse or a child receives any money or
property of value pursuant to an award in a judicial proceeding
based upon, or a settlement or compromise of, any cause of action
for damages for the death of a veteran described in paragraph (1)
of this subsection, benefits under this chapter payable to such
surviving spouse or child by virtue of this subsection shall not be
paid for any month following a month in which any such money or
property is received until such time as the total amount of such
benefits that would otherwise have been payable equals the total of
the amount of the money received and the fair market value of the
property received.
"(3) For purposes of sections 1448(d) and 1450(c) of title 10,
eligibility for benefits under this chapter by virtue of this
subsection shall be deemed eligibility for dependency and indemnity
compensation under section 411(a) of this title."
1982 - Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 97-306 inserted "or entitled to
receive" after "was in receipt of".
1978 - Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 95-479 added subsec. (b) and
redesignated former subsec. (b) as (c).
1976 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 94-433 substituted "such veteran's
surviving spouse" for "his widow".
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 94-433 substituted "surviving spouse", "such
veteran", and "such veteran's" for "widow", "he", and "his",
respectively.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1982 AMENDMENT; RETROSPECTIVE PAYMENTS
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2004 AMENDMENT
Subsec. (c) of this section effective with respect to dependency
and indemnity compensation payments for months beginning after Mar.
26, 2002, see section 302(c) of Pub. L. 108-454, set out as a note
under section 1112 of this title.
Section 112(b) of Pub. L. 97-306 provided that:
"(1) The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section]
shall take effect on October 1, 1982.
"(2)(A) As soon as practicable after September 30, 1982, the
Administrator of Veterans' Affairs shall pay an amount determined
under subparagraph (B) to each person who would have been entitled
to a payment under chapter 13 of title 38, United States Code, for
any part of the period beginning on October 1, 1978, and ending on
September 30, 1982, if the amendment made by subsection (a)
[amending this section] had taken effect on October 1, 1978.
"(B) The amount of any payment to a person under subparagraph (A)
is the amount equal to the total of all payments under chapter 13
of title 38, United States Code, that would have been made to that
person for the period described in such subparagraph if the
amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] had taken
effect on October 1, 1978."
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1978 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 95-479 effective Oct. 1, 1978, see section
401(a) of Pub. L. 95-479, set out as a note under section 1114 of
this title.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1976 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 94-433 effective Oct. 1, 1976, see section
406 of Pub. L. 94-433, set out as a note under section 1101 of this
title.
GAO REPORT RELATING TO BENEFITS FOR SURVIVORS OF VETERANS AND
MEMBERS OF ARMED FORCES
Pub. L. 102-568, title I, Sec. 104, Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat.
4322, provided that:
"(a) In General. - The Comptroller General of the United States
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate
and House of Representatives a report with respect to the most
appropriate combination of financial, health-care, educational, and
other survivor benefits to meet the needs of survivors of veterans.
"(b) Contents of Report. - The report shall include the
following:
"(1) A review and compilation of data on current and proposed
survivor benefits programs that will permit an assessment of the
adequacy of such benefits programs, including information on -
"(A) in the case of each current and proposed alternative
survivor benefits program -
"(i) each benefit provided;
"(ii) the survivors entitled to the benefit;
"(iii) the extent to which survivors are entitled to
similar benefits under the program; and
"(iv) the costs of providing such benefits under the
program;
"(B) the extent to which current and anticipated benefits
under current survivor benefits programs meet the current and
anticipated financial, health-care, educational, and other
needs of survivors; and
"(C) the differences, if any, in the survivor benefits
provided under current and proposed survivor benefits programs
to survivors of various categories of veterans and members of
the Armed Forces (including survivors of veterans having
service-connected disabilities, veterans without such
disabilities, members of the Armed Forces who die during
service in the Armed Forces, members of the Armed Forces
retired under any provision of law other than chapter 61 of
title 10, United States Code, and members of the Armed Forces
retired under chapter 61 of title 10, United States Code
(relating to retirement or separation for physical
disability)).
"(2) A review and compilation of existing studies on the
adequacy of survivor benefits provided under current and proposed
survivor benefits programs to meet the financial, health-care,
educational, and other needs of survivors.
"(3) A comprehensive assessment and evaluation of the adequacy
of current and proposed survivor benefits programs, including
data and methods for an assessment and evaluation of -
"(A) the feasibility and desirability of limiting the period
of entitlement of survivors to survivor benefits;
"(B) the feasibility and desirability of modifying the
provision of monetary benefits to survivors by -
"(i) revising the term of payment of any such benefits;
"(ii) replacing the periodic payment of such benefits with
a lump sum payment;
"(iii) providing such benefits through insurance or other
premium-based payment mechanisms; or
"(iv) carrying out any other revision or modification
proposed before the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct.
29, 1992] by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Secretary
of Defense, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, or
organizations recognized by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
under section 5902(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code;
"(C) the feasibility and desirability of modifying the
provision of health-care benefits to survivors;
"(D) the feasibility and desirability of modifying the
provision of benefits to children survivors; and
"(E) the feasibility and desirability of consolidating,
expanding, or otherwise modifying any program relating to the
provision of survivor benefits.
"(4) The recommendations of the Comptroller General (including
a proposal for legislation) on the most appropriate combination
of survivor benefits to meet the current and anticipated
financial, health-care, educational, and other needs of
survivors.
"(c) Submission of Report. - The Comptroller General shall submit
the report not later than April 1, 1994.
"(d) Definitions. - In this section:
"(1) The term 'survivor', in the case of a veteran or member of
the Armed Forces who dies, means the surviving spouse or
surviving dependent child of the veteran or member.
"(2) The term 'survivor benefit' means any monetary, health-
care, educational, or other benefit paid, payable, or otherwise
provided to survivors of veterans and survivors of members of the
Armed Forces under the following:
"(A) Laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
"(B) Laws administered by the Secretary of Defense.
"(C) The Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.).
"(3) The term 'veteran' has the meaning given such term in
section 101(2) of title 38, United States Code."
DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION PROGRAM
Section 204 of Pub. L. 94-433 directed Administrator of Veterans'
Affairs to study dependency and indemnity compensation program
authorized by this chapter in order to evaluate benefits provided
by program and to determine whether, or to what extent, benefits
should be based on military pay grade of person upon whose death
entitlement is predicated, and directed Administrator to submit to
Congress and President not later than Oct. 1, 1977, a report
containing results of study together with Administrator's
recommendations for improvement of program.
STUDY BY ADMINISTRATOR OF DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION
CLAIMS
Pub. L. 94-71, Sec. 204, Aug. 5, 1975, 89 Stat. 397, directed
Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to make a study of claims for
dependency and indemnity compensation relating to veterans who at
time of death during period Sept. 1, 1975 to Mar. 1, 1976, were
receiving disability compensation based upon a total and permanent
disability and required report to be submitted to Speaker of House
and President of Senate no later than Oct. 1, 1976.
Pub. L. 93-295, title II, Sec. 207, May 31, 1974, 88 Stat. 183,
directed Administrator to make a study of claims for dependency and
indemnity compensation relating to veterans who, at time of death
within six months of May 31, 1974, were receiving disability
compensation, and to report to Speaker of House and President of
Senate no more than 30 days after beginning of 94th Congress.
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