Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

 SB123
 209169-3
 By Senator Butler
 RFD: Veterans and Military Affairs
 First Read: 02-FEB-21
 PFD: 01/29/2021
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  SB123
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  ENROLLED, An Act,
            Relating to the Alabama Department of Veterans'
  Affairs; to amend Sections 31-5-4, 31-5-6, 31-5-9, and
  31-5-14, Code of Alabama 1975, to allow the department to
  provide assistance to military veterans whose service was not
  during war time; to allow the State Service Commission to
 incur and engage in certain marketing and promotional
 expenditures and activities; to remove the county residency
 requirement for county service officers; and to clarify the
 support requirements for a county office.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
           Section 1. Sections 31-5-4, 31-5-6, 31-5-9, and
 31-5-14, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
           "31-5-4.
           "The State Department of Veterans' Affairs shall
 assist every veteran of any war of the United States in
 presenting and pursuing such any claim as the veteran may have
 against the United States arising out of war his or her
 military service and in establishing the veteran's right to
 any privilege, preference, care, or compensation provided for
 by the laws of the United States or of the State of Alabama,
 when the veteran requests such assistance. Whenever the
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  veteran applying to a representative of the State Department
  of Veterans' Affairs shall have executed a power of attorney
  to any veterans' organization or the American Red Cross, which
  has entered into an agreement with the State Department of
  Veterans' Affairs, the representative shall accept any claim
  or information pertaining to any claim, right, preference,
  privilege, compensation, or application for care from the
  veteran and advise with him or her as to the proper
  preparation of the same and then arrange, upon request of the
 veteran, forward the same to the State Department of Veterans'
 Affairs in order that it might make contact with the
 organization to which the veteran has given a power of
 attorney for the further handling, presenting, and prosecuting
 of such the claim. Should any veteran making application to
 the State Department of Veterans' Affairs not have given a
 power of attorney to any organization to represent him the
 veteran veteran in handling his or her affairs, the department
 shall advise him the veteran of the organizations recognized
 by the Veterans' Administration to represent him or her and
 allow the veteran to make his or her choice of the
 organization he or she desires to represent him or her.
           "31-5-6.
           "(a) It shall be the duty of the State Board of
 Veterans' Affairs to appoint a State Service Commissioner who
 shall serve for a term of four years subject to removal by the
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  state board for cause. He The commissioner shall be appointed
  on the basis of education, ability, and experience in handling
  veterans' affairs, and without regard to political
  affiliations. Such The commissioner shall be a resident of the
  State of Alabama and shall be a veteran who served on active
  duty for a period of 60 days or more in the military or naval
  forces of the United States in any war in which the United
  States shall have been engaged, and shall have been honorably
  discharged therefrom, and all subsequent appointees to such
 the office shall be selected in like manner and possess like
 qualifications.
           "(b) All administrative and executive duties and
 responsibilities of the department shall be performed by the
 State Service Commissioner, subject to the authority of the
 state board. The State Service Commissioner shall be the
 executive and administrative officer of the State Department
 of Veterans' Affairs, and shall have the power to issue
 administrative orders and directives to all officials and
 employees in the department.
           "(c) The State Department of Veterans' Affairs,
 acting through the State Service Commissioner, shall be the
 designated agency of the State of Alabama to represent the
 state and its veterans before the United States Veterans'
 Administration, or any other agency dealing with the interest
 of the veteran.
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            "(d) The State Service Commissioner, with the
  approval of the state board, shall be empowered to enter into
  reciprocal agreements with other states under which veterans
  who are residents of such other states may be rendered
  services in the State of Alabama.
            "(e) The State Service Commissioner, with the
  approval of the state board, shall appoint all district
  service commissioners and county service commissioners as
  provided in this chapter.
           "(f) The State Service Commissioner shall appoint
 all clerical and stenographic personnel in the state
 department, and in all county offices as is authorized or may
 hereafter be authorized under the State Merit System and
 approved by the State Personnel Board.
           "(g) The State Service Commissioner, with the
 approval of the state board, may engage in activities designed
 to educate, recognize, and promote the mission of the board to
 veterans, the public, potential applicants, and other public
 agencies and, in doing so, may incur marketing expenditures
 for educational, informational, and promotional items to be
 used to further its purposes as determined by the board.
           "31-5-9.
           "It shall be the duty of the State Service
 Commissioner, subject to the approval of the State Board of
 Veterans' Affairs, to appoint a county service commissioner
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  for each of the several counties in the State of Alabama,
  except as provided in this section, and all such appointees
  shall be employees of the state department, subject to the
  authority, and rules, and regulations of the state board. Such
  The county service commissioner shall be a resident of the
  county state, and a qualified elector therein, and shall be a
  veteran who served on active duty in the military or naval
  forces of the United States for a period of 60 days or more
  regardless of whether that service was during in any war in
 which the United States shall have been engaged, and shall
 have been honorably discharged therefrom, and all subsequent
 appointees to such the office shall be selected in like manner
 and possessed of like qualifications. In making such
 appointments, consideration shall be given as to whether the
 applicants are residents of the county. It shall be the duty
 of the State Service Commissioner and state board to economize
 as far as possible in the administration of this law in the
 several counties of the state. It shall be the duty of the
 state commissioner, subject to the approval of the state
 board, to study the requirements of each separate county, and
 to decide from time to time whether or not there is a need for
 a county service commissioner in any particular county. In
 reaching a decision in such matter, the State Service
 Commissioner and the state board shall take into consideration
 the total population of the county, the number of men and
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  women inducted into the armed services from the county, the
  number of veterans of all wars present in the county, and
  special circumstances and facts involving the concentration of
  industries or other problems which may have a tendency to
  increase or decrease the number of veterans in certain
  localities. It shall be within the power of the State Service
  Commissioner, subject to the approval of the state board, to
  establish districts in the state, such districts to contain
  one or more counties, wherever the number of veterans in the
 counties composing such districts do not justify the
 establishment of a separate county service commissioner's
 office in each county in the district, and a central district
 service commissioner's office shall be established at the most
 central point in such the district; provided, however, such
 the district offices must afford maximum services to veterans
 residing in such the district. It shall be the duty of the
 district service commissioner to visit each county in the
 district on certain specified days to be designated by the
 State Service Commissioner for the purpose of assisting all
 veterans in such the counties. District service commissioners
 appointed under this section shall be selected in the same
 manner as county service commissioners, and shall be possessed
 of like qualifications.
           "31-5-14.
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            "For the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2012, and
  for fiscal years thereafter, salaries of officials and
  employees of the department as provided for under this
  chapter, and office, travel, and other expenses incidental to
  the proper establishment, operation, and maintenance of the
  department, or offices of district or county service
  commissioners, or other offices established by the State
  Service Commissioner as provided for under this chapter, may
  be paid by the State of Alabama, from the State General Fund;
 provided, however, that each county in the state in which a
 district service commissioner's office or a county service
 commissioner's office is established shall furnish suitable
 office space in the county courthouse, or another suitable
 location in the county for the use of the district service
 commissioner or county service commissioner, and the county
 shall pay all expenses associated with operating the office
 including, but not limited to, any rental, telephone,
 facsimile, business-class Internet, janitor janitorial
 service, light, power, heat, heating and air conditioning,
 employee parking, heating and air conditioning, employee
 parking, or and other operational support or maintenance
 expense for the office shall be paid by the county expenses."
           Section 2. This act shall become effective on the
 first day of the third month following its passage and
 approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
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                          President and Presiding Officer of
                              the Senate
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                         Speaker of the House of Representa-
                                tives
           SB123
           Senate 09-FEB-21
           I hereby certify that the within Act originated in
 and passed the Senate, as amended.
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                                          Patrick Harris,
                                          Secretary.
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           House of Representatives
           Amended and passed 01-APR-21
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           Senate concurred in House amendment 06-APR-21
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           By: Senator Butler
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Statutes affected: 
Introduced: 31-5-4, 31-5-6, 31-5-9, 31-5-14
Engrossed: 31-5-4, 31-5-6, 31-5-9, 31-5-14
Enrolled: 31-5-4, 31-5-6, 31-5-9, 31-5-14