HouseH.R. 9127119th Congress
Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act of 2026
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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9127 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9127
To improve benefits for veterans who may have been exposed to toxic
substances, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 3, 2026
Ms. Lee of Nevada (for herself and Mr. Amodei of Nevada) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a
period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve benefits for veterans who may have been exposed to toxic
substances, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Sergeant Dave Crete Fighting for the
Overlooked Recognition of Groups Operating in Toxic Test Environments
in Nevada Veterans Act of 2026'' or the ``Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN
Veterans Act of 2026''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Active military, naval, air, or space service.--The
term ``active military, naval, air, or space service'' has the
meaning given that term in section 101(24) of title 38, United
States Code.
(2) Covered location.--The term ``covered location''
means--
(A) any facility on the most recent list of
facilities covered under the Energy Employees
Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000
(42 U.S.C. 7384 et seq.) published in the Federal
Register by the Department of Energy; or
(B) with respect to service on or after January 27,
1951, any location within the Nevada Test and Training
Range or the Nevada National Security Site (as defined
on May 19, 2026).
(3) Toxic exposure.--The term ``toxic exposure'' has the
meaning given that term in section 101(37) of title 38, United
States Code.
SEC. 3. COORDINATION WITH DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE TO IDENTIFY VETERANS
WHO PERFORMED MILITARY SERVICE AT COVERED LOCATIONS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in coordination
with the Secretary of Defense, shall establish and carry out a process
to identify veterans who served at a covered location and may have
encountered toxic exposure during active military, naval, air, or space
service.
(b) Use of Available Information.--In carrying out subsection (a),
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall use--
(1) military personnel and deployment records maintained by
the Department of Defense; and
(2) information provided by veterans through the registry
established under section 7.
(c) No Affirmative Evidence Required.--The Secretary of Veterans
Affairs may not require a veteran to provide affirmative evidence of
exposure to a specific toxic substance if service at a covered location
is established.
SEC. 4. TREATMENT AS RADIATION-RISK ACTIVITIES BY DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS.
Section 1112(c)(3)(B) of title 38, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following new clause:
``(viii) Active military, naval, air, or space
service, or onsite participation in any aspect of the
development, construction, operation, or maintenance of
a military installation (as defined in section 2801 of
title 10), within the area that comprises the Nevada
Test and Training Range and the Nevada National
Security Site, as defined on May 19, 2026, during the
period beginning on January 27, 1951, and ending on the
date which the Secretary of Defense, with independent
verification, certifies that the area that comprises
the Nevada Test and Training Range and the Nevada
National Security Site no longer pose radiation risk to
personnel present, or enactment of the Sergeant Dave
Crete Fighting for the Overlooked Recognition of Groups
Operating in Toxic Test Environments in Nevada Veterans
Act of 2026, whichever is later.''.
SEC. 5. PRESUMPTION OF TOXIC EXPOSURE FOR VETERANS WHO SERVED AT
COVERED LOCATIONS AND PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE CONNECTION
FOR CERTAIN DISEASES.
Section 1119(c)(1) of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A)(viii), by striking ``; or'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(2) in subparagraph (B)(ix), by striking the period at the
end and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
``(C) at any time, performed active military,
naval, air, or space service while assigned to a duty
station in, including airspace above, any facility on
the most recent list of facilities covered under the
Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation
Program Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 7384 et seq.) published
in the Federal Register by the Department of Energy; or
``(D) on or after January 27, 1951, performed
active military, naval, air, or space service while
assigned to a duty station in, including airspace
above, any location within the area that comprises the
Nevada Test and Training Range and the Nevada National
Security Site, as defined on May 19, 2026.''.
SEC. 6. STUDY ON TOXIC EXPOSURES AT COVERED LOCATIONS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in
coordination with the Secretary of Defense, shall seek to enter into an
agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services or another
appropriate scientific organization to study potential toxic exposures
and environmental hazards at covered locations.
(b) Study.--The study required under subsection (a) shall--
(1) identify exposures associated with military occupations
of veterans who served at covered locations, including
exposures relating to chemicals, compounds, agents, and other
phenomena; and
(2) review the literature to determine associations between
such exposures and the incidence or prevalence of overall
cancer morbidity and overall cancer mortality, and determine,
to the extent possible, the prevalence and mortality of cancers
among such veterans by using available sources of data, which
may include--
(A) health care and other administrative databases
of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department
of Defense, and the military departments, respectively;
and
(B) the national death index maintained by the
National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
(c) Transfer Authority.--Amounts authorized to be appropriated to
the Secretary of Defense to carry out the study required under
subsection (a) may be transferred without regard to section 2215 of
title 10, United States Code, to the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to pay for the study.
(d) Report.--At the conclusion of the study required under
subsection (a), the Department of Health and Human Services or other
appropriate scientific organization, as the case may be, shall submit
to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House
of Representatives, the President of the National Academies of
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and the Chair of the National
Research Council a report containing the results of the study.
SEC. 7. ESTABLISHMENT OF COVERED LOCATION VETERAN REGISTRY.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
establish and maintain a registry of veterans who served at covered
locations who may have encountered toxic exposure during active
military, naval, air, or space service (in this section referred to as
the ``registry'').
(b) Purposes.--The registry shall be used to--
(1) collect, process, maintain, and consolidate
epidemiological information required to analyze incidence of
adverse health effects among veterans who served in covered
locations;
(2) facilitate coordination between the Department of
Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to verify
service;
(3) inform veterans of available health care, benefits, and
screenings; and
(4) support outreach, research, and claims adjudication
related to toxic exposure.
(c) Opt-Out and Recruitment.--
(1) Opt-out.--Participants must have the opportunity to
opt-out of inclusion in the registry.
(2) Recruitment.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
recruit veterans described in subsection (a) who are not
represented in data sources of the Department of Defense or the
Department of Veterans Affairs.
(d) Data-Sharing.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall share
information collected through the registry with the Secretary of
Defense, consistent with applicable privacy and security laws, for
purposes of identifying affected veterans and improving care and
benefits delivery.
SEC. 8. CLASSIFICATION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES AS LOCATIONS WHERE
CONTAMINATION OCCURRED AND MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES
WERE EXPOSED TO TOXIC SUBSTANCES.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense shall classify the
following locations as a location where contamination occurred:
(1) On and after January 27, 1951, the Nevada Test and
Training Range, including the Nevada National Security Site (as
such site is defined on May 19, 2026).
(2) Any facility on the most recent list of facilities
covered under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness
Compensation Program Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 7384 et seq.)
published in the Federal Register by the Secretary of Energy.
(b) Identification Process.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense shall establish a
process to identify members of the Armed Forces and former
members of the Armed Forces that were stationed at a facility
specified in subsection (a).
(2) Documentation.--The Secretary of Defense shall
establish a process to permit members of the Armed Forces and
former members of the Armed Forces to provide documentation or
evidence of their assignment at a facility specified in
subsection (a) to assist the Secretary in identifying those
members and former members under paragraph (1).
(3) Efforts.--The Secretary of Defense shall make all
efforts to identify individuals described in paragraph (1) and
shall not require members of the Armed Forces or former members
of the Armed Forces to submit evidence of their stationing.
(c) Sharing of Information.--The Secretary of Defense shall share
with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs all information and
documentation gathered under subsection (b) in order to provide the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs with adequate documentation of the
service of members of the Armed Forces and former members of the Armed
Forces at facilities specified in subsection (a) and any injuries,
exposures, or illnesses related to such service, for the purpose of
establishing any claim for benefits under the laws administered by the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to which such members and former members
are legally entitled.
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