The PACT Act expands coverage for veterans exposed to the poisonous effects of burn pits used to dispose of toxic waste in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as those affected by other toxic exposures, exposure to Agent Orange, for example, during their service in Southeast Asia.
HR 3967 was introduced in the House of Representatives on June 17, 2021, passed the House by a bi-partisan vote of 256-174 on March 3, 2022, and passed the Senate on June 16, 2022, again by a bipartisan majority 84-14.
The PACT Act became law when President Biden signed it on August 10, 2022, one year ago.
Significantly, while President Biden chose Utah to commemorate the one year anniversary of the passage of the PACT Act and to announce changes in its administration that extend deadlines for applying for PACT Act relief and benefits and make it easier for veterans to qualify, and noted in his remarks this morning that the PACT Act was a “bi-partisan” accomplishment, he graciously chose not to mention that Utah’s congressional delegation, all six of them, voted against the legislation.
Utah’s congressional delegation voted in the minority in both houses.
When asked why they voted the way they did, Mitt Romney and Mike Lee, two of only 14 who voted against the PACT Act in the Senate, justified their votes by suggesting the PACT Act was too costly. They said they supported veterans, but then did just the opposite. Neither of them ever wore the uniform. Perhaps that explains their willingness to turn their backs on those who served; including on more than 3,000 Utah veterans who were likely exposed in ways covered by the act and their families.
Our senators and congressmen told veterans, Utah veterans in particular, that they are not worth what it might cost to help them recover from the effects of, among other things, practices engaged in by our own side that were demonstrably hazardous to their health, including disposing of toxic waste in open burn pits, exposure they couldn’t avoid.
I was an assistant special inspector general and director of forward operations for the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2014 when SIGAR issued one of the first reports on the use of open-air burn pits to dispose of toxic waste and when a formal letter was prepared alerting the DoD to the dangers of using open-air burn pits. I am personally aware of what open-air burn pits did to anyone who lived or worked near them.
I am not a combat veteran, but I am a veteran. I understand what being in the military, in my case, the Navy, requires of a servicemember and his or her family. My seven years of active- duty service was and is a highlight of my life. As a much older senior government official, I served four years in Afghanistan between 2010 and 2015. I know what working in a war zone involves and requires.
As a naval officer and as a forward deployed government civilian, I knew the risks. I accepted them. My family accepted them. Every day in Afghanistan, I had the honor of living and serving alongside members of the military, from the young junior enlisted who put their lives on the line for me when I was on mission outside Kabul, to general officers with whom I traveled to some of the most dangerous places in Afghanistan. These people took care of me and did everything our country asked of them – and more in many cases. During my time in Afghanistan, I lost people I cared for, people I worked with and knew well. Some of the people I knew and worked with came home sick or became sick because of exposure to the toxic by-products of burning waste.
We owe those we put in harm’s way — whether that is by hostile fire or from the effects of practices that are dangerous to their health and well-being — and, just as importantly we owe their families, more than mere words from elected leaders when it comes to taking care of the injuries they suffer, mental and physical, because of their service. This includes paying the cost, whatever it might be, of dealing with the damage caused by toxic exposure, the damage addressed by the PACT Act. No responsible parent would consider encouraging a son or daughter to join the service if they weren’t sure the country would honor that commitment.
This was apparently lost on our congressional delegation when the PACT Act was passed without their help. Veterans have long memories.
David Schwendiman
David Schwendiman retired from the US Department of Justice in January 2014 after nearly thirty years as an Assistant United States Attorney, First Assistant United States Attorney and Interim United States Attorney.