Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii), chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, praised fellow Senators, who voted 96 to 1 in favor of the Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 (S. 1315), which had been held up over whether to include a pension for Filipino World War II veterans. Akaka’s committee approved the measure last summer, moving it to the full Senate in August 2007. In addition to the pension for Filipino veterans, the act would establish a new insurance program for veterans with a service-connected disability and provide vets with severe burn injuries with benefits for specially adapted housing. In an April 24 statement, Akaka called on the House “to act swiftly on this much needed bill.”
It’s been more than three-and-a-half years since Hurricane Michael pummeled Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., severely damaging or destroying 95 percent of the base’s 1,300 structures. On May 10, the base took a major step in its long build back to become the “Base of the Future” with the awarding…