HARRISBURG – The PA Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee has advanced two bills to benefit veterans and recognize strategic allies abroad. Senate Bill 126 would exempt 100% of a veteran’s federal disability compensation benefits or pension from income calculations for Commonwealth programs. It also would extend the exclusion of the veteran’s compensation benefits to their surviving spouse. Senate Bill 141 would permit the awarding of military decorations to members of strategic allies, like Lithuania. Pennsylvania has had a thirty-year relationship with Lithuania through the National Guard’s State Partnership Program. It also allows the honoring of the brave Korean soldiers who fought alongside the Americans in Vietnam. Both bills were passed with unanimous bipartisan support from members of the committee and now head to the full PA Senate for consideration.
