Congressman Zach Wamp has joined 124 other House members in urging House Armed Services Committee Chairman Floyd Spence to support eliminating the law which forces veterans to give up a dollar of their retirement pay for each dollar they receive in disability compensation from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

The Senate Defense Authorization bill already includes this provision. Congressman Wamp and the other House members are urging Spence to include the language when members of the House and Senate meet in a conference to iron out differences between in the separate versions passed by the each body.

The text of the letter to Chairman Spence follows:

"As a conferee on the FY 2001 National Defense Authorization Act, you have a unique opportunity this year to redress the unfair practice of requiring disabled uniformed service retirees to fund their own disability compensation.

"Section 666 of the Senate Version of this legislation eliminates the current offset between military retired pay and VA disability compensation. This key provision would end the practice of compelling members who served arduous careers in uniform to forfeit a dollar of their hard-earned military retired pay for each dollar they receive in disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

"A similar House bill, H.R. 303, enjoys over 300 cosponsors, including the undersigned Members of 40 of 60 Members on the Armed Services Committee.

"With the full Senate having passed this initiative, a significant majority of the House on record supporting it, and a burgeoning budget surplus, we have a unique and important opportunity for action on this extremely high-interest item for retired service members. We should not miss that opportunity.

"We are only too well aware that there is significant expense associated with this initiative. If necessary to win needed progress, there are alternatives House Conferees could propose to ease this impact."