Peters Introduces Bipartisan Legislation to Build On His Fairness for Veterans Law

WASHINGTON, DC –U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) introduced bipartisan legislation to build on his Fairness for Veterans law – which helps veterans who may have been erroneously given a less than honorable discharge from the military due to negative behavior resulting from mental traumas.

Veterans looking to upgrade their service discharge status can petition to a Discharge Review Board operated by each military service. In 2016, Peters’ bipartisan provision was signed into law, requiring that Discharge Review Boards give fair consideration to veterans petitioning to change their discharge status to honorable if the servicemember has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), military sexual trauma (MST), or other conditions connected to their military service. Peters’ Discharge Review Board Accountability Act – which he introduced with U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-SD), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Angus King (I-ME) – would help improve review board compliance with Peters’ Fairness for Veterans Act and several other existing Department of Defense (DoD) memoranda by directing the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study and report recommendations back to Congress on how to ensure fair consideration is implemented.

“I authored and passed the Fairness for Veterans Act into law to give our brave men and women who are suffering from the invisible wounds of war an opportunity to access the VA benefits they’ve earned through their service,” said Senator Peters, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and former Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve. “There are more steps we can take to help make sure veterans and servicemembers receive fair consideration when petitioning for upgrades to their discharge status. My bipartisan bill aims to hold these review boards accountable and provide recommendations to Congress to help ensure veterans can get a second chance at receiving the care they deserve.”

“The VFW deeply cares about and is heavily invested in making sure veterans get the care and benefits they have earned through their service,” said Brittany Dymond, Associate Director, VFW National Security & Foreign Affairs Directorate. “However, veterans’ eligibility for myriad resources is directly impacted by their discharge characterization, making access for some veterans challenging or impossible. Especially troubling are those whose discharge character was predicated on behavior stemming from injuries incurred during service such as traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder, who have been barred from earned benefits and must now struggle to secure discharge upgrades according to statute and related policies. We are grateful for Senators Peters, Rounds, King, and Tillis for their support of this critical issue and look forward to working together to ensure the Discharge Review Board Accountability Act passes.”

The Government Accountability Office study required by Peters’ Discharge Review Board Accountability Act would include:

• Assessment of the Discharge Review Boards’ compliance with Peters’ Fairness for Veterans provision;
• Data on the percentage of cases considered by Discharge Review Boards that reference armed forces policies requiring fair consideration or the memos discussing it;
• Barriers that appear to prevent Discharge Review Boards from employing fair consideration; and
• Recommendations for reforms that would improve Discharge Review Boards’ implementation of Peters’ Fairness for Veterans provision.

In 2017, Peters was recognizedas Legislator of the Year by the Vietnam Veterans of America for authoring the bipartisan Fairness for Veterans law. 

As the son of a World War II veteran and a former Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, Peters is committed to advocating for Michigan’s servicemembers and veterans. In 2021, Peters was inducted into the Michigan Military and Veterans Hall of Honor for his efforts to support our nation’s veterans and military. Last year, Peters helped enact into law the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act – which delivered VA health care and benefits to all generations of toxic-exposed veterans – and their survivors – for the first time in our nation’s history.

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