| TO: | Honorable Frank Corte, Jr., Chair, House Committee on Defense Affairs & State-Federal Relations |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | SB363 by Van de Putte (Relating to protecting certain members of the Texas National Guard from exposure to depleted uranium and assisting certain members who may have been exposed to obtain federal government services.), Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted |
The bill would amend the Government Code by requiring the Adjutant General’s Department (AGD) and the Texas Veterans Commission to assist an eligible member of the Texas National Guard to obtain federal government treatment services, including a medically qualified screening test for an eligible member who has been assigned a risk level I, II, or III for depleted uranium exposure by the member’s branch of service or is referred by a military physician, or has reason to believe that the member was exposed to depleted uranium during military service. The bill defines military physician, eligible member, medically qualified screening test, and depleted uranium. The bill further states that the AGD shall report in writing no later than December 1, 2008 to the legislature, primarily those committees with primary jurisdiction over military and veterans matters with the scope and adequacy of training received by members of the national guard on detecting whether their service is likely to entail, or to have entailed, exposure to depleted uranium. The report must include an assessment of the feasibility and cost of adding pre-deployment training concerning potential exposure to depleted uranium and other toxic chemical substances and precautions recommended while in a combat zone.
The AGD estimates that the costs associated with implementing the bill could be absorbed within existing resources.
The Texas Veterans Commission has estimated that the costs associated with implementing the bill are not anticipated to be significant.
| Source Agencies: | 401 Adjutant General's Department
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, ES, GG, SDO
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