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S. 772: Honor Act of 2009

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S. 772: Honor Act of 2009

111th Congress · introduced 2009-04-01 · Armed Forces and National Security · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2009-04-01 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Sen. Bond, Christopher S. [R-MO] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Honor Act of 2009

Plain summary

Honor Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program to provide scholarships for the pursuit of a graduate or postgraduate degree in behavioral health sciences to veterans who performed active-duty service in a theater of combat or during a contingency operation overseas. Requires the veteran, following completion of the degree requirements, to serve for an agreed-upon period with either the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or Department of Defense (DOD) furnishing mental health services to veterans or to members of the Armed Forces (members). Directs the Secretary of Defense to carry out a program to employ and train former members who performed service described above as DOD psychiatric technicians and nurses providing mental health counseling and related services to members deployed to a combat zone. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, upon request, to provide: (1) referral and related assistance to former members not otherwise authorized for counseling through the VA; and (2) readjustment counseling and mental health services to former members through Vet Centers. Requires the suicide of a former member with a medical history of a combat-related mental health condition, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or traumatic brain injury (TBI) that occurs within a two-year period after separation or retirement to be treated as a death in the line of active duty for purposes of eligibility for active-duty survivors' benefits provided through the VA. Requires the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs, jointly and annually, to: (1) review and assess their respective programs for the reintegration of members and veterans into civilian life following their retirement, discharge, or release; and (2) report review and assessment results to Congress.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

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The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

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Arguments against (opponents)

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Bond, Christopher S. [R-MO] · 12 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), Susan M. Collins (R-ME), Jeff Merkley (D-OR)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Authorization
A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong111-s772 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong111 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong111