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1 1 (August 31, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govemrw0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional_______ R fesearch Service Taylor v. McDonough: Veterans Disability Benefits and Secret Military Programs August 31, 2023 On June 15, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decided Taylor v. McDonough. The case involved a veteran (Mr. Taylor) who had a service-connected disability resulting from participation in a secret military program. Mr. Taylor did not file a claim with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) until several decades after the disability manifested because he had signed a secrecy oath barring him from divulging information related to the secret program under penalty of court-martial and criminal punishment. When Mr. Taylor was finally released from the oath and filed a claim, VA resolved, per statute, that his benefits effective date was February 28, 2008, the date VA received his claim. Mr. Taylor, however, argued that his benefits effective date should be September 7, 1971, the date he was discharged from the military and when he believed his effective date would have been had he not been prevented from filing his claim earlier by the secrecy oath. Ultimately, a divided en banc Federal Circuit held that the government violated Mr. Taylor's constitutional right to due process under the Fifth Amendment by effectively denying him access to the one forum (VA's claim system) by which he could vindicate his legal entitlement to VA benefits. The court further held that Mr. Taylor's effective date was the date he would have received benefits had the government's actions not prevented him from filing his claim earlier. The Federal Circuit's decision may have significant implications for servicemembers and veterans involved with secret military programs, or whose involvement in military activity was conditioned on a commitment that prevented them from seeking veterans benefits even when eligible. More broadly, the holding potentially impacts other situations in which the government prevents an eligible individual from claiming government benefits, though the court did indicate that it was addressing what it would expect to be a very rare set of circumstances. This Legal Sidebar discusses the factual and procedural history of Taylor and summarizes the Federal Circuit's opinion. The Sidebar concludes with some considerations for Congress. Factual Background Mr. Taylor served in the U.S. Army from 1969 to 1971. During this time, he volunteered for a secret Anny program at Edgewood Arsenal, Maryland, testing the effects of dangerous substances, including Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov LSB11030 CR3 Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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