Civilian Agent Orange Act of 2006
Latest action. Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Civilian Agent Orange Act of 2006 - Establishes: (1) the Agent Orange Illness Compensation Program to be carried out by the Attorney General; and (2) the Agent Orange Illness Compensation Fund in the Treasury. Entitles an eligible exposed employee, or the eligible survivor of such employee, to $100,000 compensation.
Defines an "exposed employee" as an individual who: (1) was a civilian employee of the federal government, an employee of a contractor, or subcontractor at any tier of the Department of Defense; (2) was an employee present in the Republic of Vietnam or in or near the Korean demilitarized zone during the period beginning September 1, 1976, and ending on August 31, 1971; and (3) suffered injury or death by reason of an Agent Orange illness.
Defines "eligible survivors" as the surviving spouse or, if there is no surviving spouse, all surviving children of the employee who had not yet attained the age of 18 when the employee died or was permanently disabled.
Offsets a payment of any compensation made under this Act by any claim paid on the basis of the same illness or death due to exposure to Agent Orange herbicides.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 8, 2006. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 8, 2006: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 109th Congress (2005-06), 482 of the 10,701 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.5 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
ROBERT WEXLER (D-FL) introduced it on February 8, 2006, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 9 Democrats, 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 8, 2006, 7566 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 7566 days ago, on February 8, 2006.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 109th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2007 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers