(A) The secretary shall appoint an additional claims representative within the department, who, in addition to being charged with the duty of assisting all veterans, regardless of the wars in which their service may have been rendered, in filing, presenting, and prosecuting to final determination all claims which they have for money compensation, hospitalization, training, and insurance benefits under the terms of federal legislation, shall also specialize in the specific needs and diseases associated with veterans of the Vietnam era. The person appointed as a claims representative under this section must be versed in federal legislation relating to these matters and the rules, regulations, and practice of the Veterans Administration as created by Congress.
(B) Subject to the direction of the secretary, and in addition to other duties prescribed in this section, the claims representative appointed pursuant to this section may represent the department on the South Carolina Agent Orange Advisory Council and on the Hepatitis C Coalition established by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, assist the department in carrying out its duties in connection with the Agent Orange Information and Assistance program, represent the secretary in connection with functions relating to Vietnam veterans, and perform other duties as may be assigned by the secretary.
(C) The position created by this section is a classified position subject to Article 3, Chapter 11, Title 8 of the 1976 Code. In the general appropriations act for fiscal year 2001-2002 and thereafter, the General Assembly shall add the position in the budget for the department and provide for its funding.
HISTORY: 2002 Act No. 294, Section 1; 2019 Act No. 26 (H.3438), Section 3, eff July 1, 2019.
Editor's Note
2019 Act No. 26, Section 4, provides as follows:
"SECTION 4. (A) All classified or unclassified personnel employed by these offices on the effective date of this act, either by contract or by employment at will, shall become employees of the Department of Veterans' Affairs, with the same compensation, classification, and grade level, as applicable. The Department of Administration shall cause all necessary actions to be taken to accomplish this transfer in accordance with state laws and regulations.
"(B) Regulations promulgated by the Division of Veterans' Affairs as it formerly existed under the Department of Administration are continued and are considered to be promulgated by the newly created Department of Veterans' Affairs.
"(C) The Code Commissioner is directed to change or correct all references to Division of Veterans' Affairs within the Department of Administration in the 1976 Code, to reflect the transfer of it to the Department of Veterans' Affairs. References to the Division of Veterans' Affairs in the 1976 Code or other provisions of law are considered to be and must be construed to mean appropriate reference to the Department of Veterans' Affairs. This authority shall not be construed to remove any authority from the Department of Administration for approval of statewide policies, procedures, regulations, rates and fees, or specific actions requiring Department of Administration approval."
Effect of Amendment
2019 Act No. 26, Section 3, inserted the paragraph identifiers; in (A), in the first sentence, substituted "The secretary" for "The Director of the Division of Veterans Affairs", "department" for "Division of Veterans Affairs", and "veterans" for "ex-servicemen"; in (B), substituted "secretary" for "director" in three places, and substituted "department" for "Division of Veterans Affairs" in two places; and in (C), in the second sentence, substituted "department" for "Division of Veterans Affairs".