Undersecretary of Veterans Affairs for Benefits P. W. Dunne said his office is committed to provide services to the g men and women of the CNMI who have served in the U.S. military.
He said the Honolulu VA office has primary responsibility for outreach to veterans and their families in the CNMI.
The outreach services are provided through both the Honolulu office and its satellite benefits office on Guam, he added.
In his letter to Senate President Pete P. Reyes, R-Saipan, Dunne said he already authorized another full-time employee for the Guam office who will be responsible for outreach to the CNMI and other insular islands.
Dunne was responding to House Joint Resolution 16-15 which requests the U.S. Congress to establish a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Benefits Office and a Veterans Affairs Community-Based Outpatients Clinic on Saipan.
Early this year, Dunne said the director of the Honolulu regional office visited to Saipan to conduct benefits briefings conducted jointly with the CNMI Military/Veterans Affairs Office.
Approximately 50 veterans and their families were provided a three-hour briefing covering a range of VA benefits, to include compensation, pension, education, vocational rehabilitation, and medical benefits, Dunne said.
After the briefing, he added, the group visited the new Community Based Outpatients Clinic, which is scheduled to open in a few months.
Rep. Joseph C. Reyes, R-Saipan and author of the resolution, said there are 1,386 veterans, reservists and active duty service members in the commonwealth today, including approximately 400 CNMI residents serving in the U.S. armed forces.
He said the veterans residing in the CNMI are entitled under Title 38 of the U.S. Code to a broad range of services, programs and technical resources available to all veterans through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Representative Reyes said the CNMI Military Liaison and Veterans Affairs Office, which serves as the sole official liaison and advocate for veterans resident in commonwealth, depends entirely on limited and dwindling local resources.
The office, he added, is managed by Ruth Coleman, who has no support staff.
Dunne said a staff member from the Honolulu Loan Guaranty Divisions will travel to CNMI at least twice a year to meet with the Northern Marianas Housing Corp., administer training, discuss Native American Direct Loan applications, perform site inspection, and promote NADL programs.
He said a rehabilitation counselor from the Honolulu Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Division also travels to CNMI to meet with applicants and promote Veterans Affairs vocational rehabilitation programs.
