WAR-RISK INSURANCE. COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, The committee met at 10.30 a. m., with Hon. T. W. Sims (chairman) presiding, having under consideration H. R. 11659, a bill to amend an act entitled "An act to authorize the establishment of a Bureau of War-Risk Insurance in the Treasury Department." The CHAIRMAN. We are going to take up H. R. 11659, which we call the war-risk insurance bill. I don't know what order the officials of the Treasury, War, and Navy Departments wish to be heard. Mr. Love, I leave that to you, gentlemen, to determine the order of the hearing, just as you did yesterday morning. STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS B. LOVE, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, IN CHARGE OF THE BUREAU OF WAR-RISK INSURANCE. Mr. Love. Mr. Chairman, I suggest we proceed in this order: I will first give an explanation of the bill and after that we will hear from the others in an order which we will announce then, if that is satisfactory. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Love, you will proceed to explain the bill in your own way, then we will hear from anyone suggested. Mr. Love. It was the purpose of the Treasury Department and of the Bureau of War-Risk Insurance to include in this bill all of the amendments which it was thought advisable to recommend to the war-risk insurance law and which were not included in the two bills disposed of yesterday, namely, H. R. 11048 and H. R. 11520. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Love, if I understand you, there is nothing in this bill as drawn that in any way conflicts with or duplicates what is in bill H. R. 11520? Mr. Love. No, sir. It is H. R. 11659. It is H. R. 11659. We refer to it also as the omnibus bill. I have here a copy of the letter which the Acting Secretary of the Treasury had the honor to transmit to you recently in explanation of this bill, and I should like to have it incorporated in the record at this point. (The letter is as follows:) APRIL 25, 1918. MY DEAR CONGRESSMAN: On the 22d instant I had the honor to transmit a bill covering the amendments which we thought necessary and desirable for Articles I, III, and IV of the war-risk insurance act, and at that time I stated that we would be pleased to advise further within the present week as to the effect of the proposed amendments and the reasons for offering them. 3 We are proposing to strike out the requirement that injury must be suffered "in line of duty before compensation is payable and to insert a provision that it is sufficient if the injury is suffered in the service." We are not inclined to insist upon the retention of the substitute phraseology, though it is, we think, desirable to get away from the test as to line of duty." This test has given rise to many conflicting decisions and has been the source of much uncertainty as to whether or not a given case is within the scope of the act. Under the present law compensation is payable to a mother only when she is widowed and is not payable to a father under any circumstances. We propose to amend the sections in question-sections 301 and 302-so as to provide for the payment of compensation to a mother or father, or both, if they are dependent upon the man who entered the service. Cases have been presented to the bureau where a soldier's dependent mother is taking care of an invalid and helpless husband, but under this act she is entitled to nothing whatever because she is not widowed. The amendment here proposed would cover all such cases. The automatic insurance provided for in section 401 is, in one respect, similar to compensation. for it is payable to a mother only when widowed and under no circumstances is payable to a father. Our proposal is to make it payable to a mother or if there is no mother, to a father. A further proposal is to enlarge the class of persons who may receive compensation so as to include the widower of a woman in the service if such widower was dependent upon the deceased for support. These cases will be few but if the proposed amendment is enacted the bureau will be able to satisfactorily dispose of the exceptional cases. The foregoing amendments providing for the payment of compensation and automatic insurance to a soldier's mother regardless of whether she is widowed and also for payments to his father, are made retroactive so that they will be effective as of October 6, 1917, the date of the approval of the act. The effect of these provisions, as well as of the provision bringing the dependent widower within the benefits of the act, will be to increase the load on the compensation and insurance appropriations now available. We have not as yet, however, estimated the probable increase. It is proposed to extend the insurance and compensation benefits of the act to West Point cadets, Annapolis midshipmen, and Coast Guard cadets and cadet engineers; and it is also proposed to enlarge the permitted class of beneficiaries for insurance to include the persons who have stood in loco parentis to the insured for a period of five years. The first of these proposals recognizes the close relationship of these members of the military and naval forces to active war service, and the second proposal is prompted by many cases of the character suggested in the amendment itself. Another proposal is to terminate the compensation and insurance rights of any person who is discharged from the service on the ground of being an enemy alien or a conscientious objector. We trust that the reasons for this proposal are obvious. In addition to the proposals above set forth, effecting certain changes in the substantive provisions of the act, there are several others dealing with administrative features. Thus, section 23 is amended to clarify the situation as to the appointment of guardians for minor claimants; section 313 is modified for the purpose of making a more workable plan for subrogating the Government to causes of action arising by reason of injuries to persons in the service; and a new penalty section is added to enable the bureau to more effectively curb fraudulent claims. Yours, very truly, Hon. T. W. SIMS, JAS. H. MOYLE, Acting Secretary. Chairman Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, House of Representatives. Mr. LOVE (continuing). The first section amends subdivision 4 of section 22 of the war risk insurance act so as to enlarge the definition of parent to include father and mother through adoption. As written the present law provides that the term "child" shall include children through adoption, but there is nothing in the act which specifically provides that the term "parent" shall include parent through adoption. It was our opinion that that was an incongruity, which |