r. GLEASON. We can provide it for the record, Mr. Chairman. shows the pension claims, the direct benefit payments from 1955 ne year 2000, the disability pension as well as the death pension, in the year 2000 it will be running at an annual rate of close to billion dollars.

The chart referred to appears on page 196.)

r. ELLSWORTH. That is without any changes in the present penlaws?

r. GLEASON. That is correct. We can give it for the record The combined total will be $4,387 million per year.

now.

r. ELLSWORTH. Thank you. And you will provide that chart as as that additional material for the record?

r. GLEASON. Yes, sir, we will.

The chart and information follow:)

r. ELLSWORTH. Of course, we get a lot of mail on this business of alizing pensions, Mr. Administrator, and I know you do, too. e a bit of the mail we receive advocating more liberal pension rams refers to the World War I veteran as the forgotten man and ies that the World War I veteran has not been dealt with fairly ir veteran programs. Do you have any comment on that? r. GLEASON. Well, the World War I veteran would comprise oximately 15 percent of the total veterans, and of the total beneavailable to all veterans throughout the history of the United es, World War I veterans have received in the neighborhood of ercent of the total.

r. ELLSWORTH. Referring back again to the three bills that we - discussed before and that you mentioned in your testimony in onse to the chairman's letter, two of those bills, H.R. 33 and 2332, are a separate program for World War I veterans. The r bill, H.R. 1927, applies to all veterans who meet the criteria of Dill. What is your position in regard to creating a separate proa for World War I veterans?

of our chart? It will be the last page in your book, Congressman. to be perfectly honest and frank, Congressman, we don't see any reason or need for a separate program for World War I veterans, or for World War II, or for Korean veterans. They are all veterans of wars of the United States.

Without presuming upon your time, I would like to mention one thing, and that is that World War I veterans now, at least 90 percent of them, receive or will be entitled to receive social security benefits. However, we have outlined for you the estimated additional cost of the World War I programs under H.R. 33 and H.R. 2332, and the first year would cost a billion dollars per year under H.R. 33. The fifth year would be $900 million. The cumulative for the first 5 years is $5 billion and the cumulative through the year 2000 is $13 billion. You understand that this is only for World War I?

Mr. ELLSWORTH. Yes.

Mr. GLEASON. Compared to H.R. 1927, the cumulative through the year 2000 would be $60 billion, but that would of course include World War II and Korea. If you were to include World War II and Korea in the overall program under H.R. 33 and H.R. 2332, it is conceivable that this would cost through the year 2000 around or better than $100 billion.

Mr. ELLSWORTH. That figure is not on the chart, but you are testifying to that?

Mr. GLEASON. No, is is not, but I want to make that clear so that from our chart here there is no misunderstanding.

Mr. ELLSWORTH. I understand, so that you are opposed to the concept of a separate program for World War I veterans or any other kind of a separate program for veterans of any particular war?

Mr. GLEASON. That is right. It is our opinion if a man has served his country during war, no matter what war it was, we all were under the same difficulties.

(Information relative to major wars of the United States follows:)

VA PENSION PROGRAM

STATISTICAL TABLES PRESENTING CURRENT AND HISTORICAL TRENDS SHOWING CHARACTERISTICS OF VETERANS IN CIVIL LIFE and VeteRANS AND DEPENDENTS OF DECEASED VETERANS ON VA ROLLS AND OTHER MISCELLANEOUS DATA

Index

Table No. 1. Major wars of the United States, showing participants, length of service, casualties, service period, etc.

Table No. 2. Estimated number of veterans in civil life, showing average age, by period of service, in civil life, 1955-62.

Table No. 3. Projections of war veteran population, showing average age, by period of service, 1962-2040.

Table No. 4. Projections of war veteran population, by certain age groupings at 5-year intervals, 1962-2040.

Table No. 5. Projected deaths of veterans in civil life, by war, during each fiscal year 1956-2000.

Table No. 6. Compensation and pension total expenditures related to VA total expenditures, also showing compensation and pension separately as related to total compensation and pension cumulatively through 1962.

Table No. 7. Pension total expenditures for all wars, showing payments to living veterans and to dependents of deceased veterans by war, cumulative through fiscal year 1962.

Table No. 8. Pension total expenditures for all wars, related to VA total expendies, also showing World War I pension payments as related to pension total enditures, and cumulative through 1962.

Cable No. 9. Historical development of pensions for all wars, for veterans and pendents of deceased veterans, including rates, certain elements of entitlement, mber of veterans on rolls and expenditures to date.

Table No. 10. Pension structure for veterans (World War I, World War II, 1 Korean conflict).

Table No. 11. Pension rate structure for dependents of deceased veterans orld War I, World War II, and Korean conflict).

Cable No. 12. Annual income study for all cases on pension rolls, showing pertage distribution by source of income, as reported on annual income questionre for calendar year 1961.

Table No. 13. Annual income study for all cases on pension rolls, comparison of gust study from new claims with sample study from income questionnaire for endar year 1961.

"able No. 14. Distribution of disability pensioners on VA rolls by 5-year age ups (World War I, World War II, and Korean conflict), showing percentage ensioners in each age group, June 1961.

'able No. 15. Total cases on rolls, showing detail by war and type of case, e 1962.

'able No. 16. Total dependents of deceased veterans by wars, March 1962 est available).

able No. 17. Veterans on pension rolls showing detail by entitlement, as of May

2.

abie No. 18. Deceased veteran cases on pension rolls, showing detail by enment, as of May 1962.

'able No. 19. Living and deceased veterans pension cases, Public Law 86-211 luding protected cases) showing number and percent of cases by income ement, as of May 1962.

able No. 20. Living and deceased veterans pension cases, Public Law 86-211 luding protected cases) showing precent distribution by low, intermediate, high rate, by wars, as of May 1962.

able No. 21, World War I veterans, showing total in civil life, number on ice-connected and non-service-connected rolls, average age, average monthly e, service-connected disabled cases rated 50 to 100 percent, terminations by ch, original awards, foreign cases (in 1961), and other miscellaneous data by l year.

able No. 22. World War I deceased veterans, showing number of deceased rans cases on service-connected and non-service-connected rolls, average thly value, beneficiaries by type, average age of widows, awards terminated, foreign cases (in 1961), by fiscal year.