Veteran Status Based on Service with Certain Civilian Groups

November 2, 2022

Veteran Status Based on Service with Certain Civilian Groups

Throughout history, civilians have played a role in

supporting U.S. Armed Forces both at home and abroad. In

some circumstances, civilians have deployed to a theater of

combat as government employees or defense contractors in

support of military operations. In these circumstances there

may be questions regarding whether individuals would be

eligible for benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans

Affairs (VA) due to illness or injuries sustained during their

work alongside the Armed Forces. Generally, these

individuals do not meet the statutory definition of veteran

found in Title 38, Section 101(2), of the U.S. Code, because

they do not meet the “active military service” and

“discharge under other than dishonorable conditions”

requirements. However, in limited instances, Congress has

designated services provided to the U.S. Armed Forces by

certain civilian groups as active military service and granted

veteran status to these groups so that their members may be

eligible for VA benefits. In 1977, Congress granted the

authority to the Secretary of the Department of Defense

(DOD) to designate services provided by civilian groups as

“active military service” for eligibility to receive VA

benefits. In addition, those who do not have active military

service may be eligible for worker’s compensation through

the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act.

This In Focus explains the limited circumstances through

which members of certain civilian groups may be eligible

for VA benefits. It also provides examples of a few civilian

groups that have been granted “veteran” status during the

20th and 21st centuries.

Overview

In certain circumstances, groups of civilians who

participated in wartime activities are granted eligibility for

all VA benefits available to former servicemembers who

meet the statutory definition of veteran. The GI Bill

Improvement Act of 1977 (P.L. 95-202) recognized service

with the Women’s Air Forces Service Pilots (WASPs, a

civilian group) as active military service and specified

criteria for groups to be granted active military service

pursuant to DOD regulations. This includes members of

civilian or contract employment groups who render services

for the U.S. Armed Forces in a similar way as the WASPs.

P.L. 95-202 also granted the Secretary of Defense the

authority to certify whether service for the Armed Forces

by a group of civilians or contractors is considered active

military service and to issue a discharge under honorable

conditions. On February 28, 1979, DOD’s final rule

implemented the provisions of P.L. 95-202 (44 Federal

Register 11220).

Under this rule, the Secretary of Defense delegated the

authority to grant active military service status to members

of certain civilian or contractor groups to the Secretary of

the Air Force. The determination to grant this status is

based upon specific criteria such as the group having

rendered services through civilian employment in a manner

similar to the WASPs as a result of a contract to provide

direct support to U.S. Armed Forces during a period of

armed conflict. Upon the designation of active military

service, the respective service secretaries will issue

discharge paperwork. As a result, civilian individuals with

both active military service and honorable discharge

statuses can be made eligible for VA benefits.

In addition, the rule established the DOD Civilian/Military

Service Review Board to review each application for active

military service status. DOD Directive 1000.20, Active Duty

Service Determinations for Civilian or Contractual Groups,

requires a representative from the civilian or contracted

employer group to submit such applications. The Secretary

of the Air Force has the final decision authority following

the board’s review and recommendation on whether the

applicant group should be considered as having performed

active military service.

Civilian Groups with Active Military

Service

To date, the Air Force Secretary has granted active military

service to members of selected civilian groups for services

provided to the U.S. Armed Forces. The majority of these

groups participated in World War I and World War II,

including those groups identified in Title 38, Section 3.7, of

the Code of Federal Regulations. Below are examples of

some of the civilian groups considered having performed

active military service under Section 401 of P.L. 95-202:

 Women’s Air Force Service Pilots,

 Signal Corps Female Telephone Operators Unit

(World War I),









Engineer Field Clerks (World War I),

Male Civilian Ferry Pilots (World War II),

Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, and

other groups of employees with war-related

occupations listed in Section 3.7 or determined

by the Air Force Secretary.

The most recent designation was made regarding a civilian

group that served during the Vietnam era. On January 21,

2020, the DOD Civilian/Military Service Review Board and

Department of the Air Force published a notice recognizing

“Navy civilian Special Agents” as having performed active

service in Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7,

1975 (83 Federal Register 3339).

https://crsreports.congress.gov

Veteran Status Based on Service with Certain Civilian Groups

Members of certain civilian groups who are considered to

have veteran status based upon meeting the criteria in P.L.

95-202 are eligible for benefits administered by VA. These

benefits include disability compensation, pension, health

care, and burial benefits administered through VA. Pursuant

to legislation enacted on May 20, 2016 (P.L. 114-158),

these individuals may also be eligible for inurnment in the

columbarium or niche wall at Arlington National Cemetery

but not in-ground burial. Arlington National Cemetery may

have additional requirements as it is under the Department

of Army’s jurisdiction and not VA authority.

Veteran Status for Merchant Mariners

In some cases merchant mariners—members of the U.S.

Merchant Marines—may also qualify as veterans for

purposes of eligibility for VA benefits. Whether a merchant

mariner can qualify as a veteran depends largely on when

the mariner served.

Merchant mariners performed support roles to the U.S

Armed Forces during World War II, the Korean War, and

the Vietnam era. Before 1950, merchant mariners were part

of the U.S. Maritime Commission (created in 1936) and the

War Shipping Administration (created in 1942). After 1950,

merchant mariners (including those who provided support

in Korea and Vietnam) became part of the Maritime

Administration, created by President Harry Truman. These

individuals could have served as either civil service

mariners or strategic sealift officers, which then determines

the individual’s qualification as a veteran.

Civil Service Mariners

Merchant mariners are a unique group of individuals, as

there is a difference between those who serve within the

U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command and those who are

hired as federal civil service mariners (CIVMARs). This

difference affects the individual’s ability to claim veteran

status and eligibility for VA benefits. Although CIVMARs

may work on ships transporting supplies and equipment to

U.S. Armed Forces around the world, they do not hold

military status. While these individuals have certain

conditions for employment, such as maintaining Merchant

Mariner Credentials issued by the U.S. Coast Guard, their

service does not qualify as active military service for the

purpose of establishing veteran status. In addition, when

CIVMARs leave employment with Military Sealift

Command, they are issued a Standard Form 50, Notice of

Personnel Action, which is proof of federal employment

only and not of military service.

World War II Civil Service Mariners

CIVMARs who served during World War II are considered

veterans and are eligible for VA benefits. In January 1988,

the Secretary of the Air Force determined that merchant

mariners who served between December 7, 1941, and

December 31, 1946, performed active military service,

which made this group eligible for VA benefits. As

explained in Title 38, Section 3.7(x), of the Code of Federal

Regulations, these groups included:



U.S. Merchant Seamen who served on

blockships in support of Operation Mulberry

in World War II; and



American Merchant Marine personnel who

served in oceangoing service during the period

of armed conflict between December 7, 1941,

and August 15, 1945.

In addition, pursuant to Section 402 of the Veterans

Programs Enhancement Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-368), a

certain group of merchant mariners may be eligible for only

VA burial benefits to include interment in a VA national or

a VA-funded state veterans cemetery. The individuals who

may qualify for VA burial benefits were members of the

U.S. Merchant Marine, Army Transport Service, or Naval

Transport Service who served between August 16, 1945,

and December 31, 1946.

Strategic Sealift Officers

An individual who has gone through a specific educational

program to become a strategic sealift officer (SSO) may be

granted veteran status and therefore eligible for VA

benefits. There are a limited number of programs in the

U.S. that can train SSOs, including the U.S. Merchant

Marine Academy. By attending the academy or another

institution that has a Strategic Sealift Midshipman Program,

the individual will be commissioned in the U.S. Navy

Reserves as an SSO. As described in statute, these

individuals are required to serve eight years of service

following their commissioning.

Commissioned officers in the U.S. Navy Reserves are

eligible for VA benefits so long as they meet the statutory

requirements for “veteran” and “active duty.”

Additional Relevant Resources:

Office of the Secretary of Defense, “Part 47 Determinations of Active Military Service and Discharge:

Civilian or Contractual Personnel,” 44 Federal Register

11220-11226, February 28, 1979.

DOD Civilian/Military Service Review Board, Department

of the Air Force, “Active Duty Service Determinations for

Civilian or Contractual Groups,” 85 Federal Register 3339,

January 21, 2020.

CRS Report Rxxxxx, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs:

Who Is A Veteran?

CRS Report R42107, The Federal Employees’

Compensation Act (FECA): Workers’ Compensation for

Federal Employees

CRS Report R46813, Department of Veterans Affairs:

Burial Benefits and the National Cemetery Administration

CRS In Focus IF11868, The United States Merchant

Marine Academy

Heather M. Salazar, Analyst Veterans Policy

IF12242

https://crsreports.congress.gov

Veteran Status Based on Service with Certain Civilian Groups

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