1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to veterans; extending veterans benefits to allied soldiers from Vietnam 
1.3 	and Laos who assisted the United States armed forces during the Vietnam War;
1.4 	proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 197.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. [197.792] VETERANS BENEFITS; ALLIED FORCES.
1.7 	(a) Any Minnesota resident who, as a former resident of Vietnam or Laos, 
1.8 	significantly aided or assisted the United States armed forces during the period of the 
1.9 	Vietnam War, is eligible for any benefit established and authorized exclusively for veterans 
1.10 	by any section of this chapter or any other provision of Minnesota Statutes, excluding any 
1.11 	benefit funded in part or whole by funding received from federal sources.
1.12 	(b) The commissioner of veterans affairs shall establish and implement a policy for 
1.13 	reviewing applications and determining eligibility for the benefits authorized by this 
1.14 	section.
1.15 	(c) The following definitions apply to this section:
1.16 	(1) "veteran" has the meaning given in section 197.447; and
1.17 	(2) "the period of the Vietnam War" means the period of December 22, 1961, 
1.18 	to April 30, 1975.

1.19 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2009.