President Joe Biden signed legislation on Aug. 10 aimed at helping military veterans who were exposed to toxic burn pits.
“The PACT Act is the least we can do for the countless men and women—many might be in this room for all I know—who suffered toxic exposure while serving the country,” Biden said in prepared remarks delivered from the White House before signing the legislation.
The measure’s full title is the “Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022.”
The legislation was sponsored by Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, in the lower chamber and Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. The legislation drew bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress. The House approved it in a 342–88 vote in July, and the Senate passed it by an 86–11 margin a week before Biden signed it….