FOR IMMEDIATE NEWS RELEASE (September 7, 2018 – Hagåtña) –Vice Speaker Therese M. Terlaje (D-Yoña) introduced a bill to streamline the distribution of war claims awards for survivor awardees who pass away before receiving their award. Bill No. 344-34 (COR) will ensure that the families or the heirs of eligible war survivors can obtain the recipient’s award expeditiously and at minimum cost. The bill would remove the requirement for a probate hearing, remove court costs and cap attorney fees at no more than $300.

The impetus for the bill was the news of the recent death of one of the war survivors from Merizo that Vice Speaker Therese Terlaje and her staff assisted in filing a war claims application.

“We have watched numerous members of this greatest generation pass on before seeing any compensation for the hardships that they experienced during the war. They deserve all of the help that we can offer them. Although we can’t help those that Congress already excluded, (war survivors who passed away before December 23, 2016) we can do our best for those who were allowed to submit a claim. It is my hope that this bill can shorten the wait and the costs for the families of any war claims applicants who die before receiving their war claims award,” stated Vice Speaker Terlaje.