S.Amdt. 5833

The amendment, known as the Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act of 2026, aims to add a new subtitle to bill S. 4784 focused on veterans exposed to toxic substances.

The primary purpose of this amendment is to help veterans who served at covered locations—which include the Nevada Test and Training Range, the Nevada National Security Site (on or after January 27, 1951), and facilities listed under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000.

Specifically, the amendment seeks to change and add the following:

• Identification and Documentation: It requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense to work together to identify veterans who served at these locations. It prohibits the government from requiring a veteran to provide affirmative evidence of exposure if their service at a covered location is already established.

• Benefit Presumptions: It treats service at the specified Nevada sites as radiation-risk activities and establishes a presumption of toxic exposure and service connection for certain diseases for those assigned to these locations or the airspace above them.

• Research and Tracking: It mandates a study on potential toxic exposures and environmental hazards at these sites and requires the creation of a covered location veteran registry to track health effects and inform veterans about benefits.

• Official Classification: It requires the Secretary of Defense to officially classify these sites as locations where contamination occurred.