38 U.S.C. § 7101 : US Code - Section 7101: Composition of Board of Veterans' Appeals

Search 38 U.S.C. § 7101 : US Code - Section 7101: Composition of Board of Veterans' Appeals

(a) There is in the Department a Board of Veterans' Appeals
(hereinafter in this chapter referred to as the "Board"). The Board
is under the administrative control and supervision of a chairman
directly responsible to the Secretary. The Board shall consist of a
Chairman, a Vice Chairman, and such number of members as may be
found necessary in order to conduct hearings and dispose of appeals
properly before the Board in a timely manner. The Board shall have
such other professional, administrative, clerical, and stenographic
personnel as are necessary in conducting hearings and considering
and disposing of appeals properly before the Board. The Board shall
have sufficient personnel under the preceding sentence to enable
the Board to conduct hearings and consider and dispose of appeals
properly before the Board in a timely manner.
(b)(1) The Chairman shall be appointed by the President, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of six years.
The Chairman shall be subject to the same ethical and legal
limitations and restrictions concerning involvement in political
activities as apply to judges of the United States Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims.
(2) The Chairman may be removed by the President for misconduct,
inefficiency, neglect of duty, or engaging in the practice of law
or for physical or mental disability which, in the opinion of the
President, prevents the proper execution of the Chairman's duties.
The Chairman may not be removed from office by the President on any
other grounds. Any such removal may only be made after notice and
opportunity for hearing.
(3) The Chairman may be appointed under this subsection to more
than one term. If, upon the expiration of the term of office for
which the Chairman was appointed, the position of Chairman would
become vacant, the individual serving as Chairman may, with the
approval of the Secretary, continue to serve as Chairman until
either appointed to another term or a successor is appointed, but
not beyond the end of the Congress during which the term of office
expired.
(4) The Secretary shall designate one member of the Board as Vice
Chairman. The Vice Chairman shall perform such functions as the
Chairman may specify. Such member shall serve as Vice Chairman at
the pleasure of the Secretary.
(c)(1)(A) The Chairman may from time to time designate one or
more employees of the Department to serve as acting members of the
Board. Except as provided in subparagraph (B), any such designation
shall be for a period not to exceed 90 days, as determined by the
Chairman.
(B) An individual designated as an acting member of the Board may
continue to serve as an acting member of the Board in the making of
any determination on a proceeding for which the individual was
designated as an acting member of the Board, notwithstanding the
termination of the period of designation of the individual as an
acting member of the Board under subparagraph (A) or (C).
(C) An individual may not serve as an acting member of the Board
for more than 270 days during any one-year period.
(D) At no time may the number of acting members exceed 20 percent
of the total of the number of Board members and acting Board
members combined.
(2) In each annual report to the Congress under section 529 of
this title, the Secretary shall provide detailed descriptions of
the activities undertaken and plans made in the fiscal year for
which the report is made with respect to the authority provided by
paragraph (1) of this subsection. In each such report, the
Secretary shall indicate, in terms of full-time employee
equivalents, the number of acting members of the Board designated
under such paragraph (1) during the year for which the report is
made.
(d)(1) After the end of each fiscal year, the Chairman shall
prepare a report on the activities of the Board during that fiscal
year and the projected activities of the Board for the fiscal year
during which the report is prepared and the next fiscal year. Such
report shall be included in the documents providing detailed
information on the budget for the Department that the Secretary
submits to the Congress in conjunction with the President's budget
submission for any fiscal year pursuant to section 1105 of title
31.
(2) Each such report shall include, with respect to the preceding
fiscal year, information specifying -
(A) the number of cases appealed to the Board during that year;
(B) the number of cases pending before the Board at the
beginning and at the end of that year;
(C) the number of such cases which were filed during each of
the 36 months preceding the current fiscal year;
(D) the average length of time a case was before the Board
between the time of the filing of an appeal and the disposition
during the preceding fiscal year;
(E) the number of members of the Board at the end of the year
and the number of professional, administrative, clerical,
stenographic, and other personnel employed by the Board at the
end of the preceding fiscal year; and
(F) the number of employees of the Department designated under
subsection (c)(1) to serve as acting members of the Board during
that year and the number of cases in which each such member
participated during that year.
(3) The projections in each such report for the current fiscal
year and for the next fiscal year shall include (for each such
year) -
(A) an estimate of the number of cases to be appealed to the
Board; and
(B) an evaluation of the ability of the Board (based on
existing and projected personnel levels) to ensure timely
disposition of such appeals as required by section 7101(a) of
this title.
(e) A performance incentive that is authorized by law for
officers and employees of the Federal Government may be awarded to
a member of the Board (including an acting member) by reason of
that member's service on the Board only if the Chairman of the
Board determines that such member should be awarded that incentive.
A determination by the Chairman for such purpose shall be made
taking into consideration the quality of performance of the Board
member.