Nevada will get added bankruptcy judge for caseload

Nevada will get a fourth federal bankruptcy judge this year.

U.S. Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said the three existing judges are overwhelmed with a caseload 24 percent higher than the national median of 4,931 apiece.

According to court records, Nevada has 7.7 bankruptcy filings per 1,000 people, compared with 5.5 per capita nationally.

"To ensure our judicial process works in a timely and effective manner, Nevada needs an additional bankruptcy judgeship, and I am pleased that this legislation grants Nevada's courts what they have needed for so long," added Gibbons.

Senate adopts Reid amendment to help disabled vets

The U.S. Senate has adopted an amendment by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., designed to improve benefits for severely disabled veterans.

The measure allows veterans classified as unemployable by the Veterans Administration to collect both disability and retirement pay.

Existing policy forces those veterans to forfeit part of their retirement pay if they are receiving disability benefits - a practice titled "concurrent receipt."

"I have worked for many years to end the ban on concurrent receipt," said Reid. "It's an unfair and outdated policy that keeps our veterans from getting the full pay they deserve."

He said Congress intended to exempt unemployable veterans last year, but the administration has insisted on continuing the unfair policy.

The amendment eliminates the 10-year waiting period now required before a veteran is designated unemployable and eligible for his or her full benefits.

Reid also has legislation that would eliminate the ban on concurrent receipt altogether. The measure is pending in the Senate.