This Veterans Day held a special significance for me. It’s my first one without my dad — a Vietnam veteran who served our country with courage and who, like too many of his generation, came home carrying the invisible wounds of war.
My father fueled the planes that sprayed Agent Orange, and he would sometimes be drenched in it. He came home and battled cancer three times before ultimately losing his health care battle earlier this year.
As chair of the Assembly Military and Veterans Affairs Committee — and as the daughter and sister of veterans — my work to support those who serve is deeply personal. My father’s story reminds me every day that the true cost of service often lasts a lifetime. That’s exactly why our work to support veterans must last just as long.
Veterans Day is about more than honoring those who served. It’s about renewal — a renewed promise to stand with those who stood for us. It’s about ensuring that our veterans not only survive after service, but also thrive. And it’s about lifting up the values that define our military community: courage, integrity, compassion, and the unshakable commitment to service above self.
Here in California, we’ve made meaningful progress toward that goal. Together, we’ve reduced veteran homelessness more than any other state in the nation. Through Proposition 1, we now have $1.5 billion to expand housing for veterans with behavioral health needs through the Homekey+ program — a critical step toward ensuring that no veteran sleeps on our streets.
But our commitment cannot end at a crisis response. It must also celebrate and support the many veterans who are building strong families, careers and communities across our state. These men and women deserve a system that works for them, too.
That’s why I authored Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5 — to make it easier for veterans to claim the property tax exemption they’ve earned.
In addition to ACA5, I am proud to share that after our multi-year effort, we finally ended state taxes on military pensions and survivor benefits — up to $20,000, an important start as we push for more. It’s a meaningful way to say: We honor your service, we don’t tax it.
Because at the end of the day, what most veterans need isn’t so different from what everyone in our community needs — a good job, a home that’s affordable, well-funded schools, quality health care, and the chance to build a better life. Through CalVet, we’re expanding opportunities in education and job training.
Yet there’s one battle we haven’t yet won — and I need your help to win it.
Right now, we’re fighting to pass Senate Bill 694, a bill I co-authored with Sen. Bob Archuleta, D-Pico Rivera, to stop predatory “benefit claim sharks.” These are corporations that prey on disabled veterans, charging thousands of dollars with false promises of securing “100%” Veterans Affairs disability benefits — then disappearing when the job is done. This practice is illegal under federal law, but California lacks the ability to enforce it.
SB 694 will change that.
My dad fought for every penny of his VA benefits that saved his life more times than I can count — but he had a County veteran service officer by his side who helped him for free. That’s how it should be. No veteran should have to pay a dime to access the benefits they earned and sacrificed for through their service.
Yet, this industry makes $73 billion a year off disabled veterans — money that should be helping our heroes, not lining the pockets of CEOs and lobbyists in expensive suits.
And make no mistake — those lobbyists are fighting hard to stop this bill. I’ve never seen the kind of corporate pushback we’ve faced on this issue. At our committee hearings, the room was filled with veterans and veterans organizations supporting the bill.
Only two people spoke against it — a CEO and one of his employees.
But their money and influence were enough to stall the bill in the Senate this year, forcing us to make it a two-year bill to keep it alive.
That’s why I’m asking for you to speak up.
The Senate will vote on SB 694 this January, and we need everyone who cares about veterans to call their state senator and urge them to support the bill to stop VA benefit claim sharks. Because at the end of the day, the power of veterans — and of the communities that stand with them — is stronger than any lobbyist in Sacramento.
This work — all of it — is about justice, dignity and keeping our promises. It’s about making sure that every person who risked their lives for all of us has the future they deserve.
This Veterans Day, as I thought about my dad and all those who served beside him, I was filled with both pride and purpose. Pride in his service, and purpose in continuing the fight to make sure we truly honor that service — not just with words, but with action.
To every veteran, every family, and every advocate who refuses to give up — thank you. Together, we’ll keep fighting for what’s right. Because our veterans never gave up on us. And we will never give up on them.
Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, represents the 40th Assembly District, which includes most of the Santa Clarita Valley in addition to the northwest San Fernando Valley. “Democratic Voices” appears Tuesdays and rotates among local Democrats.
