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the projects as a medically therapeutic activity, and are
supervised by VA medical personnel.” The VA report, appended to
the committee’s report, describes the compensatory aspect of the
CWT program as “[reinforcing] through the use of well-established
motivational principles (‘rewards’), modifications or development
of attitudes, habits, skills, and behaviors necessary to attain
or maintain a maximum level of social or psychological
adjustment.” S. Rept. 94-1206 (Part I), supra at 181, 1976
U.S.C.C.A.N. at 6472. We believe that, over the years, Congress
has understood that the principal benefits to participants in VA
therapeutic work programs are medical and not pecuniary. It is
reasonable to assume that that understanding played a role in
Congress’s 1986 decision to recast payments made to participants
in VA therapeutic work programs as “distributions” (and not
“payments”, “wages”, or “remuneration”) and to provide that those
distributions not be considered income for certain pension
purposes. See discussion of Veterans’ Benefits Improvement and
Health-Care Authorization Act of 1986 supra in section III.F.3.
of this report.
While petitioner was compensated with a distribution from
the VA Special Therapeutic and Rehabilitation Activities Fund for
the services he rendered, we are inclined to conclude that
distributions of that class are not simply payments for services
rendered. There is a welfare (noncompensatory) aspect to them
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