# Title 37 — Military

## Chapter 37-28 — Military Operations Adjusted Compensation

### § 37-28-01. Statement of public purpose.

In order to ease the financial hardships and personal and family sacrifice sustained by
members of the North Dakota national guard, and North Dakota residents of the reserve, and
active duty component who were mobilized after December 5, 1992, in support of military
operations around the world it is the intent of the legislative assembly that additional
compensation be provided to those resident veterans of North Dakota and payment of that
compensation is declared to be a public purpose. It is the further intent of the legislative
assembly to encourage those North Dakota resident veterans to continue their voluntary
membership in the national guard, reserve component, and active military force.
### § 37-28-02. Definitions.

As used in this chapter:
1. "Adjutant general" means the adjutant general of North Dakota.
2. "Beneficiary" in relation to a deceased veteran, means, in the order named:
a. The surviving unremarried husband or wife as of the date of signing the
application;
b. The surviving child or children and the lawful issue of a deceased child or children
by right of representation;
c. The surviving person standing in loco parentis; or
d. The surviving parent or parents.
3. "Domestic service" means service by a veteran during the period of service which is
not foreign service.
4. "Foreign service" means service by a veteran after December 5, 1992, for which the
veteran received an armed forces expeditionary medal or campaign badge or
performed service overseas in direct support to the global war on terror.
5. "Honorable and faithful" means service evidenced by:
a. An honorable discharge, or its equivalent;
b. In the case of an officer, a certificate of service; and
c. In the case of a veteran who has not been discharged, a certificate from the
appropriate service authority that the veteran's service was honorable and
faithful.
6. "Period of service" means the period of time beginning December 5, 1992, and ending
June 30, 2021.
7. a. "Resident" means a veteran who was a bona fide resident of the state of North
Dakota at the time of mobilization or, in the case of an active component member,
at the time of deployment for which the member received an expeditionary medal
or campaign badge, as determined under the rules of the adjutant general and
the laws of this state. "Resident" includes all mobilized members of the North
Dakota national guard.
b. "Veteran" means, for eligibility purposes, a member of the national guard or
reserve component who was activated under 10 U.S.C. 12301, as effective, in
effect on October 28, 2004 and 10 U.S.C. 12302, in effect on December 31, 2011,
and who completed honorable and faithful service of more than thirty days on
active duty in the armed forces of the United States at any time during the period
of service, or active component member awarded the expeditionary medal or
campaign badge for service after December 5, 1992, who was a resident of the
state of North Dakota, and who has not received bonus or adjusted compensation
from another state for the period of service.
### § 37-28-03. Payment of adjusted compensation for domestic and foreign service.

Each national guard or reserve component resident veteran mobilized stateside is entitled
to fifty dollars for each month or major fraction thereof for domestic service. Each national

guard, reserve, or active component resident veteran of foreign service who received the
expeditionary medal or campaign badge is entitled to one hundred dollars for each month or
major fraction thereof. If the veteran received a purple heart for foreign service, the veteran is
entitled to a payment of two thousand five hundred dollars in lieu of monthly payments for
adjusted compensation related to the mobilization during which the purple heart was earned. If
the veteran is deceased, the veteran's beneficiary is entitled to any payments under this chapter
to which the veteran would have been entitled. Applications for adjusted compensation may be
filed with the adjutant general through June 30, 2021, or in the case of a soldier mobilized on
June 30, 2021, not later than six months after the end of the mobilization period of service.
### § 37-28-04. Payment to beneficiary of veteran who died in active service.

In the case of a veteran who died as a result of active service during the period of service,
the beneficiary of the veteran is entitled to a payment of five thousand dollars in lieu of any other
compensation under this chapter.
### § 37-28-05. Application.

Each veteran or veteran's beneficiary entitled to payment under this chapter shall make
application to the adjutant general of the state of North Dakota upon a form prescribed by the
adjutant general. If the veteran is incompetent or the veteran's beneficiary is incompetent or a
minor, application may be made by the guardian of the veteran or beneficiary, and if there is no
guardian, the person determined by the adjutant general to have assumed the major
responsibility for the care of the veteran or beneficiary and to be a proper person to receive
payment for the veteran or beneficiary may make the application. If a veteran is hospitalized in a
state, county, or federal institution and no application has otherwise been approved by the
adjutant general, the person in charge of such institution may make the application with the
approval of the adjutant general. For purposes of this section, the word "minor" does not include
the unremarried spouse of a veteran. Each application must be accompanied by a certified copy
of honorable discharge or other evidence of honorable and faithful service. Each application
must be subscribed and sworn to by the applicant in such manner as may be prescribed by the
adjutant general. The adjutant general shall provide by rule for an endorsement of the evidence
of honorable and faithful service if application for payment has been made.
### § 37-28-06. Method of payment - Deduction of sums due veterans' aid fund.

Upon submission of satisfactory proof that the applicant is entitled to payment under this
chapter, the adjutant general shall compute the amount of payment due the applicant, make a
record thereof, and forward a voucher for the payment to the office of management and budget,
which shall cause the warrant-check to be issued for the amount of the claim. Payment must be
made from funds appropriated by the legislative assembly. If the veteran or the applicant for
payment under this chapter is indebted to the veterans' aid fund of the state of North Dakota,
the adjutant general shall determine the amount of such indebtedness and certify such
determination to the office of management and budget together with the record of payment due.
Within the limits of the payment due, the amount of such indebtedness must be paid to the
veterans' aid fund and the applicant must be paid any remainder to which the veteran is entitled.
### § 37-28-07. Payments exempt from taxation and from execution - Assignments void -

Debts to state and political subdivisions not deducted.
Payments under this chapter are exempt from all state and local taxes, including taxes
determined under section 57-38-30.3, and from levy, garnishment, attachment, and sale on
execution. Any pledge, mortgage, sale, assignment, or transfer of any right, claim, or interest in
any claim or payment under this chapter is void and payment to the veteran may not be denied
because of any sums owed to the state or any political subdivisions, except as provided in
section 37-26-05.

### § 37-28-08. Duty of adjutant general - Finality of decisions - Questions of residence

subject to court review.
The adjutant general shall administer this chapter. The adjutant general shall prepare and
distribute application blanks and investigate all claims and applications filed. If the adjutant
general is satisfied of the proof of a claim and application, the adjutant general shall approve
and direct payment of the claim. The adjutant general may adopt any rules necessary to the
efficient administration of this chapter. The necessary books, papers, records, cases, and
equipment used in the administration of this chapter become a part of the permanent records of
the office of the adjutant general. The adjutant general may determine any claim in any case if
doubt arises as to the eligibility of an applicant to receive payment and the decision of the
adjutant general in such case is final, except on questions of residence which are subject to
review by a court of competent jurisdiction. The adjutant general shall authorize payment for
prisoners of war upon their release and return.
### § 37-28-09. Penalty for false statement.

Any person who willfully makes a false statement in the application for benefits under
section 37-28-05 is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
