A bill to grant a Federal charter to the Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc.
Public Law 99-318 · S. 8 · 99th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on May 23, 1986 · Government Operations and Politics
Sponsor: Sen. Alan Cranston (D-CA)
Cosponsors (67): Sen. Alan Simpson, Sen. Spark Matsunaga,
Passage votesYeaNay
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateRecorded vote: 94 yea, 3 nay94–3
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
(Measure passed Senate, amended, roll call #52 (94-3))
Grants a Federal charter to the Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc.
Who voted for it
Every senator of the 99th Congress on the ideology compass. Highlighted: the 95 who voted yea on final passage. Faded: everyone else, including those who voted nay, did not vote, or had not yet taken office.
95 yea3 nay2 present or did not vote
Democrats who voted yea(46)
Sen. Tom HarkinD-IA- Sen. William ProxmireD-WI
- Sen. Paul SarbanesD-MD
- Sen. Howard MetzenbaumD-OH
- Sen. John MelcherD-MT
- Sen. Gary HartD-CO
- Sen. Quentin BurdickD-ND
- Sen. Paul SimonD-IL
- Sen. Donald RiegleD-MI
Sen. Carl LevinD-MI
Sen. Ted KennedyD-MA
Sen. Daniel InouyeD-HI- Sen. James SasserD-TN
- Sen. Alan CranstonD-CA
Sen. John KerryD-MA- Sen. Spark MatsunagaD-HI
Sen. Max BaucusD-MT- Sen. Albert GoreD-TN
Sen. Frank LautenbergD-NJ
Sen. Joseph BidenD-DE- Sen. George MitchellD-ME
- Sen. David PryorD-AR
Sen. Patrick LeahyD-VT- Sen. Claiborne PellD-RI
Sen. Robert ByrdD-WV- Sen. Dale BumpersD-AR
Sen. Jay RockefellerD-WV- Sen. James ExonD-NE
- Sen. Wendell FordD-KY
- Sen. Daniel MoynihanD-NY
- Sen. John GlennD-OH
Sen. Jeff BingamanD-NM
Sen. Christopher DoddD-CT- Sen. Dennis DeConciniD-AZ
- Sen. Bill BradleyD-NJ
- Sen. John JohnstonD-LA
- Sen. Lawton ChilesD-FL
- Sen. Alan DixonD-IL
- Sen. Fritz HollingsD-SC
- Sen. David BorenD-OK
- Sen. Samuel NunnD-GA
- Sen. Lloyd BentsenD-TX
- Sen. John StennisD-MS
- Sen. Edward ZorinskyD-NE
- Sen. Howell HeflinD-AL
- Sen. Russell LongD-LA
Republicans who voted yea(49)
- Sen. Charles MathiasR-MD
Sen. Arlen SpecterR-PA- Sen. Lowell WeickerR-CT
- Sen. Mark AndrewsR-ND
- Sen. Henry HeinzR-PA
- Sen. Mark HatfieldR-OR
- Sen. Alfonse D’AmatoR-NY
- Sen. William CohenR-ME
Sen. Chuck GrassleyR-IA- Sen. Robert PackwoodR-OR
- Sen. John ChafeeR-RI
- Sen. Robert KastenR-WI
- Sen. David DurenbergerR-MN
- Sen. James AbdnorR-SD
- Sen. Larry PresslerR-SD
- Sen. John DanforthR-MO
- Sen. Paula HawkinsR-FL
- Sen. Nancy KassebaumR-KS
- Sen. Slade GortonR-WA
- Sen. Daniel EvansR-WA
Sen. John WarnerR-VA- Sen. Frank MurkowskiR-AK
- Sen. Paul TribleR-VA
Sen. Ted StevensR-AK- Sen. Mack MattinglyR-GA
Sen. Mitch McConnellR-KY- Sen. Don NicklesR-OK
Sen. Thad CochranR-MS- Sen. Rudy BoschwitzR-MN
Sen. Pete DomeniciR-NM
Sen. Richard LugarR-IN- Sen. Pete WilsonR-CA
- Sen. Robert DoleR-KS
- Sen. William RothR-DE
- Sen. Warren RudmanR-NH
- Sen. Strom ThurmondR-SC
- Sen. Alan SimpsonR-WY
- Sen. Jeremiah DentonR-AL
Sen. Orrin HatchR-UT- Sen. Dan QuayleR-IN
- Sen. Paul LaxaltR-NV
- Sen. Jake GarnR-UT
- Sen. William ArmstrongR-CO
- Sen. Phil GrammR-TX
- Sen. Jacob HechtR-NV
- Sen. James McClureR-ID
- Sen. Barry GoldwaterR-AZ
- Sen. Steven SymmsR-ID
- Sen. Gordon HumphreyR-NH
Data notes
The Senate’s recorded vote on the final version of the law (roll call 433 in Voteview), matched to the vote the record cites and checked against its totals. Positions are each member’s DW-NOMINATE score for that Congress, as on the Ideology page; left to right is more liberal to more conservative. Paired and announced yea votes count as yea. Lists follow the compass, most liberal first. A name links to a profile only for members of the current Congress. A law passed by voice vote or unanimous consent has no member list, and neither does a vote Voteview has not yet recorded.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 13 actions.
- May 23, 1986Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 99-318.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- May 14, 1986PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- May 12, 1986FloorFloor · Passed House by Voice Vote.
- FloorFloor · Called up by House by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Discharged from House Judiciary Committee
- Apr 14, 1986CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Judiciary Committee
- Apr 9, 1986FloorFloor · Passed Senate with amendments by Yea-Nay Vote. 94-3. Record Vote No: 52.Senate roll call 52
- Apr 8, 1986FloorFloor · Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.
- Mar 26, 1986CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Judiciary Committee
- Mar 20, 1986CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Senate Judiciary Committee
- Jan 3, 1985CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.