Lee, Rosen Introduce Legislation to Help NV Veterans Exposed to Radiation and Toxins

June 3, 2026

Senator Rosen, Congresswoman Lee, and Sergeant Dave Crete

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03) joined Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Sergeant Dave Crete, Chairman of The Invisible Enemy, a veterans-rights organization composed of veterans and downwinders fighting for the thousands of military personnel who suffered or died from exposure to toxic radiation and materials at the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR), to introduce the Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act.

“It’s embarrassing that we ask men and women to serve our country and then make it so damn difficult for them to access the care they need for conditions they develop as a result of that service. These veterans need our help, and they need us to continue fighting for them,” said Congresswoman Susie Lee. “This bill is another meaningful step in that fight, and I’m grateful for the continued partnership of Senator Rosen as we continue helping victims of toxic radiation exposure who served at NTTR.”

This bill would require the Department of Defense (DOD) to join the Department of Energy (DOE) in classifying the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR), and all other locations where radiation and toxic exposure occurred, as contaminated; identify everyone who served within the NTTR since the date of the first nuclear test on the range in 1951; establish a process for servicemembers and veterans to provide proof of their service within the NTTR and at DOE covered facilities; and require the DOD to share this collected documentation with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as well as any injuries, exposures, or illnesses related to their service, so that veterans will finally be able to claim and access their VA benefits.

“The veterans who served at the Nevada Test and Training Range were unwittingly exposed to radiation and other toxins and for far too long have been forsaken by our government. We owe it to them to make sure that they receive the VA care and benefits they deserve,” said Senator Jacky Rosen. “This is why I’m proud to introduce the Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act with Congresswoman Susie Lee. As the daughter of a veteran, it is my mission to work with both sides of the aisle to deliver for the men and women who served our nation.”

Lee has been a champion for veterans and victims of toxic radiation exposure in Nevada, especially veterans who suffered or died from exposure to toxic radiation and materials from decades of nuclear weapons testing at NTTR.

Last week, at the National Atomic Testing Museum, Lee joined House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Mark Takano (CA-39) and Representatives Steven Horsford (NV-04) and Dina Titus (NV-01) for a roundtable discussion on radiation exposure among servicemembers and veterans, and the legacy effects on families and communities. Roundtable participants included Dave Crete, Chairman of The Invisible Enemy; Steve Nelson, Director of Government Affairs Stronghold Freedom Foundation; Mary Grace Velasco, National Service Officer Disabled American Veterans; Keith Keifer, National Commander National Association of Atomic Veterans; and Rick Workman, Founder and Director of the Sound of Silence Project; Kari Weninger, Chair of the Board Veteran Families for Education and Awareness; Daniel Sanders, National Legislative Chair Veterans of Foreign Wars; and Ms. Linda Chase, Nevada Downwinder & Advocate.

"The men and women who served at the Nevada Test and Training Range helped protect our nation during some of the most critical moments in our history. For far too long, their service, their sacrifices, and their illnesses have been FORGOTTEN. This legislation represents hope, not only for the veterans still fighting for care and recognition, but for the families who have spent decades seeking answers. No American who answered the call to serve should ever be FORGOTTEN, and today we take another important step toward honoring that promise. We are grateful to Senator Jacky Rosen and Congresswoman Susie Lee for their leadership and unwavering commitment to the veterans and families who have waited far too long to be acknowledged," said Dave Crete, Chairman of the Board, The Invisible Enemy.

Congresswoman Lee recently pressed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to commit to helping victims of toxic radiation exposure who served at NTTR during the DoD’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget hearing before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. Secretary Hegseth committed to gathering more information and getting back to Congresswoman Lee a week later. Despite this promise, the DoD has not gotten back to Lee after more than three weeks.

Last year, Congresswoman Lee testified in front of the House Veterans Affairs Committee in support of her legislation to get veterans who served at NTTR access to lifesaving treatment and compensation they need.

Lee also helped lay the groundwork for this bill in the bipartisan FY26 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to ensure veterans who served at NTTR and are suffering from toxic radiation exposure can access the benefits they earned. She is continuing to build upon this progress and ensure that these veterans get the benefits they earned.

By Ricardo Torres-Cortez | May 28, 2026

Air Force veteran David Crete didn’t link his medical ailments, including tumors and pulmonary issues, to his service at the Nevada Test and Training Range in the 1980s until he gathered with former work colleagues about a decade ago.
“He was sitting in his backyard, reconnecting with eight of them and asked them: ‘Does anyone here have tumors?’ And six of eight of them rose their hands and then proclaimed that even some of them had children with tumors,” Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., told Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a budget hearing last month.
The secrecy of the workers’ assignments, limited records shared within the government and the fact that many of them aren’t allowed to disclose where they worked prevents them from receiving full Veterans Affairs benefits and compensation, he said.
The “Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act” in the Senate would require the DOD to acknowledge that contamination occurred at the Nevada Test Site and identify every military member who served there since the first nuclear test. Their records have to be shared with the VA to open a path to submit claims.
[Rosen] noted that House Speaker Mike Johnson blocked an initial version of the proposal in 2025.
Meanwhile, Lee’s companion “Protect Act” in the House would expand benefits and financial compensation for the veterans and establish that those who served between 1972 and 2005 were exposed to the toxic elements, Lee said. Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., is a sponsor to the bill.
She said that Hegseth committed to getting back to her after she last pressed him on the issue two weeks ago.
“We’ve sent follow-up letters; we’ve asked him in person,” Lee said. “So, we’re hoping he’ll keep his promise to the men and women who have served this country.”
Lee noted that at least 103 had died in the last 13 months.

Las Vegas Sun: After decades of ‘invisible burdens,’ Nevada Test Range veterans finally nearing VA benefits

By Grace Da Rocha | June 2, 2026

Dave Crete’s four years as an Air Force security police officer at the Nevada Test and Training Range ended decades ago — but their impact never has.
All four of his children were born with “various issues” he links to radiation exposure from his time at the sprawling 4,531-square-mile site northwest of Las Vegas where the military once conducted nuclear tests.
Crete has connected with “hundreds and hundreds” of veterans who share similar stories, keeping a running list of military employees and contractors who have died since working at the nuclear testing range. That list grows every year.
Despite their service, veterans like Crete have had little recourse — the classified nature of their work has largely shut them out of Department of Veterans Affairs benefits and support.
U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., is preparing to reintroduce legislation that would open the door to VA benefits for veterans who were exposed to toxic materials while serving at the training range.
U.S. Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., is pushing the effort forward in the House, where she introduced a companion bill called the Presumption for Radiation or Toxin Exposure Coverage for Troops, or PROTECT Act.
The veterans are locked out of receiving benefits from the PACT Act, a 2022 law that expanded health care and disability benefits for millions of veterans exposed to toxic substances such as radiation, burn pits and Agent Orange.
The bill would require the Department of Defense to classify the testing range and other sites recognized by the Department of Energy as locations where contamination occurred. It would additionally identify everyone who served within the range since the first nuclear test there in 1951, establishing a process for service members and veterans to provide proof of their service at the DOE-covered facilities.
The bill would mandate the Department of Defense to share that documentation with the VA — along with any recorded injuries, exposures or illnesses related to a veteran’s service — so that those affected may finally be able to claim and access the benefits they are owed.
Lee and Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., have introduced various versions of the bipartisan bill in recent years, seeking to establish a presumption of exposure to radiation and toxins at the test site between 1972 and 2005 — which would ensure medical care for affected veterans.
The urgency of that change was on full display May 12, when Lee pressed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a Fiscal Year 2027 Department of Defense budget hearing before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. She invoked Crete by name, describing his struggle to access VA coverage for his medical complications — among them, a grape-sized tumor that was removed from his neck.
During the hearing, Hegseth committed to having his team draft a review of the issue and respond to Lee with a plan. But as of May 28, Lee said she had heard nothing — not from Hegseth, not from his team — even after sending follow-up letters.
“It’s embarrassing that our country is taking this long to allow veterans who were exposed to toxins at the Nevada Test and Training Range to service-connect their illnesses and access the care they deserve,” Lee said in a statement. “I’m grateful for the tireless partnership of Sen. Rosen and Sgt. Dave Crete as we continue to fight for these veterans and introduce new legislation to finally right this wrong.”

KLAS-CBS 8: Legislation to help veterans exposed to radiation in Nevada advances in U.S. Senate

By Sasha Loftis | May 28, 2026

Rosen’s bipartisan bill, now called The Sergeant Dave Crete Forgotten Veterans act, has cleared its first hurdle in Congress, advancing through the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
Rosen joined Crete and Democratic Nevada Congresswoman Susie Lee for a news conference on Thursday to provide an update on the legislation’s progress.
The bill would require the U.S. Department of Defense to classify Nevada’s former nuclear testing site as a location where workers were exposed to radiation. Formerly known as the Nevada Test Site, it is now called the Nevada Test and Training Range.
Now, veterans who worked there aren’t eligible for government support, because classified records prevent them from proving service.
Lee also introduced a companion bill in the House of Representatives, called the Presumption for Radiation or Toxin Exposure Coverage for Troops or PROTECT Act.
This would expand Veterans Affairs benefits to those assigned to the site in Nevada.
“We see one veteran every two days fall from their exposure,” Lee said. “This is time-critical.”
Rosen’s bill now goes to the Senate floor for consideration. The PROTECT Act is being considered in the House Committee on Armed Services.

KVVU-FOX 5: Nevada veterans exposed to radiation, toxic chemicals near recognition under new bill

By Arianna Schmidt | May 28, 2026

Nevada veterans who say they were exposed to radiation and toxic chemicals at the Nevada Test and Training Range are one step closer to getting recognized and help.
Senator Jacky Rosen and Congresswoman Susie Lee are introducing an updated “Forgotten Veterans Act,” now renamed the Sergeant Dave Crete Forgotten Veterans Act, to force the Defense Department to document contamination on the range and identify every service member who served there.
Veterans say years of classified work have kept them from proving their exposure and getting VA benefits, even as they deal with cancer and other serious illnesses.
Under the bill, the Pentagon would have to formally list the range as contaminated, unmask where veterans served the VA, and clear up a path for them and their families to qualify for care and compensation.

KTNV-ABC 13: New bills could end decades-long benefits denial for radiation-exposed Cold War veterans

By Steve Sebelius | May 27, 2026

At a roundtable held at the National Atomic Testing Museum, veterans from all of America's services told members of Congress about their struggles to obtain health care and benefits, which were denied because many worked in areas that are still classified by the government.
Records are often missing, incomplete, or secret, which makes applying for veterans' benefits much more difficult, if not impossible.
Takano led the hearing, alongside Nevada's Democratic Reps. Dina Titus, Steven Horsford and Susie Lee.
Titus and Lee both have sponsored bills that would mandate the government presume that illnesses suffered by vets who worked in areas contaminated by radiation were caused in the course of their duties, opening up Veterans Administration benefits to them.
There is cause for urgency: Cold War vets are dying, some from what could be service-connected illnesses, every day.
"The thing that's really changed for The Invisible Enemy is the fact that in [Washington] D.C., they're finally starting to pay attention, and we've got some great advocates in the state, especially Susie Lee, Congresswoman Lee, and Sen. [Jacky] Rosen," Crete said. "When we spoke before, the issue was getting people to know we exist, and now back there they know. And we've gotten past the point of disbelief, because first people don't want to even believe what we say to be true. Now they know it's true, and we're gathering support, amazing support."
One of the issues is known as "masking," the practice of keeping Defense Department records classified, so proof of service in particular locations — in Crete's case, the Nevada Test and Training Range — is confidential.
Crete says a new bill set to be announced this week would designate the range as an area of toxic contamination exposure, and make illnesses suffered by people who worked there presumptively connected to their military service. It would also "unmask" records to provide proof of that service.

KOLO-ABC 8: Rosen, Lee introduce bill to support Nevada vets exposed to radiation

By Kevin Sheridan | May 29, 2026

U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen and Representative Susie Lee introduced a bill to support veterans exposed to radiation in Nevada.
They introduced the FORGOTTEN Veterans Act, which would require the Department of Defense to classify the Nevada Test and Training Range as a location in which contamination occurred. That list would also include locations that the Department of Energy classifies as contaminated.
The bill would establish a process for servicemembers and veterans to provide proof of their service within the NTTR and require the DOD to share the collected documentation with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The NTTR conducted more than 900 explosive nuclear weapons tests between 1950 and the 1990s. Rosen says that, due to current issues related to the classified nature of the test locations, many veterans are unable to prove their service, making them unable to receive care and benefits under the PACT Act.
“It’s embarrassing that our country is taking this long to allow veterans who were exposed to toxins at the Nevada Test and Training Range to service-connect their illnesses and access the care they deserve,” said Congresswoman Susie Lee. “I’m grateful for the tireless partnership of Senator Rosen and Sergeant Dave Crete as we continue to fight for these veterans and introduce new legislation to finally right this wrong.”

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Issues: Health Care Veterans & Military Families