May 29th, 2017 by WCBC Radio

Good news for area veterans on this Memorial Day- as the House has easily approved legislation to cut the time it takes for the Department of Veterans Affairs to handle appeals from veterans unhappy with their disability payouts, an effort to reduce a rapidly growing claims backlog without adding billions in government costs. Currently, veterans could wait five years or more to resolve their appeals. The VA previously warned it would need money for "hiring surges" in the government's fiscal year beginning next Oct. 1 or face a backlog, now at 470,000, that would grow to 1 million within a decade. The bill will now go to the Senate for consideration. Maryland U.S. Senator Ben Cardin is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee…