In 1979, Vietnam veterans who had been exposed to Agent Orange began lobbying Congress to pass legislation that would grant them compensation for their injuries, which they claimed were the fault of the U.S. government, who had ordered the use of the potent herbicide to destroy foliage in the jungles of Vietnam. Five years later, the House of Representatives began debating a bill sponsored by Tom Daschle (D, SD). In October 1984, Congress passed the Veterans' Dioxin and Radiation Exposure Compensation Standards Act (Public Law 98-542), which enabled some veterans who had developed soft-tissue sarcoma as a result of exposure to Agent Orange to receive financial assistance.