VETERAN FRAUD REIMBURSEMENT ACT OF 2025

On 2025-05-05, Representative Morgan McGarvey (D-KY-3) delivered a floor speech titled "VETERAN FRAUD REIMBURSEMENT ACT OF 2025" in the House.

VETERAN FRAUD REIMBURSEMENT ACT OF 2025

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 74 (Monday, May 5, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 74 (Monday, May 5, 2025)] [House] [Pages H1817-H1819] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] VETERAN FRAUD REIMBURSEMENT ACT OF 2025 Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1912) to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the repayment by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of benefits misused by a fiduciary, and for other purposes. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 1912 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act of 2025''. SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT TO REPAYMENT BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OF CERTAIN MISUSED BENEFITS. Section 6107 of title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``Sec. 6107. Reissuance of benefits ``(a) Reissuance of Misused Benefits.--(1) In any case in which a fiduciary misuses all or part of an individual's benefit paid to such fiduciary, the Secretary shall pay to the beneficiary or the beneficiary's successor fiduciary an amount equal to the amount of such benefit so misused. ``(2) In any case in which the Secretary reissues a benefit payment (in whole or in part) under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make a good faith effort to obtain recoupment from the fiduciary to whom the payment was originally made. ``(3) In any case in which the Secretary obtains recoupment from a fiduciary who has misused benefits, the Secretary shall promptly remit payment of the recouped amounts to the beneficiary or the beneficiary's successor fiduciary, as the case may be, to the extent that such amounts have not been paid under paragraph (1). ``(b) Reissuance of Amounts in the Case of a Deceased Beneficiary.--(1) If a beneficiary described in subsection (a)(1) predeceases a payment under such subsection, the Secretary shall pay such amount, subject to paragraph (2), to an individual or entity in accordance with section 5121 of this title. ``(2) The Secretary may not make a payment under this subsection to a fiduciary who misused benefits of the beneficiary. ``(c) Limitation on Total Amount Paid.--The total of the amounts paid to a beneficiary or the beneficiary's successor fiduciary under this section may not exceed the total benefit amount misused by the fiduciary with respect to that beneficiary. ``(d) Oversight of Negligence.--(1) The Secretary shall establish methods and timing with respect to determining whether an instance of misuse by a fiduciary, of all or part of an individual's benefit paid to such fiduciary, is the result of negligence by the Secretary. ``(2) The Secretary may not withhold the reissuing of a benefit payment under subsection (a)(1) by reason of a pending determination under paragraph (1). [[Page H1818]] ``(3) The Secretary is not required to make a determination under paragraph (1) for each instance of misuse by a fiduciary, of all or part of an individual's benefit paid to such fiduciary.'' The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bergman) and the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. McGarvey) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan. General Leave Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 1912. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Michigan? There was no objection. Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1912 introduced by my colleague from Virginia (Mr. Connolly). My prayers are with him and his family as he once again battles cancer. Mr. Speaker, I thank the leadership teams, especially Leader Scalise and his staff, for agreeing to move this bill forward in his absence. Representative Connolly's bill would ensure that the VA's fiduciary program is improved so that our Nation's most vulnerable veterans receive the benefits that they have earned. Let me say that again: our most vulnerable veterans. The VA appoints fiduciaries for veterans who are unable to manage their VA financial benefits. These fiduciaries are required to use a veteran's VA benefits for the veteran's care and welfare. The VA periodically reviews fiduciary activities to ensure that fiduciaries are not misusing a veteran's VA benefits. When a fiduciary misuses a veteran's benefit, current law does not allow the veteran to be made financially whole until after the VA determines whether the misuse was the result of VA negligence. {time} 1500 These determinations of negligence amount to bureaucratic red tape that have caused long delays before veterans could recoup their misused benefits. Some veterans have passed away before their misused benefits are returned. We must ensure that the VA's fiduciary program is streamlined. This bill would get rid of red tape preventing victims of misuse from promptly recouping their VA benefits. It would prohibit the VA from withholding repayment of misused benefits while the VA is still working on a negligence determination. It would also require the VA to implement methods to ensure that negligence determinations are made in a timely manner. Veterans deserve to have access to their benefits without bureaucratic hurdles and unnecessary delays. Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 1912, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. McGARVEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 1912, the Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act of 2025, authored by my colleague, Representative Connolly. He cannot be here today as he bravely battles cancer, and our thoughts and our prayers are with him. I echo the comments of Representative Bergman. Veterans in the fiduciary program are some of the most vulnerable in the VA's care. Because they are often elderly or mentally ill, they are at greater risk for financial abuse and theft of benefits than the population at large. Unfortunately, despite the VA's best efforts at vetting proposed fiduciaries, bad actors do arise from time to time. When that happens, theft or misuse of benefits can financially devastate veterans. On top of the financial harm, the strain of being taken advantage of can further eat away at the veteran's physical and mental health. We must empower the VA to more quickly return stolen or misused benefits to veterans who are exploited by their fiduciary. This bill would do just that. It passed the House last Congress, and I encourage my colleagues to support it again. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to support this legislation and send our colleague, Mr. Connolly, our best wishes and prayers. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. McGARVEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, I also ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 1912, the Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act of 2025. Before I yield back, I do want to express my deepest appreciation and admiration for the sponsor of this bill, Representative Connolly. Representative Connolly has been a faithful and passionate servant of the American people for decades, both through his time as a congressional staffer and then as a Representative of his beloved State of Virginia. Unfortunately, he cannot be with us today. Anybody who knows Representative Connolly knows he is a bulldog, he is a fighter, and he is tenacious. He is facing some serious health challenges right now. Mr. Speaker, I know you will join me and Representative Bergman and everyone else in wishing him the absolute best as he is in this fight. I know he has got it, and we are with him. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1912, the Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act, and to underscore the urgent need for this bipartisan and bicameral legislation. As a Nation, we have a solemn obligation to ensure that the men and women who have served in our Armed Forces and their families receive the benefits they have rightfully earned through their sacrifice and unwavering dedication. Unfortunately, an unintended consequence of the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020 has hindered this mission. That law introduced a requirement for an internal negligence determination by the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) before defrauded veterans in the Veterans Affairs (VA) fiduciary program could be reimbursed. While well- intentioned as a mechanism for improving oversight, this procedural step has caused unacceptable delays, at times exceeding a year, in making victims of fraud financially whole. A July 21, 2021, report from the VA Office of Inspector General, titled ``VBA's Fiduciary Program Needs to Improve the Timeliness of Determinations and Reimbursement of Misused Funds,'' brought national attention to this problem. It found that defrauded veterans were forced to endure long wait times before receiving reimbursements, with some tragically passing away before they could be made financially whole. This is especially troubling since approximately 50 percent of veterans in the fiduciary program are pensioners and part of a financially vulnerable population. H.R. 1912, the Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act, removes the negligence determination requirement as a prerequisite for reimbursement. Instead, it authorizes VBA to conduct a statisticallv valid analysis of fiduciary misuse cases to determine the rate and nature of negligence after reimbursement has occurred. Thi

Referenced legislation: HR1912, HR1912