Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4016) to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the repayment by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of benefits misused by a fiduciary.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 4016

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''. 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(1), the Secretary shall make a good faith effort to obtain recoupment from the fiduciary to whom the payment was originally made.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) 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.

``(c) 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).

``(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.''.

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Mr. BOST. 4016.

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Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4016 as offered by Representative Connolly. This bill would ensure that VA's fiduciary program is managed effectively so that our Nation's most vulnerable veterans receive the benefits they earned.

The VA appoints fiduciaries for veterans who are unable to manage their VA benefits. A fiduciary misuses a veteran's VA benefit when they spend a veteran's benefit on anything other than the veteran's care and welfare. However, before a veteran who is a victim of misuse can be made financially whole, the VA is required to determine whether the misuse was as a result of VA negligence, but VA does not monitor whether these negligence determinations are being made in a timely way. This bureaucratic red tape has resulted in long wait times for veterans to recoup their misused benefits. Some veterans have passed away before recouping their misused benefits. We must ensure the VA promptly makes whole any veteran who was a victim of misuse by a fiduciary.

H.R. 4016 would ensure just that. It would prohibit VA from withholding repayment of misused benefits because the VA is still working on a negligence determination.

It would also require the VA to establish methods to ensure that negligence determinations are made in a timely way. Veterans deserve to receive their benefits without bureaucratic hurdles and unnecessary delays.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R.

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Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Iowa (Mrs. Miller-Meeks).

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Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, once again, I encourage Members to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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