Bill Details
Status
Latest action
2025-06-11 - Subcommittee Hearings Held
Introduced Date
2025-02-05
Policy Area
Armed Forces and National Security
Committees
View committees (1)
Cosponsors
View cosponsors (1)
7
0
0
AI Summary This summary was generated by AI from the bill text. AI can get information wrong.
This bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to act faster and more directly when a veteran or other person is harmed by a VA administrative mistake. If the VA determines that its own error caused a loss, the bill would make the agency provide equitable relief within a set time instead of leaving it optional. It would also require the VA to quickly stop using debt collectors for a debt if the VA later finds that the debt was created in error. In simple terms, the bill is meant to help people more quickly when the government makes a mistake and to prevent unfair debt collection from continuing after that mistake is found.
- It changes current law so the VA must grant relief, rather than just having the option to do so, when an error by the agency causes harm.
- The VA would have to act within 120 days after making that determination.
- If the VA decides a debt was wrongly created, it must promptly cancel any agreement with a debt collector related to that debt.
- The bill is aimed at making VA decisions faster, fairer, and less harmful to people affected by agency mistakes.
Official Summaries
No summaries available
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 984 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 984
To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief to an individual
who suffers a loss based on an administrative error by the Secretary,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 5, 2025
Mr. Van Orden introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief to an individual
who suffers a loss based on an administrative error by the Secretary,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. IMPROVEMENTS TO EQUITABLE RELIEF IN THE CASE OF AN
ADMINISTRATIVE ERROR BY THE SECRETARY OF VETERANS
AFFAIRS.
(a) Affirmative Duty To Provide Timely Equitable Relief.--Section
503 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking ``may''
both places it appears and inserting ``shall, not later than 120 days
after such determination,''.
(b) Cancellation of Debt Collection.--Section 5314 of such title is
amended, in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(3) The Secretary shall promptly cancel any agreement, entered
into by the Secretary with a debt collector (as defined in section 803
of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 1692a)) to collect
an amount of indebtedness described in paragraph (1), if the Secretary
determines that the determination of such indebtedness was in error.''.
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