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[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4771 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.4771

                     One Hundred Sixteenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America

                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

           Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday,
            the third day of January, two thousand and twenty

                                 An Act

 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to permit appellants to appear in 
    cases before the Board of Veterans' Appeals by picture and voice 
 transmission from locations other than facilities of the Department of 
                Veterans Affairs, 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. SHORT TITLE.
    This Act may be cited as the ``VA Tele-Hearing Modernization Act''.
SEC. 2. HEARINGS BEFORE THE BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS BY MEANS OF 
TELECONFERENCE FROM LOCATIONS OTHER THAN FACILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT 
OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
    (a) In General.--Section 7107(c)(2) of title 38, United States 
Code, is amended--
        (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``or subparagraph (C) of 
    this paragraph'' after ``subparagraph (B) of such paragraph'';
        (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``or subparagraph (C) of 
    this paragraph'' after ``subparagraph (A) of such paragraph''; and
        (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph (C):
    ``(C)(i) Upon notification of a Board hearing under subparagraph 
(A) or (B) of paragraph (1), the appellant may alternatively request a 
hearing by picture and voice transmission--
        ``(I) at a location selected by the appellant; and
        ``(II) via a secure internet platform established and 
    maintained by the Secretary that protects sensitive personal 
    information from a data breach.
    ``(ii) If an appellant makes a request under clause (i), the Board 
shall grant such request.''.
    (b) Deadline for Implementation.--The Secretary shall implement the 
amendments made by subsection (a) not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Reporting.--
        (1) Annual reporting requirements.--Section 7101(d)(2) of such 
    title is amended--
            (A) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``; and'' and 
        inserting a semicolon;
            (B) in subparagraph (F), by striking the period at the 
        ending and inserting ``; and''; and
            (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
        ``(G) with respect to hearings scheduled under section 
    7107(c)(2)(C) of this title--
            ``(i) the number of hearings scheduled under such section;
            ``(ii) the number of hearings under such section that were 
        cancelled; and
            ``(iii) any statistical difference in outcomes between 
        cases heard under such section and those held at the principal 
        location of the Board or by picture and voice transmission at a 
        facility of the Department.''.
        (2) One-time reporting requirements.--The first report required 
    to be submitted under section 7101(d) of title 38, United States 
    Code, shall include the following information with respect to 
    hearings scheduled under subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of 
    subsection (c) of section 7101 of such title, as added by 
    subsection (a):
            (A) An outline of the outreach the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs plans to conduct to inform veterans, families of 
        veterans, survivors of veterans, veterans service 
        organizations, military service organizations, congressional 
        caseworkers, advocates for veterans, and such other 
        stakeholders as the Secretary considers appropriate about 
        hearings scheduled under such subparagraph, including--
                (i) a description of the resources required to conduct 
            such outreach;
                (ii) a timeline for conducting such outreach; and
                (iii) information related to the advantages and 
            potential technological challenges of conducting hearings 
            under such subparagraph.
            (B) A description of any modifications to the information 
        technology systems of the Veterans Benefits Administration and 
        the Board of Veterans' Appeals required to carry out hearings 
        under such subparagraph, including cost estimates and a 
        timeline for making such modifications.
            (C) A detailed description of the intra-agency partnership 
        between the Board of Veterans' Appeals and the telehealth 
        program of the Veterans Health Administration as the Board 
        conducts hearings under such subparagraph, including best 
        practices, a risk assessment overview, risk mitigation efforts, 
        and a plan for ongoing collaboration and information sharing.
    (d) Collaboration.--In developing the capacity and procedures to 
conduct hearings under subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subsection 
(c) of section 7101 of title 38, United States Code, as added by 
subsection (a), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall collaborate 
with, partner with, and give weight to the advice of veterans service 
organizations and such other stakeholders as the Secretary considers 
appropriate.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.
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