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 
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(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 
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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.