I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6018 
To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to collect overpayments of 
specially adapted housing assistance. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 28, 2020 
Mr. CORREA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to collect 
overpayments of specially adapted housing assistance. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. COLLECTION OF OVERPAYMENTS OF SPE-
CIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING ASSISTANCE. 
Section 2102 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(f)(1) Whenever the Secretary finds that an over-
payment has been made to, or on behalf of, a person de-
scribed in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall determine— 
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‘‘(A) the amounts to recover, if any; and 
‘‘(B) who is liable to the United States for such 
overpayment. 
‘‘(2) A person described in this paragraph is any of 
the following: 
‘‘(A) An individual who— 
‘‘(i) applied for assistance under this chap-
ter; or 
‘‘(ii) under chapter 31 of this title who is 
pursuing a rehabilitation program under such 
chapter in acquiring adaptations to a residence. 
‘‘(B) An owner or seller of real estate related 
to assistance under this chapter. 
‘‘(C) 
A 
builder, 
contractor, 
supplier, 
tradesperson, corporation, trust, partnership, or 
other person, related to assistance under this chap-
ter. 
‘‘(D) An attorney, escrow agent, or financial in-
stitution, that receives, or holds in escrow, funds re-
lating to assistance under this chapter. 
‘‘(E) A surviving spouse, heir, assignee, or suc-
cessor in interest of or to, any person described in 
this paragraph. 
‘‘(3) Any overpayment referred to in this subsection 
may be recovered in the same manner as any other debt 
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due the United States. In recovering the overpayment, the 
Secretary may charge administrative costs, fees, and inter-
est, as appropriate, in a manner similar to the authority 
under section 5315 of this title. 
‘‘(4) The recovery of any overpayment referred to in 
this subsection may be waived by the Secretary. Waiver 
of any such overpayment as to a person described in para-
graph (2) shall in no way release any other person de-
scribed in such paragraph from liability. 
‘‘(5) The Secretary shall waive recovery under this 
subsection of any overpayment— 
‘‘(A) to a person described in paragraph (2)(A), 
or a dependent or survivor of such person; and 
‘‘(B) that arises from administrative error de-
scribed in paragraph (7)(A). 
‘‘(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed as pre-
cluding the imposition of any civil or criminal liability 
under this title or any other law. 
‘‘(7) The Secretary shall prescribe in regulations 
what constitutes an overpayment for the purposes of this 
subsection, which, at a minimum, shall include— 
‘‘(A) administrative error that results in an in-
dividual receiving assistance to which that individual 
is not entitled; 
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‘‘(B) the failure of any person described in 
paragraph (2) to— 
‘‘(i) perform or allow to be performed any 
act relating to assistance under this chapter; or 
‘‘(ii) compensate any party performing 
services or supplying goods relating to assist-
ance under this chapter; and 
‘‘(C) any disbursement of funds relating to as-
sistance under this chapter, that, in the sole discre-
tion of the Secretary, constitutes a misuse of such 
assistance. 
‘‘(8) Prior to collecting an overpayment under this 
subsection, the Secretary shall provide to the person whom 
the Secretary has determined liable for such overpay-
ment— 
‘‘(A) notice of the finding by the Secretary of 
such overpayment; 
‘‘(B) a reasonable opportunity for such person 
to remedy the circumstances that effectuated the 
overpayment; and 
‘‘(C) a reasonable opportunity for such person 
to present evidence to the Secretary that an overpay-
ment was not made. 
‘‘(9) For the purposes of section 511 of this title, a 
decision to collect an overpayment from a person other 
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than a person described in paragraph (2)(A), or a depend-
ent or survivor of such person, may not be treated as a 
decision that affects the provision of benefits.’’. 
Æ 
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