‘‘(c) INVESTIGATION OF CERTAIN PERSONS.—(1) In 
the case of a proposed fiduciary described in paragraph 
(2), the Secretary, in conducting an inquiry or investiga-
tion under subsection (a)(1), may carry out such inquiry 
or investigation on an expedited basis that may include 
giving priority to conducting such inquiry or investigation. 
Any such inquiry or investigation carried out on such an 
expedited basis shall be carried out under regulations pre-
scribed for purposes of this section. 
‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) applies with respect to a proposed 
fiduciary who is— 
‘‘(A) the parent (natural, adopted, or step-
parent) of a beneficiary who is a minor; 
‘‘(B) the spouse or parent of an incompetent 
beneficiary; 
‘‘(C) a person who has been appointed a fidu-
ciary of the beneficiary by a court of competent ju-
risdiction; 
‘‘(D) being appointed to manage an estate 
where the annual amount of veterans benefits to be 
managed by the proposed fiduciary does not exceed 
$3,600, as adjusted pursuant to section 5312 of this 
title; or 
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‘‘(E) a person who is authorized to act on be-
half of the beneficiary under a durable power of at-
torney. 
‘‘(d) PROTECTION OF PRIVATE INFORMATION.—(1) 
A fiduciary shall take all reasonable precautions to— 
‘‘(A) protect the private information of a bene-
ficiary, including personally identifiable information; 
and 
‘‘(B) securely conducts financial transactions. 
‘‘(2) A fiduciary shall notify the Secretary of any ac-
tion of the fiduciary that compromises or potentially com-
promises the private information of a beneficiary. 
‘‘(e) POTENTIAL MISUSE OF FUNDS.—(1) If the Sec-
retary has reason to believe that a fiduciary may be mis-
using all or part of the benefit of a beneficiary, the Sec-
retary shall— 
‘‘(A) conduct a thorough investigation to deter-
mine the veracity of such belief; and 
‘‘(B) if such veracity is established, transmit to 
the officials described in paragraph (2) a report of 
such investigation. 
‘‘(2) The officials described in this paragraph are the 
following: 
‘‘(A) The Attorney General. 
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‘‘(B) Each head of a Federal department or 
agency that pays to a fiduciary or other person ben-
efits under any law administered by such depart-
ment of agency for the use and benefit of a minor, 
incompetent, or other beneficiary. 
‘‘(f) BOND.—In determining whether a proposed fi-
duciary is required to furnish a bond under subsection 
(a)(4), the Secretary shall consider— 
‘‘(1) the existence of any familial or other per-
sonal relationship between the proposed fiduciary 
and the beneficiary; and 
‘‘(2) the care the proposed fiduciary has taken 
to protect the interests of the beneficiary. 
‘‘(g) LIST OF FIDUCIARIES.—Each regional office of 
the Veterans Benefits Administration shall maintain a list 
of the following: 
‘‘(1) The name and contact information of each 
fiduciary, including address, telephone number, and 
email address. 
‘‘(2) With respect to each fiduciary described in 
paragraph (1)— 
‘‘(A) the date of the most recent back-
ground check and credit check performed by the 
Secretary under this section; 
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‘‘(B) the date that any bond was paid 
under this section; 
‘‘(C) the name, address, and telephone 
number of each beneficiary the fiduciary acts on 
behalf of; and 
‘‘(D) the amount that the fiduciary con-
trols with respect to each beneficiary described 
in subparagraph (C).’’. 
(e) ANNUAL RECEIPT OF PAYMENTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 5509 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended— 
(A) in subsection (a)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘may require a fidu-
ciary to file a’’ and inserting ‘‘shall require 
a fiduciary to file an annual’’; and 
(ii) by adding at the end the following 
new sentence: ‘‘The Secretary shall trans-
mit such annual report or accounting to 
the beneficiary and any legal guardian of 
such beneficiary.’’; 
(B) by adding at the end the following new 
subsections: 
‘‘(c) MATTERS INCLUDED.—Except as provided by 
subsection (f), an annual report or accounting under sub-
section (a) shall include the following: 
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‘‘(1) For each beneficiary that a fiduciary acts 
on behalf of— 
‘‘(A) the amount of the benefits of the ben-
eficiary provided under any law administered by 
the Secretary accrued during the year, the 
amount spent, and the amount remaining; and 
‘‘(B) if the fiduciary serves the beneficiary 
with respect to benefits not administered by the 
Secretary, an accounting of all sources of bene-
fits or other income the fiduciary oversees for 
the beneficiary. 
‘‘(2) A list of events that occurred during the 
year covered by the report that could affect the abil-
ity of the fiduciary to act on behalf of the bene-
ficiary, including— 
‘‘(A) the fiduciary being convicted of any 
crime; 
‘‘(B) the fiduciary declaring bankruptcy; 
and 
‘‘(C) any judgments entered against the fi-
duciary. 
‘‘(d) RANDOM AUDITS.—The Secretary shall annu-
ally conduct random audits of fiduciaries who receive a 
commission pursuant to subsection 5502A(a)(1) of this 
title. 
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‘‘(e) STATUS OF FIDUCIARY.—If a fiduciary includes 
in the annual report events described in subsection (c)(2), 
the Secretary may take appropriate action to adjust the 
status of the fiduciary as the Secretary determines appro-
priate, including by revoking the fiduciary status of the 
fiduciary. 
‘‘(f) CAREGIVERS
AND
CERTAIN
OTHER
FIDU-
CIARIES.—(1)(A) In carrying out this section, the Sec-
retary shall ensure that a caregiver fiduciary is required 
only to file an annual report or accounting under sub-
section (a) with respect to the amount of the benefits of 
the beneficiary provided under any law administered by 
the Secretary— 
‘‘(i) spent on— 
‘‘(I) food and housing for the beneficiary; 
and 
‘‘(II) clothing, health-related expenses, 
recreation, and other personal items for the 
beneficiary; and 
‘‘(ii) saved for the beneficiary. 
‘‘(B) The Secretary shall coordinate with the Under 
Secretary for Benefits and the Under Secretary for Health 
to— 
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‘‘(i) minimize the frequency with which employ-
ees of the Department visit the home of a caregiver 
fiduciary and beneficiary; and 
‘‘(ii) limit the extent of supervision by such 
Under Secretaries with respect to such a fiduciary 
and beneficiary. 
‘‘(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘caregiver fiduciary’ 
means a fiduciary who— 
‘‘(i) in addition to acting as a fiduciary for a 
beneficiary, is approved by the Secretary to be a 
provider of personal care services for the beneficiary 
under paragraph (3)(A)(i) of section 1720G(a) of 
this title; 
‘‘(ii) in carrying out such care services to such 
beneficiary, has undergone not less than four home 
visits under paragraph (9)(A) of such section; and 
‘‘(iii) has not been required by the Secretary to 
take corrective action pursuant to paragraph (9)(C) 
of such section. 
‘‘(2) In carrying out this section, the Secretary may 
adjust the matters required under an annual report or ac-
counting under subsection (a) with respect to a fiduciary 
whom the Secretary determines to have effectively pro-
tected the interests of the beneficiary over a sustained pe-
riod.’’; and 
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(C) by striking the section heading and in-
serting the following: ‘‘Annual reports and 
accountings of fiduciaries’’. 
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions at the beginning of chapter 55 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended by striking the item 
relating to section 5509 and inserting the following 
new item: 
‘‘5509. Annual reports and accountings of fiduciaries.’’. 
(f) REPAYMENT OF MISUSED BENEFITS.—Section 
6107(a)(2)(C) of title 38, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting before the period the following: ‘‘, including 
by the Secretary not acting in accordance with section 
5507 of this title’’. 
(g) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Section 5510 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘The Sec-
retary shall include in the Annual Benefits Report of the 
Veterans Benefits Administration or the Secretary’s An-
nual Performance and Accountability Report’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘Not later than July 1 of each year, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of 
the House of Representatives and the Senate a separate 
report containing’’. 
(h) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
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of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 
the House of Representatives a comprehensive report on 
the implementation of the amendments made by this Act, 
including— 
(1) detailed information on the establishment of 
new policies and procedures pursuant to such 
amendments and training provided on such policies 
and procedures; and 
(2) a discussion of whether the Secretary 
should provide fiduciaries with standardized finan-
cial software to simplify reporting requirements. 
Æ 
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