To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the repayment by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of benefits misused by a fiduciary.

Bill: 117-hr-4633
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Connolly, Gerald E. [D-VA-11]
Introduced: 2021-07-22
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Administrative remedies

Department of Veterans Affairs

Fraud offenses and financial crimes

Veterans' pensions and compensation
Latest action: action_date: 2021-10-20
text: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-07-22
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>This bill modifies the procedures by which the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reissues misused benefits to a beneficiary, including by requiring the VA to establish methods and timing with respect to determining whether an instance of misuse by a fiduciary is the result of negligence by the VA.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 4633 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES July 22, 2021 Mr. Connolly introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs A BILL To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the repayment by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of benefits misused by a fiduciary.

1. Improvement to repayment by Secretary of Veterans Affairs of certain misused benefits Section 6107 of title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 6107. Reissuance of benefits (a) Reissuance of misused benefits (1) In any case in which a fiduciary misuses all or part of an individual’s benefit paid to such fiduciary, the Secretary shall pay to the beneficiary or the beneficiary’s successor fiduciary an amount equal to the amount of such benefit so misused. (2) In any case in which the Secretary reissues a benefit payment (in whole or in part) under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make a good faith effort to obtain recoupment from the fiduciary to whom the payment was originally made. (3) In any case in which the Secretary obtains recoupment from a fiduciary who has misused benefits, the Secretary shall promptly remit payment of the recouped amounts to the beneficiary or the beneficiary’s successor fiduciary, as the case may be, to the extent that such amounts have not been paid under paragraph (1). (b) Limitation on total amount paid The total of the amounts paid to a beneficiary or the beneficiary's successor fiduciary under this section may not exceed the total benefit amount misused by the fiduciary with respect to that beneficiary. (c) Oversight of negligence The Secretary shall establish methods and timing with respect to determining whether an instance of misuse by a fiduciary of all or part of an individual’s benefit paid to such fiduciary is the result of negligence by the Secretary. .