Madam Speaker, as ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, one of my top priorities is protecting the constitutional rights of our veterans. Today, I want to raise awareness of a…
Madam Speaker, as ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, one of my top priorities is protecting the constitutional rights of our veterans.
Today, I want to raise awareness of a policy that strips law-abiding veterans of their Second Amendment rights; specifically, the policy that requires VA to report veterans who need help managing their VA benefits to the NICS program, thereby making it illegal for them to possess firearms.
To illustrate this practice, I would like to tell you a story about a hypothetical veteran named Joe.
Joe likes to go on hunting trips with his fellow veterans.
These trips are therapeutic for Joe. They give him stress relief and a fun hobby and an opportunity to connect with other veterans.
Unfortunately, Joe begins to suffer from headaches and memory loss, which he believes is linked to an in-service blast injury.
He files a claim for VA disability compensation benefits.
During the claims process, the VA learns that Joe struggles to pay his bills on time because of this traumatic brain injury.
This triggers the VA's requirement to determine if Joe is capable of managing his own VA benefits.
Ultimately, VA decides that Joe requires assistance handling his VA compensation payments.
The VA appoints a fiduciary to receive and manage Joe's VA benefits on his behalf.
As a result of the VA's appointment of a fiduciary, VA must--not by law, but by administrative rule--report Joe to the FBI NICS list.
And just like that, without evidence that Joe is a danger to himself or others, without involving a judge to ensure that Joe's legal rights are protected, without the opportunity for Joe to present his case in court on why he should be able to possess a firearm, Joe loses his Second Amendment rights.
That means that Joe can no longer go on hunting trips with his friends or family.
He can no longer own the hunting rifle his grandfather gave him.
And when Joe's friends learn about it and have learned what happened to him, they decide that they would rather go without their VA benefits and services, instead of risking the same thing happening to them.
That story may be fictional, but some version of it happens across this United States all the time.
The truth is that some veterans forego seeking VA services out of concern that they would lose their constitutional rights; not because there are laws in place, but there is an administrative rule in place.
According to the VA's regulations, the purpose of the fiduciary program is to protect certain VA beneficiaries who cannot manage their VA benefits.
Clearly, the program was never intended to review someone's right to own a firearm.
A decision on a constitutional right should be left to a judicial authority, plain and simple.
Now, my bill, H.R. 1217, the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act, would make sure that it is.
H.R. 1217 would prevent VA from reporting veterans to the NICS list, unless there is an order from a judge or magistrate that says the veteran may be a harm to himself or herself or others.
This bill allows VA to focus on its mission of caring for veterans, and leaves decisions about whether to strip a veteran of their constitutional rights to the judicial branch as it is supposed to be and it is for any other person who is not a veteran.
If a court finds that that veteran is a danger to themselves or others, then they should not be allowed to own a firearm.
However, it is time we end this policy that the VA has put in place, and we should make sure that we change this, we correct this problem for veterans that are discouraged from seeking help from the VA because of this rule.
We must make this change. If you want to ensure that veterans who need VA are willing to walk through VA's doors, that is how we do it. We make sure that they know their rights are protected.
I urge swift passage of H.R. 1217.
