Clear Communication for Veterans Claims Act

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 1039, the Clear Communication for Veterans Claims Act.

When a veteran applies for benefits at VA, the agency corresponds with that veteran at multiple points in the process regarding their claim. This communication is often through letters that can be densely laden with legal jargon and confusing information, which makes it hard for the veteran to understand what is required of them or the benefits decision VA has arrived at. This can lead the veteran to miss important deadlines or fail to submit

proper documentation, which can ultimately lead to the rejection of their claims.

Under the Biden administration, VA already launched an internal review of these notice letters and had already redrafted many of them to be more direct and easier to understand, but VA could also use some outside help in reviewing the literally thousands of different possible letters they might send to a veteran.

H.R. 1039 seeks to provide that assistance. Specifically, it mandates that VA make its notice letters--documents that explain decisions on benefits--shorter, clearer, and easier for veterans and their families to understand. This bill requires the VA to contract with a third party to assess and recommend improvements to these letters, which often contain complex legal language that confuses veterans.

The bill also sets deadlines for action: The VA must contract with a Federally Funded Research and Development Center, or FFRDC, to evaluate these communications within 30 days of the bill's enactment and submit its recommendations within 90 days. This effort aims to streamline the claims process and reduce the stress and confusion many veterans face when dealing with their benefits.

Mr. Speaker, in spite of my support for the substance of this measure, I want to raise concern with the majority's choice to offset the cost of this bill by continuing to divert pension payments from the oldest and most sick veterans in VA's system. I understand that this offset has been used in the past and has existed in some form since the 1960s. However, given that this administration, with the enabling of a feckless Republican-led Congress, has been working overtime to hollow out VA, we must rethink whether or not it is appropriate to continue its use.

Aside from the moral failing of cutting one veterans' benefit to pay for another, VA's pension programs are designed specifically to support the poorest and sickest veterans and their survivors. Therefore, this continued reduction in pension payments poses real risks when the other services these veterans might need to fall back on are also being cut.

Mr. Speaker, again, I support the substance of this bill, but I think we should have a very serious conversation about the majority's choice to perpetuate cutting veterans' pensions, and I believe that we should include this item in any negotiations with the Senate before this bill becomes law.

Mr. Speaker, with those concerns in mind, I support this legislation and ask my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Budzinski), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Technology Modernization.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my very first piece of legislation that I introduced as a Member of Congress, H.R. 1039, the Clear Communication for Veterans Claims Act.

This bipartisan bill, which I am proud to lead with Chairman Bost and Representative Budzinski, the ranking member of the subcommittee that I lead on Chairman Bost's committee, will make it easier for veterans to access the care and benefits they have earned by making significant improvements to our overly complicated claims process.

Mr. Speaker, you have already heard from other Members today about issues with veterans filing claims and running into problems with forms, legalese, bureaucratic speak, and things that are not easily understood. I can tell you, I personally have seen this myself in applications and interfacing I have had with the VA and challenges you get when you receive things in the mail. It is hard to determine whether this is an update on the claim that I have filed, a resolution to that claim, or seeking more information, or is it simply a delay saying that they don't have a resolution to the claim yet? It can be very difficult to figure that out, especially if you have multiple claims within the same packet.

When a veteran files a claim, it means they need help, yet too often they receive long, confusing letters full of legal jargon that leaves them with more questions than answers, ultimately leading them to call into a claims center or a helpline, which overburdens that and slows down the overall claims process.

This is unacceptable. Claims letters should be the catalyst to care and benefits and not the obstacle.

That is where my bill comes in. H.R. 1039 requires the VA to make these notices clear, concise, and easy to understand while also streamlining the Department's overall communication with our veterans.

As you heard already, it requires the VA to partner with an outside agency, not the bureaucrats within the VA, to make these communications easier and more streamlined for veterans to understand. Often, when you are working within the industry, it can be very difficult to put yourself in the position of those receiving these letters to understand what would be best absorbed by them.

Our veterans serve the United States military with honor. They shouldn't need a lawyer or specially trained advocate to explain a claims letter to them.

When I was elected to the State legislature in Michigan 10 years ago, I became the only Iraq war veteran in the entire Michigan House of Representatives. I worked closely with my Federal Members of Congress to help veterans obtain their benefits.

I maintained then that if I were ever in a position to make the process more streamlined and easier to understand, I would commit to doing that. This very first bill in Congress makes good on that commitment. I am proud to offer that today.

Mr. Speaker, I thank you and the rest of the Chamber for taking up this bill for consideration. It is time to give America's heroes and their families a clear and efficient claims process that actually works for them. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bill that would do just that.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1039) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to seek to enter into an agreement with a federally funded research and development center for an assessment of notice letters that the Secretary sends to claimants for benefits under laws administered by the Secretary, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 1039, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1039, as amended.

This bill was introduced by the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Barrett), my friend and fellow veteran, and I am proud to be a cosponsor.

H.R. 1039, as amended, would require VA to contract with a research entity to improve the notice letters VA sends to veterans and survivors who file claims for VA benefits. The VA provides veterans and their survivors information throughout the VA claims process. It is important for these notice letters to be understandable so that the veterans and survivors know their rights and how to navigate the claims process.

I am pleased to see that the VA has recently improved some of their notice letters. However, hundreds of other VA letters are still difficult to understand.

At a recent hearing, we heard from veterans' advocates that the VA needs help from outside experts, given the huge number of letters that VA must draft. We still hear from veterans that many of VA's letters are too long, filled with legal jargon, and contain information that is not relevant to their claims.

These complex letters sometimes cause veterans and survivors so much confusion and stress that they just abandon their claims.

As a veteran myself, I continue to receive long and complex letters. You shouldn't have to be a Member of Congress or an attorney to understand how the VA claims process works.

H.R. 1039, as amended, would ensure that none of VA's notice letters discourage veterans from accessing the benefits they have earned. Representative Barrett's bill would ensure that VA sends veterans and survivors understandable notice letters so they can make informed decisions about their claims. Further, this modernization bill is supported by the administration.

Mr. Speaker, I thank our veterans service organizations for their support of this commonsense bill. I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 1039, as amended, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Barrett), the sponsor of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I join with the ranking member and ask all of my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Clear Communication for Veterans Claims Act, bipartisan legislation that would simplify the Department of Veterans Affairs' correspondence for our Nation's heroes. I am proud to lead this bill with Chairman Tom Barrett, who I serve with on the House Veterans' Affairs Technology Modernization Subcommittee.

Every day, my office hears from veterans who are struggling to get the benefits that they earned because of overcomplicated documents and bureaucratic red tape. Correspondence from the VA regarding benefits decisions, often called notice letters, usually contain complex legal jargon, which can be confusing, frustrating, and stressful for veterans and their families.

The Clear Communication for Veterans Claims Act is a commonsense solution to this problem. This legislation would require the VA to study and provide recommendations for simplifying VA notice letters. The goal is to make these letters shorter, easier to understand, and more comprehensive so veterans have the information they need for the next step in their claims process.

Our veterans have sacrificed so much in service to our Nation, and we must do more to improve access to the critical services they need and deserve. Right now, our veterans are facing great uncertainty and anxiety. This bill would make a real change in their lives. We owe it to them now more than ever before.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this important bill.

Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 89 and YEA on Roll Call No. 90.