Just before Thanksgiving, President Biden signed legislation to help veterans. This act is called Restoring Benefits to Defrauded Veterans Act, H.R. 4190. It would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to repay the estates of deceased beneficiaries for certain benefits paid by the Secretary and misused by fiduciaries of such beneficiaries.

H.R. 4190 would specify how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) should distribute certain benefits to survivors of intended recipients who die before those benefits are paid. Under current law, veterans and survivors who are deemed unable to manage the benefits they receive from the VA may have someone assigned to administer those benefits on their behalf. Those fiduciaries, appointed and supervised by the VA, are responsible for accepting the benefits and ensuring that they are used to support the intended recipient. When fiduciaries misuse some or all of those benefits, the VA must reissue the misused portion to the intended beneficiary or a successor fiduciary.

This legislation was passed unanimously, which is quite an accomplishment in such a polarized political environment.