Bills
| 3.23.22

Should it be a Federal Crime to Defraud a Veteran or Their Spouse of Veterans’ Benefits? (H.R. 506)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 506?

(Updated February 20, 2020)

This bill would make it a federal crime for any person to knowingly engage in a scheme to defraud a veteran or their spouse of veterans’ benefits. It would be punishable by a fine, up to five years imprisonment, or both. Currently it’s illegal for unauthorized individuals to charge veterans a fee for helping them claim their benefits, but there are no legal or financial penalties for violating the law.

Argument in favor

Anyone who defrauds a veteran or their spouse of veterans’ benefits should face hefty fines and a lengthy prison sentence as punishment.

Argument opposed

It’s already a crime to defraud a veteran or their spouse of veterans benefits, so there’s no need to establish penalties for violating the law.

Impact

Veterans and their spouses; fraudsters; and law enforcement.

Cost of H.R. 506

The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would have an insignificant impact on federal spending and revenues.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Tom Rooney (R-FL) introduced this bill to make it a federal crime to defraud a veteran or their spouse of veterans’ benefits:

“Anyone who seeks to financially exploit the men and women who have served our country and cheat them out of their hard-earned VA benefits should have to face a harsh punishment for their criminal actions. Frankly it’s appalling that there are individuals out there who are targeting veterans, especially those in low-income housing or who are elderly, with these schemes. This commonsense legislation will help give prosecutors the tools they need to protect our veterans and go after these criminals.”

Original cosponsor, Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), added:

“Pension poaching is not only illegal, it’s a despicable and immoral practice. These scammers are getting more and more sophisticated in how they identify and deceive vulnerable veterans with lofty promises to help them with their pensions while charging outrageous fees.”

This legislation passed the House Judiciary Committee on a voice vote and has the support of 26 bipartisan cosponsors, including 18 Republicans and 8 Democrats.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: MivPiv / iStock)