H.R. 2349: Veterans' Benefits Act of 2011

112th Congress · introduced 2011-06-24 · Armed Forces and National Security · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2011-06-24 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Runyan, Jon [R-NJ-3] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Veterans' Benefits Act of 2011

Plain summary

(This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the House on October 6, 2011. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Veterans' Benefits Act of 2011 - (Sec. 2) Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct a four-year pilot program to: (1) biennially assess the skills of appropriate Veterans Benefits Administration employees and managers responsible for processing VA compensation and pension benefit claims; (2) develop and implement individualized training plans related to such skills; (3) provide remediation for deficiently skilled employees or managers receiving a less than satisfactory result on any portion of the assessment; and (4) take appropriate disciplinary actions with respect to individuals failing to receive a satisfactory result after being given two opportunities for such remediation. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to report annually during the program period to the congressional veterans committees on such assessment and the training conducted. (Sec. 3) Excludes from annual income, for purposes of eligibility for pensions for veterans and their surviving spouses and children, reimbursements resulting from: (1) any accident; (2) any theft or loss; (3) any casualty loss; (4) medical expenses resulting from any such accident, theft, or loss; and (5) pain and suffering (including insurance settlement payments and general damages awarded by a court) related to such accident, theft, or loss. Extends through November 18, 2011, VA authority to obtain veterans' income verification information from the Secretary of the Treasury or the Commissioner of Social Security. (Sec. 4) Directs the Secretary to notify VA benefits claimants by the most effective means available, including electronic communication or notification in writing, of any information or medical or lay evidence not previously provided to the Secretary that is necessary to substantiate a claim. (Current law does not specify the means of notice.) (Sec. 5) Requires the Secretary, in assisting claimants in obtaining relevant records in support of a claim, to make at least two requests to a custodian of a private medical record, unless it is made evident by the first request that a second request would be futile. Directs the Secretary to encourage claimants to submit relevant private medical records if such submission does not burden the claimant. Allows the claimant to instead authorize the Secretary to obtain such records. Provides procedures for the obtaining of public records by the Secretary. (Sec. 6) Prohibits, in any case arising out of the administration of laws and benefits by VA, considering any person who is mentally incapacitated, deemed mentally incompetent, or experiencing an extended loss of consciousness from being considered adjudicated as a mental defective for purposes of the right to receive or transport firearms without the order or finding of a judge, magistrate, or other judicial authority of competent jurisdiction that such person is a danger to himself or herself or others. (Sec. 7) Provides criminal penalties against any person who solicits, contracts for, charges, or receives any fee or compensation from a veteran, other than that currently permitted under law, for: (1) advice on how to file a benefits claim; or (2) the preparation, presentation, or prosecution of a claim before the date on which a notice of disagreement is filed in a proceeding on the claim. (Sec. 8) Prohibits the Secretary from paying more than $2 million in Senior Executive Service performance awards for each of FY2012-FY2016.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Veterans' Benefits Act of 2011

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)

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The strongest published arguments

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Runyan, Jon [R-NJ-3] · 1 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Gus M. Bilirakis (R-FL)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-112hr2349.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/112/hr>

Record fed-us-cong112-hr2349 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112