119-hr3983

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3983 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3983

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the quality of the 
adjudication of claims for benefits under the laws administered by the 
 Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 June 12, 2025

 Mr. Luttrell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the quality of the 
adjudication of claims for benefits under the laws administered by the 
 Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Claims Quality Improvement 
Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. NOTICE OF AVOIDABLE DEFERRALS OF CLAIMS FOR BENEFITS UNDER LAWS 
 ADMINISTERED BY THE SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS; STUDY 
 AND REPORT ON CERTAIN OPINIONS OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
 AFFAIRS OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL.

    (a) Notice of Avoidable Deferrals.--Not later than one year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall develop policies, procedures, and technological 
capabilities to ensure that each employee of the Veterans Benefits 
Administration that commits an avoidable deferral with respect to a 
claim for benefits under the laws administered by the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs in the National Work Queue is notified of any 
avoidable deferrals that such employee commits with respect to the same 
claim.

    (b) Study and Report on Certain OGC Opinions.--

    (1) Study.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in 
 consultation with the Office of the General Counsel of the 
 Department of Veterans Affairs and the Chairman of the Board of 
 Veterans' Appeals, shall complete a study to identify--
        (A) issues about which an opinion from the Office 
 of the General Counsel of the Department would foster 
 consistency in the decisions of the Secretary with 
 respect to claims for benefits under the laws 
 administered by the Secretary; and
        (B) issues raised in appeals of such decisions to 
 the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims 
 before the date of the enactment of this Act about 
 which the Office of the General Counsel has had 
 inconsistent opinions in matters involving 
 substantially similar questions of law or fact.

    (2) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
 submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
 Representatives a report that includes--
        (A) the findings of the study required by paragraph

    (1) ;
        (B) a statement of which issues identified pursuant 
 to such study about which the Office of the General 
 Counsel of the Department intends to publish an 
 opinion; and
            (C) a timeline for the publication of any such 
 opinion.

SEC. 3. IMPROVEMENTS TO SYSTEM FOR ADJUDICATION OF CLAIMS FOR BENEFITS 
 UNDER LAWS ADMINISTERED BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) Program for Quality Assurance in Decisions of Board of 
Veterans' Appeals; Performance Reviews.--

    (1) In general.--

Section 7101 of title 38, United States 
 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
 subsection:
 ``

    (f)

    (1) The Chairman shall carry out a program to ensure quality 
in the decisions of the Board. Under such program, the Chairman shall--
 ``
        (A) develop policies and procedures for--
 ``
            (i) measuring quality in such decisions;
 ``
            (ii) maintaining data and identifying trends with 
 respect to--
 ``
            (I) errors in such decisions;
 ``
            (II) errors in decisions remanded or 
 returned to the Board by the Court of Appeals 
 for Veterans Claims; and
 ``
            (III) specific members of the Board that 
 issued decisions that were subsequently vacated 
 by the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims; 
 and
 ``
            (iii) ensuring any such decision of the Board to 
 remand a claim for a benefit under a law administered 
 by the Secretary is necessary under any applicable law 
 or regulation;
 ``
        (B) with respect to a claim for such a benefit that is 
 remanded to the Board by the Court of Appeals for Veterans 
 Claims--
 ``
            (i) inform any employee of the Board responsible 
 for drafting the decision of the Board with respect to 
 such claim that such decision was remanded;
 ``
            (ii) provide any such employee with a copy of the 
 relevant order of the Court of Appeals for Veterans 
 Claims (including a copy of any accompanying joint 
 motion for remand); and
 ``
            (iii) provide incentives to such employees to 
 review such relevant orders and joint motions for 
 remand; and
 ``
            (C) ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that any 
 error identified by the Board under such program is corrected 
 before the date on which the Board issues the final decision 
 associated with such error.
 ``

    (2) In developing policies and procedures to measure quality in 
decisions of the Board pursuant to clause
            (i) of subparagraph
        (A) of 
paragraph

    (1) , the Chairman shall consider the data and trends 
maintained and identified pursuant to clause
            (ii) of such subparagraph.
 ``

    (3) The Chairman may use technology, including artificial 
intelligence, to maintain such data and identify such trends.
 ``

    (4) The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' 
Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Senate an annual report 
on the program required by this subsection that includes, with respect 
to the period covered by the report, an identification of--
 ``
        (A) elements, if any of the process of the Board for 
 reviewing an appeal under this chapter that lead to errors in 
 decisions of the Board; and
 ``
        (B) the most common reasons that a claim for a benefit 
 under a law administered by the Secretary was remanded to such 
 Board by the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.''.

    (2) Deadline.--The Secretary shall submit the first report 
 required by paragraph

    (2) of such section (as added by 
 paragraph

    (1) ) by not later than one year after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act.

    (b) Training Program for Certain Employees of Board of Veterans' 
Appeals; Performance Reviews.--

    (1) Training program.--
        (A) In general.--Chapter 71 of such title (as 
 amended by subsection

    (a) ) is further amended by 
 inserting after 

section 7101A the following new 
 section:
``

Sec. 7101B. Training program for Members of Board on timely and 
 correct adjudication of appeals
 ``

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in conjunction with the Chairman 
of the Board of Veterans' Appeals, shall develop and carry out a 
program to provide Members of the Board training on timely and correct 
adjudication of appeals under this chapter.
 ``

    (b) Required Considerations.--In carrying out the program 
required by subsection

    (a) , the Secretary shall consider the following:
 ``

    (1) Feedback, if any, from members of the Board and 
 covered employees with respect to such program.
 ``

    (2) Data on errors in decisions of the Board maintained 
 pursuant to the program for quality assurance required by 
 subsection

    (f) of 

section 7101 of this title.
 ``

    (3) Any decision of the Court of Appeals for Veterans 
 Claims to remand a claim for benefits under the laws 
 administered by the Secretary to the Board for further action, 
 including a joint motion to remand such claim.
 ``
            (c) Assessments of Effectiveness.--The Secretary, in conjunction 
with the Chairman of the Board of Veterans' Appeals, shall develop a 
method to assess, on an annual basis, the effectiveness of the training 
program under this section. In developing such method, the Secretary 
shall consider best practices for assessing the effectiveness of 
training programs, including the Kirkpatrick evaluation model.
 ``
            (d) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Senate an 
annual report on the program required by subsection

    (a) that includes, 
with respect to the period covered by the report--
 ``

    (1) a statement of the topics of the training provided 
 pursuant to this section, disaggregated by--
 ``
        (A) mandatory training; and
 ``
        (B) non-mandatory training; and
 ``

    (2) the results of the assessment of the effectiveness of 
 such program required under subsection

    (b) .
 ``

    (e) Covered Employee Defined.--In this section, the term `covered 
employee' means an employee of the Board who is--
 ``

    (1) not a member of the Board; and
 ``

    (2) responsible for drafting decisions of the Board.''.
        (B) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at 
 the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 
 after the item relating to 

section 7101A the following 
 new item:

 ``7101B. Training program for Members of Board on timely and 
 correct adjudication of appeals.''.

    (2) Performance reviews of members of the board.--

Section 7101A of such title (as amended by paragraph

    (1) ) is amended--
        (A) in subparagraph
        (B) of subsection
            (c) (1) by 
 striking ``not less often than once every three years'' 
 and inserting ``not less often than annually''; and
        (B) by adding at the end the following new 
 subsection:
 ``

    (h)

    (1) With respect to any performance review of a covered 
employee, the Secretary may not consider the timeliness or quality of 
work of any Member of the Board.
 ``

    (2) In this subsection, the term `covered employee' has the 
meaning given such term in 

section 7101B of this title.''.
            (c) Decisions of Board to Remand.--

    (1) Information relating to decisions to remand.--

Section 7104 of such title is amended in subsection
            (d) --
        (A) by redesignating paragraphs

    (1) through

    (3) as 
 paragraphs

    (2) through

    (4) , respsectively; and
        (B) by inserting before paragraph

    (2) (as so 
 redesignated), the following new paragraph:
 ``

    (1) with respect to a claim that the Board remands for 
 further action, a statement of the specific reasons such claim 
 was remanded, including any failure on the part of the 
 Secretary to comply with--
 ``
        (A) the Secretary's duty to assist under 

section 5103A of this title; and
 ``
        (B) the Secretary's duty to notify under 

section 5103 of this title;''.

    (2) Notice of remanded decision for certain employees.--
 Such section is further amended in--
        (A) subsection

    (e) --
            (i) by redesignating paragraphs

    (1) through

    (3) as subparagraphs
        (A) through
            (C) , 
 respectively;
            (ii) by striking ``After'' and inserting 
 ``

    (1) After''; and
            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
 new paragraph:
 ``

    (2) If, pursuant to a decision on an appeal, the Board remands a 
claim for a benefit under a law administered by the Secretary for 
further action, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, 
issue a copy of such decision to each employee of the Veterans Benefits 
Administration who committed the error resulting in the decision of the 
Board to remand, when applicable.''; and
        (B) in subsection

    (f) , by striking ``under 
 subsection

    (e) '' and inserting `` under paragraph

    (1) of subsection

    (e) ''.
            (d) Annual Reports for Board of Veterans' Appeals.--

    (1) In general.--Chapter 71 of title 38, United States 
 Code, is amended by inserting after 

section 7114 the following 
 new section:
``

Sec. 7115. Annual report on Board of Veterans' Appeals
 ``The Chairman of the Board shall submit to the Committees on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Senate an 
annual report that includes, for each decision of the Board to remand a 
claim for a benefit under a law administered by the Secretary to the 
Secretary for further adjudication during the period covered by the 
report, a statement of the reasons for such decision of the Board, 
disaggregated by decisions on--
 ``

    (1) claims with a rating decision dated on or after 
 February 19, 2019; and
 ``

    (2) claims with a rating decision dated before such 
 date.''.

    (2) Deadlines.--The Secretary shall submit the first 
 reports required by subsections

    (a) and

    (b) of 

section 7115 of 
 such title (as added by paragraph

    (1) ) by not later than one 
 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

    (3) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
 beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
 item relating to 

section 7114 the following new item:

``7115. Annual report on Board of Veterans' Appeals''.

    (e) Plan for Improvements to Quality in Decisions of Board.--

    (1) In general.--Not later than six months after the date 
 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
 Affairs, in consultation with the Chairman of the Board of 
 Veterans' Appeals and the head of the Office of Administrative 
 Review of the Veterans Benefits Administration, shall develop a 
 plan to--
        (A) improve the quality of decisions of the Board 
 to remand, pursuant to 

section 7104 of title 38, United 
 States Code, claims for a benefit under a law 
 administered by the Secretary to the Secretary for 
 further action; and
        (B) mitigate the number of such decisions that are 
 unnecessary under any applicable law or regulation.

    (2) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committees 
 on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 
 Senate a report on such plan by not later than six months after 
 the date of the enactment of this Act.
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