[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1789 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1789

To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the review of claims 
   for benefits under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans 
                                Affairs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 1, 2023

  Mr. Kennedy introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the review of claims 
   for benefits under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans 
                                Affairs.

    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 ``Preserving Lawful Utilization of 
Services for Veterans Act of 2023'' or the ``PLUS for Veterans Act of 
2023''.

SEC. 2. CLARIFICATION OF PREPARATION, PRESENTATION, OR PROSECUTION OF A 
              CLAIM UNDER A LAW ADMINISTERED BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS.

    Section 5901 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Except'' and inserting the following:
    ``(a) In General.--Except''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(b) Exclusion.--The administration of a medical examination, or 
the writing of a report based on such examination, described in section 
5125 of this title, does not constitute the preparation, presentation, 
or prosecution of a claim described in subsection (a).''.

SEC. 3. AGENTS AND ATTORNEYS IN CLAIMS UNDER LAWS ADMINISTERED BY 
              SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS: RECOGNITION; SUSPENSION.

    Section 5904 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1)--
                    (A) by inserting ``(A)'' before ``Except''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraphs:
    ``(B)(i) The Secretary shall determine whether to recognize under 
subparagraph (A) an agent or attorney who applies for such recognition 
not later than 90 days after the Secretary receives such application.
    ``(ii) If the Secretary cannot verify whether the agent or attorney 
meets the qualifications and standards prescribed under paragraph (2) 
before the end of such 90 days, the Secretary shall recognize the agent 
or attorney under such subparagraph.
    ``(C) The Secretary may not refuse to recognize under subparagraph 
(A) an agent or attorney solely on the basis that such agent or 
attorney charges a claimant a fee for services rendered in the 
preparation, presentation, or prosecution of a claim.
    ``(D) The Secretary may suspend under subsection (b) an agent or 
attorney described in subparagraph (E) without regard to the notice and 
opportunity for a hearing under such subsection.
    ``(E) An agent or attorney described in this subparagraph is an 
agent or attorney--
            ``(i) recognized pursuant to subparagraph (B)(ii); and
            ``(ii) whom the Secretary determines, after the 90-day 
        period described in such subparagraph, does not meet the 
        qualifications and standards prescribed under paragraph (2).''; 
        and
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (9) as 
                subparagraphs (A) through (I), respectively;
                    (B) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), as 
                redesignated, by inserting ``(1)'' before ``The 
                Secretary''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
    ``(2) Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of 
the Preserving Lawful Utilization of Services for Veterans Act of 2023 
and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs 
of the House of Representatives a report regarding the number of 
individuals suspended under this subsection or denied recognition under 
subsection (a), disaggregated by the reasons for such suspension or 
denial and whether the individual is--
            ``(A) a representative of an organization recognized under 
        section 5902 of this title;
            ``(B) an agent; or
            ``(C) an attorney.''.

SEC. 4. FEES ALLOWABLE FOR REPRESENTATION OF VETERANS FOR CLAIMS UNDER 
              LAWS ADMINISTERED BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) Fees.--Section 5904 of title 38, United States Code, as amended 
by section 3, is further amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(5), by striking ``preparation, 
        presentation, and prosecution of a claim before the 
        Department'' and inserting ``course of representation described 
        in subsection (c)(2)'';
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in the subsection heading, by inserting ``Flat 
                Fee Agreements.--'' after ``(c)'';
                    (B) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
    ``(1)(A) In a case other than a case described in paragraph (2), a 
fee agreement between a claimant and an agent or attorney, with respect 
to the preparation, presentation, or prosecution of a claim under a law 
administered by the Secretary, shall be a fee agreement under--
            ``(i) this paragraph, using a standard agreement form 
        prescribed by the Secretary;
            ``(ii) subsection (d); or
            ``(iii) subsection (e).
    ``(B) A fee agreement under this paragraph is one under which the 
total amount payable by the claimant to the agent or attorney with 
respect to the claim--
            ``(i) may not exceed $12,500 (as adjusted from time to time 
        under subparagraph (C)); and
            ``(ii) is contingent on whether the claim is resolved in a 
        manner favorable to the claimant.
    ``(C) Effective on October 1 of each year (beginning in the first 
fiscal year after the date of the enactment of the Preserving Lawful 
Utilization of Services for Veterans Act of 2023), the Secretary shall 
increase the dollar amount in effect under clause (i) of subparagraph 
(B) by a percentage equal to the percentage by which the Consumer Price 
Index for all urban consumers (U.S. city average) increased during the 
12-month period ending with the last month for which Consumer Price 
Index data is available. In the event that such Consumer Price Index 
does not increase during such period, the Secretary shall maintain the 
dollar amount in effect under such clause during the previous fiscal 
year.
    ``(D) The limitation under subparagraph (B)(i) does not apply to 
any fee charged, allowed, or paid for services provided with respect to 
proceedings before a court.
    ``(E) For purposes of subparagraph (B)(ii), a claim shall be 
considered to have been resolved in a manner favorable to the claimant 
if all or any part of the relief sought is granted.
    ``(F) The form prescribed by the Secretary under subparagraph 
(A)(i) shall include the following notifications to the claimant:
            ``(i) That organizations recognized under section 5902 of 
        this title furnish services concerning claims under laws 
        administered by the Secretary, at no cost to claimants.
            ``(ii) That the claimant may select a private physician for 
        a medical examination described in section 5125 of this title 
        regarding the claim.
            ``(iii) That such agent or attorney may not refer the 
        claimant to a private physician described in clause (ii) with 
        whom the agent or attorney has a business relationship 
        regarding the claim.'';
                    (C) in paragraph (2), by striking ``referred to in 
                paragraph (1) of this subsection'' and inserting 
                ``regarding a claim under a law administered by the 
                Secretary'';
                    (D) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ``to paragraph 
                (2)'' and inserting ``to paragraph (1) or (2)''; and
                    (E) by striking paragraph (4); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) Payment of Fees Out of an Award or Increased Award.--(1) When 
a claimant and an agent or attorney have entered into a fee agreement 
described in paragraph (2), the total fee payable to the agent or 
attorney (including all ancillary fees) may not exceed the amount that 
is equal to the product of five and the amount of the monthly increase 
of benefits awarded on the basis of the claim.
    ``(2) A fee agreement referred to in paragraph (1) is one under 
which the total amount of the fee payable to the agent or attorney--
            ``(A) is to be paid to the agent or attorney by the 
        claimant, after commencement of the monthly period of payment 
        of monetary benefits based on an award or increased award (as 
        defined in section 5111(d) of this title); and
            ``(B) is contingent on whether the matter is resolved in a 
        manner favorable to the claimant.
    ``(3) For the purposes of this subsection, a claim shall be 
considered to have been resolved in a manner favorable to the claimant 
if all or any part of the relief sought is granted.''.
    (b) Regulations.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prescribe regulations to 
carry out the amendments made by this section.

SEC. 5. REINSTATEMENT OF PENALTIES FOR CHARGING VETERANS UNAUTHORIZED 
              FEES RELATING TO CLAIMS UNDER LAWS ADMINISTERED BY THE 
              SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 5905 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in the section heading, by striking ``Penalty'' and 
        inserting ``Penalties'';
            (2) by striking ``Whoever'' and inserting the following:
    ``(a) Withholding of Benefits.--Whoever''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(b) Charging of Unauthorized Fees.--Except as provided in 
sections 5904 or 1984 of this title, whoever directly or indirectly 
solicits, contracts for, charges, or receives, or attempts to solicit, 
contract for, charge, or receive, any fee or compensation with respect 
to the preparation, presentation, or prosecution of any claim for 
benefits under a law administered by the Secretary shall be fined as 
provided in title 18, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 59 of such title is amended by striking the item relating to 
section 5905 and inserting the following new item:

``5905. Penalties for certain acts.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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