[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 25 (Monday, February 13, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H1106-H1109]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
WORKING TO INTEGRATE NETWORKS GUARANTEEING MEMBER ACCESS NOW ACT
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 512) to title 38, United States Code, to permit
veterans to grant access to their records in the databases of the
Veterans Benefits Administration to certain designated congressional
employees, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 512
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 ``Working to Integrate
Networks Guaranteeing Member Access Now Act'' or the
``WINGMAN Act''.
SEC. 2. PROVISION OF ACCESS TO CASE-TRACKING INFORMATION.
(a) In General.--Chapter 59 of title 38, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 5906. Access of certain congressional employees to
veteran records
``(a) In General.--(1) The Secretary shall provide to each
veteran who submits a claim for benefits under the laws
administered by the Secretary an opportunity to permit a
covered congressional employee employed in the office of the
Member of Congress representing the district where the
veteran resides to have access to all of the records of the
veteran in the databases of the Veterans Benefits
Administration.
``(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, upon
receipt of the permission from the veteran under paragraph
(1), the Secretary shall provide read-only access to such
records to such a covered congressional employee in a manner
that does not allow such employee to modify the data
contained in such records or in any part of a database of the
Veterans Benefits Administration.
``(3) A Member of Congress may designate not more than two
employees of the Member as covered congressional employees.
``(b) Requirements.--The Secretary may not impose any
requirement other than the requirements specified under
subsection (e)(1) before treating an employee as a covered
congressional employee for purposes of this section.
``(c) Nonrecognition.--A covered congressional employee may
not be recognized as an agent or attorney under this chapter.
``(d) Limitation on Use of Funds.--None of the amounts made
available to carry out this section may be used to design,
develop, or administer any training for purposes of providing
training to covered congressional employees.
``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) The term `covered congressional employee' means a
permanent, full-time employee of a Member of Congress--
``(A) whose responsibilities include assisting the
constituents of the Member with issues regarding departments
or agencies of the Federal Government;
``(B) who satisfies the criteria required by the Secretary
for recognition as an agent or attorney under this chapter;
and
``(C) who is designated by the Member of Congress as a
covered congressional employee for purposes of this section.
``(2) The term `database of the Veterans Benefits
Administration' means any database of the Veterans Benefits
Administration in which the records of veterans relating to
claims for benefits under the laws administered by the
Secretary are retained, including information regarding
medical records, compensation and pension exams records,
rating decisions, statements of the case, supplementary
statements of the case, notices of disagreement, Form-9, and
any successor form.
``(3) The term `Member of Congress' means a Representative,
a Senator, a Delegate to Congress, or the Resident
Commissioner of Puerto Rico.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the
beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the
following new item:
``5906. Access of certain congressional employees to veteran
records.''.
(c) No Authorization of Appropriations.--No additional
funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
section or the amendments made by this section. This section
and such amendments may only be carried out using amounts
otherwise authorized to be appropriated, of which, during the
period of fiscal years 2018 through 2021, not more than
$10,000,000 may be obligated or expended for such purpose.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
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Tennessee (Mr. Roe) and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee.
general leave
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and add extraneous material.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Tennessee?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today and urge all Members to support H.R. 512,
as amended, the WINGMAN Act.
First, I want to say a special thanks to the gentleman from Florida
(Mr. Yoho) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis), our
colleagues, for introducing the WINGMAN Act. This bill will help
Members cut through the red tape and help constituents who have applied
for benefits from VA.
Isn't that why we are here, to help our constituents?
The problem is that when a constituent calls one of our offices to
ask about the status of a claim for benefits, the only thing we can do
is write VA and wait for the VA to respond. I know I get very
frustrated, and I am sure my colleagues do as well, with how long it
takes for the VA to get back to us. The WINGMAN Act provides a simple
solution. The bill allows designated, permanent, full-time
congressional staffers to look up the status of a claim on VA's
database, but only if the veteran has given the staffer permission.
Staffers would have read-only access to VA databases, meaning they
wouldn't be able to add or remove any information.
Passing H.R. 512, as amended, would allow Members to help
constituents who simply want to understand the status of their claim
for benefits. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R.
512, as amended.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1645
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 512, as amended, the WINGMAN
Act. I, too, would like to thank the gentleman from Florida for trying
to do all they can to speed constituent services to their folks.
This legislation gives certain designated congressional office
caseworkers access to veterans' electronic disability claim records at
the Veterans Benefits Administration, or VBA. It has broad support in
this House, both Democrat and Republican.
This bill would allow designated congressional employees to have
read-only access to the Veterans Benefits Administration database to
look at veterans' records. Congressional staff would not be able to add
or remove anything from a record, but simply check on the status of a
veteran's claim and check that evidence and documentation are
submitted. The reason this is so important is that a veteran will, at
times, wait months, only to be told a piece of document has been
missing that could have been added months before. It makes sense. It
tracks the system. It ensures that the veteran is getting the fastest,
best possible claim adjudication.
The purpose is to provide that faster status and let them know. There
are privacy safeguards in the bill, which reinforce the necessity for
getting prior consent from the veteran. Also, the bill clearly requires
that congressional employees designated for this access must be full-
time employees who provide constituent services.
Veterans service organizations have suggested that the VA should put
a tracking system in place to ensure that these employees are only
assisting constituents from their congressional district, and that
congressional staff be held accountable if found to abuse any aspect of
this new and unprecedented authority. I support that suggestion.
In my district, county veterans service organizations have also asked
to have read-only access to veterans' records so they can assist
veterans. I wish to work with Chairman Roe to examine whether that
might be something that could be included down the road.
There is broad bipartisan support for giving congressional staff
access to veterans' records so they can help veterans navigate a
complex claims system. Often it takes too long to find out the status
of a veteran's claim from the VA. Allowing certain professional staff
to do the checking themselves seems like a simple step in the right
direction, and I support it.
Last Congress, similar legislation to H.R. 512 unanimously passed
this House. I urge my colleagues to support it today.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) control the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Tennessee?
There was no objection.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Bergman).
Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 512, the
WINGMAN Act.
I am honored to represent the First District of Michigan, which, as a
State, has a higher than average percentage of veterans, and the First
District has double the percentage of veterans of the rest of the
State. To advocate for these fine men and women who have served so
honorably, we have the absolute imperative to make sure that they get
the help that they need to cut through the bureaucratic red tape at
agencies such as the Department of Veterans Affairs.
I have been serving in Congress for just over a month now, and,
already, my office has been flooded with requests from veterans seeking
aid in navigating the benefits claims process.
Unfortunately, the VA is notoriously plagued by a culture of
complacency and inefficiency. Even something as simple as checking the
status of a veteran's claim means that congressional staff members have
to circle back around numerous times with VA employees before being
able to provide the veterans in the First District with an accurate
update.
As a veteran of the Vietnam war, I know that time is valuable to our
veterans. We have to introduce more efficiency and transparency into
the benefits claims process.
H.R. 512 is designed to cut out the middle step. The WINGMAN Act
provides congressional offices with read-only access to veterans'
records within the Veterans Benefits Administration. This commonsense
bill allows our veterans quicker access to simple status inquiries,
provides greater transparency for congressional offices, and allows the
VA employees more time to work on completing these claims.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from the
Northern Mariana Islands (Mr. Sablan), my good friend, a member of the
Veterans' Affairs Committee, and a stalwart supporter of this Nation's
veterans and those in uniform.
Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend, the ranking member
of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Mr. Walz, for allowing me to speak
in support of H.R. 512, the WINGMAN Act.
I rise today in support of H.R. 512, the WINGMAN Act, introduced by
the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), my colleague, which would allow
veterans to grant designated congressional office staff read-only
access to their claim records within the VBA, Veterans Benefits
Administration.
Mr. Speaker, there are no Veterans Benefits Administration personnel
in the Northern Marianas. The veterans in my district have no one to
meet with, but for the very occasional, usually one 6-hour visit to the
Marianas from a VBA staff based in Guam or Hawaii. It usually comes
once every 6 months if we are lucky.
Staffs' request for information on behalf of veterans sometimes takes
months to receive a reply. This bipartisan bill would eliminate the
delay by enabling permitted staff to obtain the information directly
from VBA databases. This would be especially meaningful to veterans in
my district who face additional challenges for disability claims due to
the lack of VA presence.
Mr. Speaker, I represent three islands. I work with Social Security
and Selective Service, of course, like other Members. For Social
Security, we are
[[Page H1108]]
allowed to go and take data information, application forms, bring them
to the main island of Saipan, where we go in line like everyone else
and submit the applications on behalf of those constituents we serve.
So having separate islands and having a post office in one island and
no post office in another island is a little complicated and difficult.
Can you just imagine for the veteran who needs access to his VBA
records or who needs access to his Veterans Health Administration file?
Because we only have one in the Northern Marianas. This one really
would allow us to serve the veterans who deserve nothing else but the
best.
Our veterans responded to our call to serve and defend this country
without hesitation. We must, in return, do everything we can to serve
them in the same manner.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Yoho), a good friend and a strong advocate for our
veterans.
Mr. YOHO. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Bilirakis for the work
that he has done. And I want to congratulate Chairman Roe for taking
over the Veterans' Affairs Committee.
I would also like to thank the committee staff for their diligence
and help on this piece of legislation, as well as the co-leads of this
bill, Representatives Rodney Davis, Kyrsten Sinema, and John Delaney.
Last Congress, WINGMAN passed the Veterans' Affairs Committee
unanimously in the House due to the bipartisan support of the Members
of this Chamber. While it was disappointing that we were unable to get
it across the finish line in the Senate, I feel confident, given the
support this bill has witnessed early on in this year, with 175 Members
in the House and 7 Members in the Senate, I am encouraged, and my hope
is that we will see it pass the Senate this Congress and be signed into
law by the President.
Congressional constituent advocates worked diligently in our district
offices to help veterans navigate the VA claims appeals system. But,
they are hampered by having to wait weeks, months, and sometimes even
years to receive documents from the VA that are often vital to helping
the veteran reach a favorable resolution.
WINGMAN will help to expedite the process by cutting out the
middleman and providing direct access to the files our office already
has permission to obtain. Currently, advocates must have a privacy
release form signed by the constituent prior to acting on their behalf.
This doesn't change. What changes is the wait time our offices,
veterans, and their families must endure while the VA sends us the
appropriate documents.
WINGMAN will help veterans such as James, from my district, who had
eight separate, but related, claims filed. He didn't know which files
were attached to which claims, the dates they were received, which
department they were referred to, or that he could have filed one
single, fully developed claim. Had my staff had access to the files,
which WINGMAN permits, they would have been able to assess the issue
and update his claims without having to go on a wild goose chase for
the documents with the VA system. Getting his case on track could have
happened in a matter of days, rather than years. He is more than
deserving of this, especially since some of his claims are over 6 years
old.
Another constituent lost her husband while he was serving this
Nation. The VA was mailing all correspondence to his widow to an
incorrect address. This resulted in an overpayment, which she was
unaware of since she was not receiving the mail. The long-term result
was a veteran's widow having her account sent to collections, which
damaged her credit, and ended with her new spouse's tax return being
confiscated. With access to the system files, our office would have had
a clearer picture of the timeline of events and been able to direct and
streamline our inquiry. Instead, our staff had to hunt down the
relevant files from numerous branches within the VA and reassemble them
like a jigsaw puzzle.
When I hear the story of Sergeant Abraham or Colonel Bergman or Staff
Sergeant Brian Mast behind me, these people have paid a price for their
service to this country, and our country owes them a debt. As a
country, we can do better by our veterans and their families. WINGMAN
will not get rid of the claims backlog or solve all of the problems.
What it will do, however, is make the process helping our veterans
easier.
Let's put the words ``customer service'' into our government. So I
encourage my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Hawaii (Ms. Gabbard) one of our warriors and a veteran of the war in
Iraq, and a staunch advocate for this Nation's veterans.
Ms. GABBARD. Mr. Speaker, one of the things I appreciate most about
the job that I have to represent Hawaii's Second District is to be able
to respond to and provide assistance to the hundreds of veterans from
across my State that contact our office every single year. They call to
ask for help with things like compensation and pension issues, health
care, mileage reimbursement, especially for our veterans who live on
the neighboring islands where they don't have a VA clinic on an island,
education, home loan benefits, and more. This is a responsibility as a
Member of Congress and as a fellow veteran that I take very seriously.
Right now, if a veteran contacts my office for assistance, we are
required to go directly through the congressional liaison at the VA. We
act as the veterans advocate to try to get answers for them on things
that they haven't been able to get answers on, things that they haven't
heard back on.
Too often, we are faced with the bureaucratic layers within the VA
and a slow turnaround that leave congressional staff, like mine and my
colleagues here, jumping through hoops to access basic, but critical,
information on behalf of our veterans and their families. At times, we
have waited for months to get answers from the VA on behalf of a Hawaii
veteran for something that should be a quick turnaround, like a status
update. This is unacceptable.
I am proud to cosponsor the WINGMAN Act, legislation introduced by
the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), my friend and colleague, which
allows us to cut through the red tape and ensure that our certified
caseworkers within our offices can provide quicker, more efficient, and
effective service to our veterans. It would help streamline the
veterans claims process by allowing congressional offices on behalf of
our veteran constituents to directly access the status of pending
claims, rating decisions, statement of the case, and so on.
I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation so that
all of us working here in the people's House can better serve our
veterans who have sacrificed so much for our communities and our
country.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge support of
H.R. 512.
I yield back the balance of my time.
{time} 1700
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to
support this legislation.
Representative Yoho does outstanding work. He traveled to VISN 8 in
St. Petersburg, Florida, which is about 3 hours away. We had a
discussion about this particular issue. He came up with the suggestion,
and he is following through with it. It is a good piece of legislation.
Let's get it through the Senate this time.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 512, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to amend
title 38, United States Code, to permit veterans to grant access to
their records in the databases of the Veterans Benefits Administration
to certain designated congressional employees, and for other
purposes.''.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
[[Page H1109]]
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