[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 204 (Monday, October 22, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 53339-53340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-26557]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

38 CFR Parts 19 and 20

RIN 2900-AJ97


Board of Veterans' Appeals: Appeals Regulations and Rules of 
Practice--Jurisdiction

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This document adopts as a final rule proposed amendments to 
the Appeals Regulations and Rules of Practice of the Board of Veterans' 
Appeals (Board). These amendments clarify that the Board may address 
questions related to its jurisdiction in the first instance. They also 
provide for notice and an opportunity to comment when the Board raises 
jurisdictional questions on its own initiative.

DATES: Effective Date: November 21, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven L. Keller, Senior Deputy Vice 
Chairman, Board of Veterans' Appeals, Department of Veterans Affairs, 
810 Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20420, (202) 565-5978.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Initial decisions on claims for veterans' 
benefits are made at VA field offices throughout the nation. Claimants 
may appeal those decisions to the Board. This final rule amends 
Department of Veterans Affairs' regulations pertaining to such appeals.
    These amendments were previously published in the Federal Register 
as a proposed rule on April 4, 2001, at 66 FR 17840. We received no 
comments. Based on the rationale set forth in the proposed rule, we are 
adopting its provisions as a final rule, with a nonsubstantive 
editorial change to the first sentence of Sec. 20.101(e).

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This document contains no provisions constituting a collection of 
information under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520).

Unfunded Mandates

    The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act requires (in section 202) that 
agencies prepare an assessment of anticipated costs and benefits before 
developing any rule that may result in an expenditure by State, local, 
or tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector of 
$100 million or more in any given year. This rule would have no 
consequential effect on State, local, or tribal governments.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Secretary hereby certifies that this final rule does not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
as they are defined in the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601-
612. This rule would affect only the processing of claims by VA and 
would not affect small businesses.
    Therefore, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), this final rule is exempt 
from the initial and final regulatory flexibility analyses requirements 
of sections 603 and 604.
    There is no Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for this 
final rule.

List of Subjects

38 CFR Part 19

    Administrative practice and procedure, Claims, Veterans.

38 CFR Part 20

    Administrative practice and procedure, Claims, Lawyers, Legal 
services, Veterans.

    Approved: September 27, 2001.
Anthony J. Principi,
Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 38 CFR parts 19 and 20 are 
amended as follows:

PART 19--BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS: APPEALS REGULATIONS

    1. The authority citation for part 19 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(a), unless otherwise noted.


    2. Section 19.35 is amended by revising the first sentence to read 
as follows:


Sec. 19.35  Certification of appeals.

    Following receipt of a timely Substantive Appeal, the agency of 
original jurisdiction will certify the case to the Board of Veterans' 
Appeals. * * *
* * * * *

PART 20--BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS: RULES OF PRACTICE

    3. The authority citation for part 20 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(a) and as noted in specific sections.


    4. Section 20.101 amended by revising paragraph (c), and adding 
paragraphs (d) and (e), to read as follows:


Sec. 20.101  Rule 101. Jurisdiction of the Board.

* * * * *
    (c) Appeals as to jurisdiction. All claimants have the right to 
appeal a determination made by the agency of original jurisdiction that 
the Board does not have jurisdictional authority to review a particular 
case. Jurisdictional questions which a claimant may appeal, include, 
but are not limited to, questions relating to the timely filing and 
adequacy of the Notice of Disagreement and the Substantive Appeal.
    (d) Authority to determine jurisdiction. The Board may address 
questions pertaining to its jurisdictional authority to review a 
particular case, including, but not limited to, determining whether 
Notices of Disagreement and Substantive Appeals are adequate and 
timely, at any stage in a proceeding before it, regardless of whether 
the agency of original jurisdiction addressed such question(s). When 
the Board, on its own initiative, raises a question as to a potential 
jurisdictional defect, all parties to the proceeding and their 
representative(s), if any, will be given notice of the potential 
jurisdictional defect(s) and granted a period of 60 days following the 
date on which such notice is mailed to present written argument and 
additional evidence relevant to jurisdiction and to request a hearing 
to present oral

[[Page 53340]]

argument on the jurisdictional question(s). The date of mailing of the 
notice will be presumed to be the same as the date stamped on the 
letter of notification. The Board may dismiss any case over which it 
determines it does not have jurisdiction.
    (e) Application of 38 CFR 19.9 and 20.1304. Section 19.9 of this 
chapter shall not apply to proceedings to determine the Board's own 
jurisdiction. However, the Board may remand a case to an agency of 
original jurisdiction in order to obtain assistance in securing 
evidence of jurisdictional facts. The time restrictions on requesting a 
hearing and submitting additional evidence in Sec. 20.1304 of this part 
do not apply to a hearing requested, or evidence submitted, under 
paragraph (d) of this section.

    Authority: 38 U.S.C. 511(a), 7104, 7105, 7108


Sec. 20.203  [Removed and Reserved]

    5. Section 20.203 is removed and reserved.

[FR Doc. 01-26557 Filed 10-19-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8320-01-P