# 119-hr-984: To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief to an individual who suffers a loss based on an administrative error by the Secretary, and for other purposes.

119-hr-984, To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief to an individual who suffers a loss based on an administrative error by the Secretary, and for other purposes., is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Van Orden, Derrick [R-WI-3] (R-WI); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-984
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-984
- Congress: 119
- Title: To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief to an individual who suffers a loss based on an administrative error by the Secretary, and for other purposes.
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2025-02-05
- Sponsor: Rep. Van Orden, Derrick [R-WI-3] (R-WI)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**This bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide timely equitable relief** when administrative errors cause veterans to lose benefits or money. It would also force the VA to cancel debt-collection agreements when the VA finds an indebtedness determination was in error. - Veterans and families would gain a statutory right to corrective relief after VA administrative mistakes, with relief required not later than 120 days after the relevant determination. - The VA would have to promptly cancel any agreement with a "debt collector" as defined by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act when the Secretary determines the indebtedness was erroneous. - The bill replaces discretionary language with an affirmative duty for the VA Secretary, creating a clear accountability link between error findings and both relief and debt-collection remedies.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Pappas, Chris [D-NH-1] (D-NH), 2025-12-19T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Faster VA relief and debt cancellation: benefit, medium. If enacted, VA would have to give equitable relief when a VA administrative error causes your loss. Relief would have to be provided within 120 days of that determination. If VA finds a debt was wrongly decided, it would have to promptly cancel the agreement with the debt collector. This would stop…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act
- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-6976: Duty Status Reform Act
- 119-hr-1229: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025
- 119-hr-2086: Rights for the TSA Workforce Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-984 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/984)

## Related
- [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151)
- [119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9237)
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-6976: Duty Status Reform Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6976)
- [119-hr-1229: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1229)
- [119-hr-2086: Rights for the TSA Workforce Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2086)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-984 (as of 2025-12-21).