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Committee hears H.103 to curb paid-practice scams targeting veterans
Summary
A House Government Operations & Military Affairs committee discussion of H.103 focused on measures to limit high-fee or deceptive paid services that help veterans apply for Department of Veterans Affairs benefits; lawmakers said model language from other states informed the draft and agreed to place the bill in active consideration.
Members of the House Government Operations & Military Affairs Committee discussed H.103, “an act relating to prohibited practices for services involving veterans benefits,” during a meeting that included the bill’s introducer and staff. The measure, introduced as a bill draft carried over from the previous day, aims to limit predatory paid assistance for veterans applying for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits and to require clear written agreements when fees are charged.
Supporters told the committee that veterans — particularly first-term service members and seriously ill veterans — are vulnerable to operators who promise guaranteed disability awards or charge high ongoing percentages of VA disability payments. A presenter said the bill’s intent is “to protect veterans from scammers” and to ensure any fee-based assistance is transparent and limited; the committee was told some of the language was adapted from statutes in Maine and New York.
The committee heard examples from members and constituents about how flyers, social-media solicitations and telemarketing target older or ill veterans, and how the complexity of VA paperwork can make veterans reliant on outside help. Committee members noted that some accredited representatives and organizations lawfully charge fees under federal rules; the draft would exempt authorized, accredited representatives recognized under the United States Code while restricting nonaccredited commercial schemes.
There was no formal vote on H.103 during the meeting. Committee members agreed to place the bill in the committee’s active-consideration list and to pursue further work on the draft language and outreach to stakeholders, including possibilities for coordination with veteran service officers and federally accredited representatives. Staff were asked to provide model language sources and any available data about how many Vermonters have been affected by such practices; those numbers were not specified during the discussion.
The committee did not adopt the bill or set a final hearing date during this session; members indicated they would return to it in subsequent meetings and continue refining exemptions and enforcement details.
