Committee advances bill to limit unaccredited ‘claim consultants’ after hours of testimony from veterans groups and private vendors

Senate Bill 1080, sponsored in committee by Sen. Kelly Anton, would prohibit certain private, unaccredited entities from assisting veterans with initial VA claims — an effort proponents described as a protection against “claim sharks” who take large fees from veterans’ back pay. After extensive testimony from veterans service organizations and representatives of private claims-assistance firms, the Senate State Affairs Committee voted to send SB1080 to the fourteenth order for possible amendments.

Anton said the bill responds to Idaho veterans who reported being approached by unscrupulous contractors who promise to obtain benefits and then collect large fees from veterans’ payouts. Attorney-examiner Kelsey Zack, who presented the bill for the sponsor, cited federal law (38 C.F.R. §14.629) that…