The U.S. House passed a measure from two Florida congressmen cracking down on fraud targeting veterans.
Back in 2016, U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., brought out the “Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act” with then U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., as a co-sponsor of the bill. The House passed the bill in a 411-0 vote later that year but the Senate version, which was sponsored by U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., did not pass before the start of the new Congress.
Back in January, Rooney and Deutch brought the bill back. The bill proposes increasing penalties on conmen targeting veterans by charging illegal fees for help in appealing a claim with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. If the bill becomes law, violators would face fines and prison sentences up to five years.
On Wednesday, the U.S. House passed the proposal which now heads to the Senate.
“Anybody who seeks to financially exploit the men and women who have served our country and cheat them out of their hard-earned VA benefits should answer to their wrongdoings and face harsh punishments for their crimes,” Rooney said after the bill was passed. “Frankly, it’s appalling that there are people out there who are targeting our veterans, especially those in low-income housing or those who are elderly. This commonsense legislation will help give prosecutors the tools they need to go after these criminals and protect our those who have done so much and risked their lives to serve our country.”
“With this vote, the House is taking strong, bipartisan action to protect our veterans from scams,” Deutch said. “Con artists looking to steal veterans’ hard-earned pensions must face penalties for these illegal practices. With unanimous approval for this bill in the House, I now urge my Senate colleagues to swiftly consider and pass this bill and make this long-overdue bill a law.”
Three other congressmen from Florida--Republicans Carlos Curbelo and Mario Diaz-Balart and Democrat Darren Soto--are also cosponsoring the bill.
Rubio is sponsoring the Senate version again with U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., as a cosponsor.
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