Two members of the Florida congressional delegation teamed up last week to introduce a bill to safeguard veterans against fraud.
U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., brought out the “Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act”
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.
“Everyone knows that the claims process at the VA is too slow,” Rooney said as he introduced the proposal. “Anyone who deliberately seeks out our most vulnerable veterans purporting to speed up this process with their VA claims and illegally charging them exorbitant fees for their ‘services’ deserves to face a harsh penalty. This bill will help prevent America’s heroes from being targeted by fraudulent financial schemes by giving law enforcement the tools they need to punish these low-life criminals.”
“Financial fraud is an increasingly sophisticated enterprise, and the unfortunate reality is that our veterans are a target,” said Deutch. “The Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act represents a basic but essential step that we must take to protect the financial security of our veterans, and I look forward to working with my friend and colleague, Congressman Rooney, to move this legislation forward.”
Currently, the bill does not have any companion legislation in the U.S. Senate. Last week, the bill was sent to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee.
Rooney, who sits on the House Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, taught at West Point and served in the Army, brought out bills last year which called for increasing penalties on criminals who target veterans with other frauds.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
