PROVIDE Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6588 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6588

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to expedite the processing
  of claims for disability compensation by veterans affected by major
                               disasters.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 10, 2025

   Mr. Panetta (for himself, Mr. Higgins of Louisiana, and Mr. Lieu)
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to expedite the processing
  of claims for disability compensation by veterans affected by major
                               disasters.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Priority Response for Veterans
Impacted by Disasters and Emergencies Act'' or the ``PROVIDE Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Department of Veterans Affairs sets forth criteria
        for priority processing of veterans' disability claims by the
        Department.
            (2) Such criteria include veterans affected by extreme
        financial hardship, homelessness, terminal illness, and
        participants in the Department's Fully Developed Claim program.
            (3) Currently there is no process in place to prioritize
        the disability claims of veterans affected by major disasters
        such as fires and floods.
            (4) Priority claims processing for veterans affected by
        major disasters will significantly help such veterans begin
        rebuilding their lives.

SEC. 3. PRIORITY CLAIMS PROCESSING IN THE EVENT OF A MAJOR DISASTER.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall prescribe regulations setting
forth criteria for priority processing of a claim for compensation
under chapter 11 of title 38, United States Code. Individuals whose
claim shall be eligible for such priority processing shall include--
            (1) veterans affected by extreme financial hardship;
            (2) veterans affected by homelessness;
            (3) veterans diagnosed with a terminal illness;
            (4) participants in the Department of Veterans Affairs
        Fully Developed Claim program; and
            (5) veterans who live in an area for which the President
        has declared a major disaster under section 401 of the Robert
        T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
        U.S.C. 5170).
    (b) Special Considerations for Claims Processing in the Event of a
Major Disaster.--The Secretary shall prescribe additional regulations
relating only to subsection (a)(5). Such additional regulations
include--
            (1) establishing flexible evidence requirements for
        veterans unable to meet the ordinary evidence requirements for
        such a claim due to a major disaster; and
            (2) establishing a flexible filing deadline for such a
        claim.
    (c) Notice to Veterans of Eligibility for Priority Claims
Processing.--Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary shall post a permanent notice to veterans on the
Department of Veterans Affairs website of the categories of eligibility
for priority processing of such claims, including the changes to such
categories made pursuant to subsection (a).
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