Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1391 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1391

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide restoration of
   entitlement to educational assistance to individuals defrauded by
     educational institutions receiving payment on behalf of such
 individuals under the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans
 Affairs and to provide repayment of funds to the Secretary from such
           educational institutions, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 14, 2025

 Mrs. Ramirez (for herself, Mr. Takano, Mr. Levin, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms.
    Budzinski, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Frost, and Mr. Grijalva)
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide restoration of
   entitlement to educational assistance to individuals defrauded by
     educational institutions receiving payment on behalf of such
 individuals under the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans
 Affairs and to provide repayment of funds to the Secretary from such
           educational institutions, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Student Veteran Benefit Restoration
Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS THAT RECEIVE
              EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE FROM PROGRAMS ADMINISTERED BY THE
              SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 36 of title 38, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 3699C. Restoration of entitlement for pursuit of courses or
              programs of education at certain educational institutions
    ``(a) Restoration of Entitlement.--The Secretary shall determine
that any payment of covered educational assistance for the pursuit by a
covered individual of a course or program of education at an
educational institution occurring during a period set forth under
subsection (b) is not--
            ``(1) charged against any entitlement of the covered
        individual to the covered educational assistance; or
            ``(2) counted against the aggregate period for which
        section 3695 of this title limits the receipt of educational
        assistance by the covered individual.
    ``(b) Covered Periods.--A period set forth under this subsection
with respect to a course or program of education pursued by a covered
individual at an educational institution is any of the following:
            ``(1) Any period, occurring on or after the date of
        enactment of the Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of
        2025, in which the educational institution was not approved by
        a State approving agency or the Secretary acting as a State
        approving agency, including periods in which an educational
        institution is not approved because an approval is revoked.
            ``(2) Any period, occurring on or after the date of
        enactment of the Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of
        2025, with regards to which the Secretary has made a final
        determination that the educational institution, or the owner of
        the educational institution, was in violation during such
        period of an applicable provision of section 3696 of this
        title.
            ``(3) Any period, occurring on or after the date of
        enactment of the Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of
        2025, during which a court of competent jurisdiction found the
        educational institution guilty of, or liable for, fraud.
            ``(4) Any period, occurring on or after the date of
        enactment of the Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of
        2025, during which the educational institution was closed by
        the Department of Justice on the basis of fraud or a violation
        of a provision of Federal or State law.
            ``(5) Any period occurring on or after the date of
        enactment of the Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of
        2025--
                    ``(A) during which the educational institution
                engaged in fraud; and
                    ``(B) after which the educational institution
                closes.
    ``(c) Repayment of Funds.--(1) As a condition of the approval of a
course or program of education under this chapter, the educational
institution offering the course or program shall agree that if the
educational institution receives payment of covered educational
assistance for a covered individual to pursue a course or program of
education at the educational institution and the Secretary, pursuant to
subsection (a), restores to such covered individual some portion of the
entitlement of the covered individual to such covered educational
assistance, the educational institution shall repay to the Secretary
the amount of that portion of the covered educational assistance that
the educational institution received for that individual.
    ``(2) In the case of an educational institution that has been found
guilty of, or liable for, fraud by a court of competent jurisdiction
and is ordered to pay financial relief to the Federal Government, the
Secretary may file a claim with the Department of the Treasury for
recoupment of all amounts of educational assistance received by such
educational institution pursuant to the educational assistance programs
administered by the Secretary that the Secretary determines were
obtained through such fraud.
    ``(d) Appeals.--(1) The Secretary shall establish a process by
which an educational institution or the owner of an educational
institution that is subject to a finding by the Secretary that the
educational institution is required to repay an amount under subsection
(c) may request a review of such finding.
    ``(2) The process established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
distinct and separate from the process established under section
3696(i) of this title.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) The term `covered educational assistance' means
        educational assistance under chapter 30, 31, 32, 33, or 35 of
        this title, or chapter 1606 or 1607 of title 10.
            ``(2) The term `covered individual' means a veteran or
        other individual using covered educational assistance to pursue
        a course or program of education that has been approved under
        this chapter.
            ``(3) The term `fraud' means fraud or another false,
        misleading, or deceptive act or omission.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section
3699B the following new item:

``3699C. Restoration of entitlement for pursuit of courses or programs
                            of education at certain educational
                            institutions.''.
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