House Bill Analysis — HB 1925, Veterans Service Officer Program (Washington, January 10, 2024)

Summary

House Bill Analysis of HB 1925 from the Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research, prepared for the Innovation, Community & Economic Development, & Veterans Committee for a hearing on January 10, 2024. The brief description reads "Expanding the veterans service officer program to increase veteran support statewide." The brief summary says the bill requires the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) to give recently discharged veterans information about veterans benefits and services, and expands county eligibility for the WDVA's Veterans Service Officer Program. It also requires the WDVA to provide reports every two years by county. The appropriation is listed as None, with a fiscal note requested on January 2, 2024.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

Washington State                  BILL
House of Representatives
Office of Program Research   ANALYSIS
Innovation, Community & Economic
Development, & Veterans Committee
                                        HB 1925
Brief Description: Expanding the veterans service officer program to increase veteran support
     statewide.

Sponsors: Representatives Shavers, Leavitt, Ramel, Reed, Simmons, Timmons, Donaghy,
    Reeves, Riccelli, Davis and Paul.


                                     Brief Summary of Bill
          • Requires the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) to
            provide information to recently discharged veterans about veterans
            benefits and services, and information about resources available to
            veterans in each county.
          • Expands county eligibility for the WDVA's Veterans Service Officer
            Program, and prioritizes funding for those counties where the number of
            veterans receiving benefits is below the national average and for counties
            that do not have a veterans service officer.
          • Requires the WDVA to provide reports every two years that include, by
            county, the number of resident veterans and the services available to
            veterans.


Hearing Date: 1/10/24

Staff: Martha Wehling (786-7067).

Background:

Veterans Service Officers.




     This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative
     members in their deliberations. This analysis is not part of the legislation nor does it
     constitute a statement of legislative intent.

House Bill Analysis                             -1-                                         HB 1925
Veterans service officers assist veterans and their families with claims for federal benefits.
Veterans service officers may work for the state, a county, a tribal government, or a private
organization. To provide services through veterans service officers, the Washington Department
of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) has contracts with six nonprofit veterans service organizations in
11 counties. The WDVA also employs four veterans service officers focused on four
underserved counties.

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs accredits three types of representatives:
veterans service organization representatives, attorneys, and agents. When a veteran is filing a
claim for benefits, only an accredited attorney, agent, veterans service organization, federal
regional office representative, or a permitted individual may represent the veteran. The
percentage of veterans in Washington counties receiving benefits ranges from 15 to 44 percent.

The Washington Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Service Officer Program.

The WDVA operates a Veterans Service Officer Program which funds veterans service officers
in certain counties. Counties that are eligible for a veterans service officer under the program
must have a population of 100,000 or less. The WDVA provides funding on a first come, first
served basis to establish and maintain one local accredited veterans service officer per county.
Since its creation in 2019, the Veterans Service Officer Program has provided funding for four
veterans service officers serving six counties.

The Veterans Service Officer Fund account may be used for the Veterans Service Officer
Program. The WDVA also provides grants to counties to develop or expand veterans service
officer and peer-to-peer support programs, and other services and programs where needed. The
WDVA prioritizes counties with smaller populations and those counties that are below the
national average in the percentage of veterans receiving federal disability or pension
compensation. The United States Department of Veterans Affairs' Annual Benefits Report for
fiscal year 2022 identified 5.9 million veterans receiving federal disability and 299,709 veterans
receiving pension compensation.

County Veterans' Assistance Programs.

In some counties, veterans service officers are funded through local veterans' assistance
programs, which are established to provide relief and assistance through a portion of the county's
regular property tax levy. Each county's legislative authority approves a veterans' assistance
program to address the needs of local indigent veterans and their families. The county may
authorize other entities to administer the program through grants, contracts, or interlocal
agreements. When a noncounty entity administers the program, a local branch of a nationally
recognized veterans service organization should be the initial point of contact for a veteran
seeking assistance. Veterans' assistance programs are fully or partially funded by the Veterans'
Assistance Fund account in each county.



House Bill Analysis                            -2-                                         HB 1925
Summary of Bill:

Information about Services Available to Veterans.

The Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) must support veterans by providing
information about services available to veterans. The WDVA must: (1) contact veterans after
discharge and provide information about benefits and services available to veterans; and (2)
identify services and resources by county on the WDVA website.

After receiving a discharge notice from the Department of Defense, the WDVA must contact the
discharged veteran and provide information about benefits and services. The WDVA must use
information provided by county veterans' assistance programs and local branches of nationally
recognized veterans service organizations to provide county-specific information on the WDVA
website.

Expansion of Counties Eligible For and Prioritization of Officers in the Veterans Service Officer
Program.

The counties eligible to apply for a veterans service officer through the WDVA's Veterans
Service Officer Program are expanded to those counties with a resident veteran population of
50,000 or less. The WDVA is required to prioritize funding for local accredited veterans service
officers to those counties where the percentage of the veteran population receiving federal
disability or pension compensation is below the national average, and to counties that do not
have a veterans service officer. "Veterans service officer" is defined to mean an accredited
veterans service officer funded by the Veterans Service Officer Fund account.

The WDVA may adopt rules and must require that any county participating in the Veterans
Service Officer Program allow veterans residing in an adjacent county access to the officer
funded by the program.

The WDVA may use the Veterans Service Officer Fund account to provide information about
services available to veterans or to prepare the report on veterans services.

Reporting.

Beginning in December 2025, the WDVA must report on services available to veterans to the
Governor and Legislature and provide information on the number of veterans, available services,
entities providing services, benefits received, and counties that do not provide access to a
veterans service officer or where the veteran population receiving benefits is below the national
average. The reports should include:
    • the number of veterans residing in each county;
    • the number and type of services available to veterans in each county;
    • the number of veterans served during the reporting period by:
           • the WDVA;


House Bill Analysis                            -3-                                       HB 1925
          • the Veterans Service Officer Program; and
          • counties contracting with the WDVA to provide services to veterans;
    • the number of veterans served in a county who reside in an adjacent county;
    • the number of claims filed by veterans service organizations contracting with the WDVA;
    • the percentage of veterans served who received federal disability or pension compensation;
    • identification of each county where the percentage of the veteran population receiving
      federal disability or pension compensation is below the national average; and
    • identification of each county that does not provide access to a veterans service officer
      through:
          • a county's veterans' assistance program;
          • a contract with the WDVA;
          • the Veterans Service Officer Program; or
          • directly through the WDVA.

The WDVA must provide this report every two years.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Requested on January 2, 2024.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is
passed.




House Bill Analysis                            -4-                                         HB 1925


File and source

File

2024-01-10_a31581_d263667_bill-analysis.pdf

Size

10,652 bytes

SHA-256

d6093d55312ec11ed669892c6c9808ab4ab4e709e62ab9e9fed63595bb3b4161

Our copy

2024-01-10_a31581_d263667_bill-analysis.pdf

Original

No public link identified.