Sponsors (36)
The bill protects veterans' privacy and due-process rights by requiring a court finding before reporting fiduciary beneficiaries to NICS, but it may delay reporting of potentially dangerous individuals and adds procedural burdens on the VA and courts.
Veterans receiving VA fiduciary benefits will generally be able to keep their ability to purchase firearms unless a judge determines they are dangerous, preserving their due process rights.
Veterans receiving fiduciary benefits are less likely to have their personal data sent to the Department of Justice/NICS without a court finding, protecting their privacy and reducing risk of wrongful inclusion in gun-background databases.
Veterans are less likely to suffer abrupt collateral consequences (like loss of rights) from VA administrative determinations alone, reducing harms from administrative actions and avoiding sudden loss of benefits or status.
Requiring a judicial finding before reporting potential prohibited persons to NICS could delay or prevent timely alerts, possibly allowing some prohibited purchasers to acquire firearms before a court acts and raising public safety risks.
The requirement for a judicial finding in imminent-risk cases creates additional procedural burdens for courts and the VA, increasing administrative costs and potentially slowing protective actions for veterans and VA staff.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Bars the VA from sending a beneficiary's PII to DOJ/NICS for firearm background checks solely because a fiduciary is paid, unless a court finds the beneficiary dangerous.
Prevents the Department of Veterans Affairs from sending a veteran or beneficiary’s personally identifiable information (PII) to the Department of Justice for use in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) solely because the VA has decided to pay a fiduciary to manage that person’s benefits. Such disclosure would only be allowed after a judge, magistrate, or other judicial authority finds or orders that the beneficiary poses a danger to themselves or others. The change adds a new statutory prohibition into the U.S. Code that narrows when the VA can report beneficiary data to DOJ/NICS, making a judicial finding a prerequisite for reporting based only on fiduciary determinations. No new funding or implementation timeline is specified in the text provided.
Introduced February 6, 2025 by John Neely Kennedy · Last progress February 6, 2025