Rep. Elise Stefanik's, R-N.Y., Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Act calls for the creation of a new role within the VA to provide fraud prevention resources. Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images
Stefanik calls for fraud officer to protect veterans from scam in new bill
The New York congresswoman partnered with House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost, R-Ill., to sponsor new legislation that would create an officer to help warn veterans about potential scam and identity theft schemes.
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., wants to help add a layer of protection for veterans vulnerable to potential scams and identity theft schemes by adding a new officer within the Veterans Affairs Department.
Stefanik cosponsored a bill Friday with House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost, R-Ill., to create a Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Officer within the department to coordinate fraud prevention efforts.
“This bill will provide our veterans with consistent guidance on identifying, reporting and avoiding fraud and scam attempts,” said Stefanik, in a statement. “Our veterans have sacrificed so much to protect our country and my duty in Congress is to bring their concerns to the highest levels of government.”
The congresswoman pointed to research from the Federal Trade Commission that there were more than 73,000 reports of fraud against veterans in 2022, and more than $292 million in losses as a result of those cases.
The Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Act would task the officer with communicating time-sensitive information about fraud and scam incidents; providing consistent guidance about how to identify, report and avoid scam attempts; establishing identity theft resources for veterans like a department helpline; developing analytics and reporting operations to monitor fraud and scam efforts; and other operational responsibilities.
“VA must do everything they can to protect veterans’ hard-earned benefits from fraudsters and scammers because unfortunately, the bad guys still exist,” Bost said in a statement. “This commonsense proposal would build on VA’s efforts to enhance their cybersecurity, fraud and scam protection efforts into one centralized place to protect veterans and keep pace with today’s digital world.”
The Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Act was referred to the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.