July 23, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 124 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session
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HONORING AMERICAN VETERANS IN EXTREME NEED ACT OF 2019; Congressional Record Vol. 165, No. 124
(House of Representatives - July 23, 2019)
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[Pages H7215-H7216] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] {time} 1815 HONORING AMERICAN VETERANS IN EXTREME NEED ACT OF 2019 Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2938) to exempt from the calculation of monthly income certain benefits paid by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2938 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 ``Honoring American Veterans in Extreme Need Act of 2019'' or the ``HAVEN Act''. SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF CURRENT MONTHLY INCOME. Section 101(10A) of title 11, United States Code, is amended by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following: ``(B)(i) includes any amount paid by any entity other than the debtor (or in a joint case the debtor and the debtor's spouse), on a regular basis for the household expenses of the debtor or the debtor's dependents (and in a joint case the debtor's spouse if not otherwise a dependent); and ``(ii) excludes-- ``(I) benefits received under the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.); ``(II) payments to victims of war crimes or crimes against humanity on account of their status as victims of such crimes; ``(III) payments to victims of international terrorism or domestic terrorism, as those terms are defined in section 2331 of title 18, on account of their status as victims of such terrorism; and ``(IV) any monthly compensation, pension, pay, annuity, or allowance paid under title [[Page H7216]] 10, 37, or 38 in connection with a disability, combat-related injury or disability, or death of a member of the uniformed services, except that any retired pay excluded under this subclause shall include retired pay paid under chapter 61 of title 10 only to the extent that such retired pay exceeds the amount of retired pay to which the debtor would otherwise be entitled if retired under any provision of title 10 other than chapter 61 of that title.''. SEC. 3. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Clay). Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cline) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Rhode Island. General Leave Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Rhode Island? There was no objection. Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. The overriding principle of the bankruptcy system is to give people who are overwhelmed with unmanageable debt a fresh start through meaningful financial relief. The Bankruptcy Code, either directly or indirectly, affects millions of Americans, and all types of businesses, from large to small. The system is supposed to work for everyone, from consumer debtors and small business owners, to family farmers, servicemembers, and veterans, and give them a new pathway to economic prosperity. But as we have heard during a recent oversight hearing held by the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law, the bankruptcy system is not working. In light of these concerns, the House Judiciary Committee unanimously passed four bipartisan pieces of legislation to address this concern. These include H.R. 2938, the Honoring American Veterans in Extreme Need Act of 2019, or the HAVEN Act. This legislation, which has been championed by my colleague on the committee, Congresswoman Lucy McBath, addresses a fundamental unfairness in current bankruptcy law that affects veterans receiving disability benefits. Although Social Security benefits are not treated as income for purposes of the Bankruptcy Code's means test, veterans' disability benefits do constitute income under this test, even though, much like Social Security, these benefits are a lifeline to many of its recipients and are otherwise protected from seizure by creditors. By counting such benefits as income, many veterans become ineligible for the more immediate discharges available under Chapter 7 and, instead, they are steered into Chapter 13, which requires a debtor to make payments to creditors pursuant to a 3- to 5-year plan before he or she can receive a discharge. H.R. 2938 corrects this obvious inequity. It would treat certain veterans' disability benefits paid by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense the same as Social Security payments under the Bankruptcy Code's means test. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. CLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I speak in support of the bill, and I want to thank the gentleman from Rhode Island for his leadership on this issue. We should all honor and support America's veterans and their families. The HAVEN Act does that by making sure disability and death benefits received by veterans and their families receive special protection during the difficult process of bankruptcy. I also want to thank the gentlewoman from Georgia for her leadership on this issue. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Mrs. McBath), the author of the legislation. Mrs. McBATH. Mr. Speaker, I am so pleased to bring the HAVEN Act to a vote on the House floor today; and I thank Chairman Nadler, our subcommittee chair; Mr. Cicilline, my Republican cosponsor; Mr. Steube, and all the cosponsors who supported the expeditious passage of this bill. I want to thank the veterans and the advocates for putting their support behind this legislation as well. I introduced the HAVEN Act to support veterans facing significant financial hardship. No one wants to turn to bankruptcy. It is a path toward debt relief that carries serious financial consequences. But it is an important option for those with the most serious financial circumstances, and we must make sure our bankruptcy system is serving our veterans. These servicemembers deserve an opportunity to get back on their feet with dignity. Mr. CLINE. Mr. Speaker, I would simply state that the HAVEN Act makes the Bankruptcy Code work better and more fairly for our Nation's veterans and those who depend on them; so I encourage my colleagues to support the bill. I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to pass the HAVEN Act, and I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2938, as amended. The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________
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