ICYMI: In Light of Recent Findings that Many Veterans Were Defrauded of G.I. Benefits, Shaheen Leads Bipartisan Call for Enhanced Investigation, Greater Coordination Between Departments of Justice and Veterans Affairs

**In separate letters to the Departments of Justice and Veterans Affairs, the bipartisan group of Senators encourage an enhanced response from the Administration to vigorously prosecute fraud against veterans** (Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), John Cornyn (R-TX) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) sent a pair of letters calling on the Departments of Justice and Veterans Affairs to enhance their response to recent reporting finding that many veterans were defrauded of their GI Bill benefits by “slapdash” trade schools and education institutions in Texas, California, New Hampshire, Georgia and Florida. Shaheen, Hassan and Cornyn penned a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins and Veterans Administration (VA) Inspector General (IG) Cheryl Mason encouraging the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to launch an enhanced investigation into all unaccredited trade schools where veterans are enrolled to ensure the programs meet all applicable requirements. The bipartisan trio also urged the VA to review its processes for accepting and assessing complaints from students and whistleblowers on potentially fraudulent activity and increase funding and personnel for investigating these cases. The Senators also asked the VA to coordinate with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to refer fraud cases for prosecution. In a separate letter to U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Senators call on DOJ to strengthen how it investigates, prosecutes and penalizes G.I. Bill fraud and improve coordination with federal, state and local partners to better protect veterans from fraud and abuse. It also calls on DOJ to evaluate its coordination with VA to better target fraud and abuse. In their letter to the VA, the Senators wrote, in part: “In all, the Washington Post found more than $300 million in fraud at 20 schools that were bilking our veterans. Much of the fraud should have been obvious at first glance. Schools offering courses that cost thousands of dollars but last less than a week should have caused red flags to go up at VA. Moreover, the article raises questions about how the Department processes and refers veterans’ complaints. While these losses to fraud may only represent a small percentage of the VA’s education budget, any loss of funds and adverse impacts to veterans must be swiftly addressed.” The Senators concluded: “VA has repeatedly said that fraud against veterans is one of its top priorities. It is imperative that we understand how these institutions are allowed to operate and make millions despite multiple oversight measures. Consequently, we call on VA OIG to launch an enhanced investigation into all unaccredited trade schools where veterans are enrolled to ensure the programs meet all applicable requirements. Once any warning sign is identified, VA must act more quickly to disapprove these fraudulent programs from GI Bill eligibility. We also urge the Department and VA OIG to review their processes for accepting and assessing complaints from students and whistleblowers on potentially fraudulent activity and increase funding and personnel for investigating these cases. Finally, we ask that the VA and OIG coordinate with the U.S. Department of Justice and, if appropriate, state attorneys general, to refer more of these cases for prosecution.” Click HERE to view the full letter to Secretary Collins and Inspector General Mason. In their letter to the DOJ, the Senators wrote, in part: “In a number of these cases, federal prosecutors failed to press charges, reached settlements for a fraction of the school’s ill-gotten gains or recommended more lenient sentences than even the judge ultimately felt were correct. [...] Fraud against our veterans must be prosecuted vigorously. The Washington Post documented how light the punishment was for the trade schools who charged exorbitant rates for very little education or training. In one case, the settlement that Department of Justice prosecutors struck was rejected by the judge because it was too lenient.” The Senators concluded: “We urge the Department to reexamine the procedures for U.S. Attorneys to investigate and prosecute alleged G.I. Bill fraud, especially the criteria for settling cases that result in fines constituting a fraction of the overall fraud. We also call on the Department to reconsider how it cooperates with the Department of Veterans Affairs and state educational and law enforcement agencies to better target fraud and abuse of our veterans and the G.I. Bill program.” Click HERE to view the full letter to Attorney General Blanche. ###