{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/young-joins-colleagues-in-reintroducing-legislation-to-protect-veterans-from-predatory-practices/", "Young Joins Colleagues In Reintroducing Legislation To Protect Veterans From Predatory Practices", "2021-08-09", "2021", "2021-08", "Republican", "Senate", "IN", "Todd Young", "Y000064", "www.young.senate.gov", "toddyoung", "https://www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2014 U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), and Roy Blunt (R-MO) reintroduced the Protect Our Disabled Heroes Act of 2021, a bill to protect our nation\u2019s disabled veterans from unethical and unfair practices when applying for Veterans Administration (VA) disability claims. Specifically, it would protect disabled veterans from unethical fees charged by third party organizations in preparing and executing veterans\u2019 disability claims. The bill would also impose criminal penalties for individuals who charge veterans unauthorized fees.\n\nSince the creation of the VA, numerous independent Veteran Service Organizations have assisted veterans in filing disability claims free of charge. Currently, there are individuals that intentionally take advantage of veterans who may be unaware of the free services available to them.\n\n\u201cCharging unfair fees to take advantage of disabled veterans is truly appalling,\u201d said Senator Young. \u201cAs a Marine, I\u2019m proud to reintroduce this bill, which would reinstate criminal penalties for these unethical, immoral acts and protect our disabled veterans. We must do all we can to protect those who have already sacrificed so much.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s appalling that bad actors take advantage of our brave veterans trying to secure disability benefits,\u201d said Senator Rubio. \u201cWe should do everything possible to protect our veterans against predatory practices. They served our nation honorably and they deserve better. It\u2019s time to hold these bad actors accountable.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe men and women who have honorably served our nation have made incredible sacrifices,\u201d said Senator Rick Scott. \u201cWe owe them nothing less than our finest service and care in return. This bill protects our heroes and holds any bad actors accountable for trying to take advantage of disabled veterans seeking support. I\u2019ll never stop fighting to make sure our veterans have every resource they need and I urge my colleagues to join in supporting this good bill.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:11:17Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/young-joins-colleagues-in-reintroducing-legislation-to-protect-veterans-from-predatory-practices/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3376709539443254, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}