WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, Senator John Kennedy introduced the Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act, which prevents veterans from losing their Second Amendment right to purchase or own firearms when they receive help managing their Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits.
“Every veteran who bravely serves our country has earned VA benefits, and it’s wrong for the government to punish veterans who get a helping hand to manage those benefits. Veterans who sacrificed to defend our Constitution shouldn’t see their own rights rest on the judgment of unelected bureaucrats—but right now, they do. The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act will prevent government workers from unduly stripping veterans of their right to bear arms,” said Kennedy.
Under current law, the VA is required to send a beneficiary’s name to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) whenever a fiduciary is appointed to help a beneficiary manage his or her VA benefits.
Ultimately, VA employees decide whether veterans receive help from a fiduciary. Hundreds of thousands of veterans have been denied their right to purchase or own firearms as a result of this unilateral process.
Kennedy’s bill would prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from transmitting a veteran’s personal information to NICS unless a relevant judicial authority rules that the beneficiary is a danger to himself or others.
