CS/HB 277 2025
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to veterans' benefits assistance; 2
creating s. 501.9741, F.S.; providing definitions; 3
prohibiting a person from receiving compensation for 4
referring an individual to another person for 5
advising, assisting, or consulting on veterans' 6
benefits matters; authorizing compensation for 7
services rendered during a specified period only under 8
certain circumstances; requiring that, before such 9
services are rendered, a written agreement, which must 10
include specified information, be signed by both 11
parties; requiring that persons who advise, assist, or 12
consult on veterans' benefits matters for compensation 13
provide a specified oral and written disclosure before 14
entering into a business relationship with a client; 15
prohibiting a provider who advises, assists, or 16
consults on veterans' benefits matters from charging 17
certain fees; prohibiting the charging of interest on 18
payment plans; providing requirements in the event of 19
the death of a veteran claimant; prohibiting certain 20
guarantees; providing security requirem ents for the 21
handling of a veteran's personal and account 22
information; requiring a provider to successfully 23
complete a specified background screening before 24
entering into an agreement with a veteran for 25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
veterans' benefits matters; requiring a provider to 26
provide copies of certain documents to the veteran and 27
maintain a copy of such documents pursuant to 28
specified provisions; prohibiting a person who 29
provides services from receiving compensation before 30
the resolution of a certain complaint if the 31
individual receiving services files such a complaint; 32
providing that a violation is a deceptive and unfair 33
trade practice which may be subject to specified 34
penalties; providing construction; providing an 35
effective date. 36
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the St ate of Florida: 38
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Section 1. Section 501.9741, Florida Statutes, is created 40
to read: 41
501.9741 Assisting in veterans' benefits matters. — 42
(1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 43
(a) "Compensation" means payment of any money, thing of 44
value, or economic benefit conferred on or received by a person 45
in return for services rendered or to be rendered. 46
(b) "Provider" means an entity or individual assisting 47
veterans with veterans' benefits matters. 48
(c) "Veteran" has the same meaning as in s. 1.01(14) and 49
includes eligible peacetime service as defined in s. 296.02. 50
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(d) "Veterans' benefits matter" means the preparation, 51
presentation, or prosecution of a veteran's claim, or a claim by 52
the veteran's spouse, dependent child, or any other individ ual 53
eligible for any benefit, program, service, commodity, function, 54
status, or entitlement under the laws and regulations 55
administered by the Department of Veterans' Affairs or the 56
United States Department of Veterans Affairs. 57
(2) LIMITS ON COMPENSATION ; TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT; WRITTEN 58
DISCLOSURE.— 59
(a) A person may not receive compensation for referring an 60
individual to a provider who will advise, assist, or consult 61
with the individual regarding any veterans' benefits matter. 62
(b) A provider may receive compensation for services 63
rendered in connection with a claim filed within the 1 -year 64
presumptive period after active -duty release as determined by 65
the United States Department of Veterans Affairs only if the 66
veteran acknowledges, by signing a waiver, that he or she is 67
within the presumptive period and is choosing to deny the free 68
services available to him or her. 69
(c) A provider seeking compensation for advising, 70
assisting, or consulting with an individual regarding any 71
veterans' benefits matter must, bef ore rendering services, enter 72
into a written agreement, signed by both parties, which: 73
1. Memorializes the specific terms under which the 74
compensation will be determined; and 75
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2. Provides that compensation for such services is 76
contingent upon securing an increase in benefits awarded as a 77
direct result of such services . Any such compensation may not 78
exceed the lesser of five times the amount of the monthly 79
increase in benefits a warded based on the claim or $12,500, and 80
must be paid out according to the specific terms agreed to by 81
both parties in accordance with subparagraph 1. 82
(d)1. A provider who advises, assists, or consults on 83
veterans' benefits matters for compensation shal l provide the 84
following disclosure , both orally and in writing, before 85
entering into a business relationship with an individual: 86
87
"This business is not sponsored by or affiliated with 88
the Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs, the 89
United States Departmen t of Veterans Affairs, or any 90
other federally chartered veterans' service 91
organization. Other organizations, including, but not 92
limited to, the Florida Department of Veterans' 93
Affairs, a local veterans' service organization, and 94
other federally chartered v eterans' service 95
organizations, may be able to provide you with this 96
service free of charge. Products or services offered 97
by this business are not necessarily endorsed by any 98
of these organizations. You may qualify for other 99
veterans' benefits beyond the b enefits for which you 100
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are receiving services here." 101
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2. The written disclosure must appear in a font size of at 103
least 12 points in an easily identifiable place in the 104
provider's agreement with the individual seeking services and 105
must be signed by the ind ividual to signify that he or she 106
understands the oral and written disclosure's provisions. The 107
provider must retain a copy of the written disclosure while 108
providing veterans' benefits services to the individual for 109
compensation and for at least 6 years after the date on which 110
the service relations terminate. 111
(e) A provider who advises, assists, or consults on a 112
veterans' benefits matter may not charge an initial or 113
nonrefundable fee. Any charge for interest on any payment plan 114
agreed to by the parties is prohibited. 115
(3) DEATH OF VETERAN CLAIMANT. —If a veteran claimant dies 116
before a claim is processed: 117
(a) Any expected compensation must be waived and a charge, 118
fee, or debt may not be collected; and 119
(b) Any payment plan for services rendered must be 120
terminated immediately. 121
(4) PROHIBITIONS.— 122
(a) A provider may not guarantee, either directly or by 123
implication, a successful outcome or that an individual is 124
certain to receive specific veterans' benefits or a specific 125
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level, percentage, or amount of ve terans' benefits. 126
(b) A provider who advises, assists, or consults on 127
veterans' benefits matters for compensation: 128
1. May not use an international call center or data center 129
to process a veteran's personal information. 130
2. May not use a veteran's personal log-in, username, or 131
password information to access that veteran's medical, 132
financial, or government benefits information. 133
(5) BACKGROUND SCREENING. —A provider must successfully 134
complete a level 2 background screening as described in s. 135
435.04 before entering into any agreement with a veteran for 136
veterans' benefits matters. 137
(6) DOCUMENTATION.—A provider must provide copies of all 138
fully executed documents required by subsection (2) to the 139
veteran being assisted in the veterans' benefits matters and 140
maintain a copy of all fully executed documents for 6 years. 141
(7) COMPLAINT.—If an individual to whom a provider 142
provides services under this section in return for compensation 143
files a complaint with the Consumer Protection Division of the 144
Office of the Attorney General, the provider may not receive 145
compensation for any services provided to such an individual 146
before the resolution of the complaint. 147
(8) PENALTIES.—A violation of this section constitutes a 148
violation of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices 149
Act under part II of this chapter. Violators may be subject to 150
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penalties provided in that part, including s. 501.2077 for 151
violations against a military servicemember or his or her spouse 152
or dependent child. 153
(9) CONSTRUCTION.—This section may not be construed as 154
applying to, limiting, or expanding the requirements imposed on 155
agents or employees of the Department of Veterans' Affairs or 156
agents or attorneys accredited by the United States Department 157
of Veterans Affairs and regulated by that a gency. 158
Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 159