| 1 | 1 | | 2025 |
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| 2 | 2 | | STATE OF WYOMING |
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| 3 | 3 | | 25LSO-05811HB0210 |
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| 4 | 4 | | HOUSE BILL NO. HB0210 |
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| 5 | 5 | | Prohibition on unauthorized fees-veterans benefits. |
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| 6 | 6 | | Sponsored by: Representative(s) Knapp, Styvar, Tarver and |
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| 7 | 7 | | Winter and Senator(s) McKeown and Smith, D |
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| 8 | 8 | | A BILL |
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| 9 | 9 | | for |
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| 10 | 10 | | 1 AN ACT relating to trade and commerce; prohibiting |
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| 11 | 11 | | 2 compensation for advising or assisting a person on |
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| 12 | 12 | | 3 veterans' benefits matters except as permitted under |
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| 13 | 13 | | 4 federal law; providing limitations; providing definitions; |
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| 14 | 14 | | 5 providing for enforcement and penalties; specifying |
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| 15 | 15 | | 6 applicability; and providing for an effective date. |
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| 16 | 16 | | 7 |
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| 17 | 17 | | 8 |
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| 18 | 18 | | 9 |
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| 19 | 19 | | 10. W.S. 40-12-801 is created to read: |
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| 20 | 20 | | 11 |
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| 21 | 21 | | 12 ARTICLE 8 |
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| 22 | 22 | | 13 ADVISING OR ASSISTING ON VETERANS' BENEFITS |
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| 23 | 23 | | 14 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05812HB02101 |
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| 24 | 24 | | 2 |
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| 25 | 25 | | 3 |
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| 26 | 26 | | 4 |
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| 27 | 27 | | 5 (a) As used in this section: |
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| 28 | 28 | | 6 |
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| 29 | 29 | | 7 (i) "Veterans' benefits matter" means the |
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| 30 | 30 | | 8 preparation, presentation or prosecution of any claim |
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| 31 | 31 | | 9 affecting any person who has filed or expressed an intent |
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| 32 | 32 | | 10 to file a claim for any state or federal benefit, program, |
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| 33 | 33 | | 11 service, commodity, function or status, entitlement that is |
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| 34 | 34 | | 12 determined under the laws and regulations administered by |
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| 35 | 35 | | 13 the United States department of veterans affairs or the |
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| 36 | 36 | | 14 Wyoming military department pertaining to veterans, their |
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| 37 | 37 | | 15 dependents, their survivors and any other person eligible |
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| 38 | 38 | | 16 for the benefits; |
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| 39 | 39 | | 17 |
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| 40 | 40 | | 18 (ii) "Compensation" means the payment of any |
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| 41 | 41 | | 19 money, thing of value or financial benefit. |
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| 42 | 42 | | 20 |
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| 43 | 43 | | 21 (b) No person shall receive compensation for: |
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| 44 | 44 | | 22 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05813HB02101 (i) Advising or assisting any person with regard |
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| 45 | 45 | | 2 to any veterans' benefits matter, except as permitted under |
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| 46 | 46 | | 3 federal law and as provided by this section; |
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| 47 | 47 | | 4 |
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| 48 | 48 | | 5 (ii) Referring any person to another person to |
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| 49 | 49 | | 6 advise or assist the person with any veterans' benefits |
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| 50 | 50 | | 7 matter. |
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| 51 | 51 | | 8 |
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| 52 | 52 | | 9 (c) A person seeking to receive compensation for |
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| 53 | 53 | | 10 advising or assisting any person with any veterans' |
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| 54 | 54 | | 11 benefits matter shall, before rendering any advice or |
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| 55 | 55 | | 12 assistance, memorialize all terms regarding the person's |
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| 56 | 56 | | 13 payment of fees for services rendered in a written |
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| 57 | 57 | | 14 agreement, signed by both parties, that adheres to all |
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| 58 | 58 | | 15 criteria specified in 38 C.F.R. § 14.636. |
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| 59 | 59 | | 16 |
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| 60 | 60 | | 17 (d) No person shall receive compensation for any |
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| 61 | 61 | | 18 services rendered before the date on which a notice of |
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| 62 | 62 | | 19 disagreement is filed with respect to the person's case. |
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| 63 | 63 | | 20 |
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| 64 | 64 | | 21 (e) No person shall guarantee, either directly or by |
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| 65 | 65 | | 22 implication, that any person is certain to receive specific 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05814HB0210 |
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| 66 | 66 | | 1 veterans' benefits or a specific level, percentage or |
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| 67 | 67 | | 2 amount of veterans' benefits. |
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| 68 | 68 | | 3 |
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| 69 | 69 | | 4 (f) No person shall receive excessive or unreasonable |
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| 70 | 70 | | 5 fees as compensation for advising or assisting any person |
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| 71 | 71 | | 6 with any federal or state veterans' benefits matter. The |
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| 72 | 72 | | 7 factors specified in 38 C.F.R. § 14.636 shall govern |
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| 73 | 73 | | 8 determinations of whether a fee is excessive or |
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| 74 | 74 | | 9 unreasonable. |
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| 75 | 75 | | 10 |
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| 76 | 76 | | 11 (g) No person shall advise or assist for compensation |
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| 77 | 77 | | 12 any person concerning any veterans' benefits matter without |
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| 78 | 78 | | 13 clearly providing, at the outset of the business |
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| 79 | 79 | | 14 relationship, the following disclosure, both orally and in |
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| 80 | 80 | | 15 writing: |
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| 81 | 81 | | 16 |
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| 82 | 82 | | 17 "This business is not sponsored by, or affiliated |
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| 83 | 83 | | 18 with, the United States Department of Veterans |
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| 84 | 84 | | 19 Affairs, the Wyoming Military Department or any |
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| 85 | 85 | | 20 other federally chartered veterans service |
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| 86 | 86 | | 21 organization. Other organizations, including but |
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| 87 | 87 | | 22 not limited to the Wyoming Military Department, |
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| 88 | 88 | | 23 your local county veterans service agency and 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05815HB02101 other federally chartered veterans' service |
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| 89 | 89 | | 2 organizations, may be able to provide you with |
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| 90 | 90 | | 3 this service free of charge. Products or services |
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| 91 | 91 | | 4 offered by this business are not necessarily |
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| 92 | 92 | | 5 endorsed by any of these organizations. You may |
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| 93 | 93 | | 6 qualify for other veterans' benefits beyond the |
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| 94 | 94 | | 7 benefits for which you are receiving services |
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| 95 | 95 | | 8 here." |
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| 96 | 96 | | 9 |
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| 97 | 97 | | 10 The written disclosure shall appear in not less than twelve |
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| 98 | 98 | | 11 (12) point font and shall appear in a readily noticeable |
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| 99 | 99 | | 12 and identifiable place in the person's agreement with the |
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| 100 | 100 | | 13 person seeking services. The person shall verbally |
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| 101 | 101 | | 14 acknowledge understanding and receipt of the oral |
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| 102 | 102 | | 15 disclosure and shall sign the document in which the written |
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| 103 | 103 | | 16 disclosure appears, to represent understanding of the |
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| 104 | 104 | | 17 disclosure. The person offering services shall retain a |
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| 105 | 105 | | 18 copy of the written disclosure while providing veterans' |
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| 106 | 106 | | 19 benefits services for compensation to the person and for at |
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| 107 | 107 | | 20 least one (1) year after the date on which the service |
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| 108 | 108 | | 21 relationship terminates. |
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| 109 | 109 | | 22 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05816HB02101 (h) No person shall advertise for compensation |
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| 110 | 110 | | 2 services in any veterans' benefits matters without |
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| 111 | 111 | | 3 including the disclosure outlined in subsection (g) of this |
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| 112 | 112 | | 4 section. If the advertisement is printed, including but not |
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| 113 | 113 | | 5 limited to advertisements visible to internet users, the |
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| 114 | 114 | | 6 disclosure shall appear in a readily visible place on the |
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| 115 | 115 | | 7 advertisement. If the advertisement is verbal, the |
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| 116 | 116 | | 8 disclosure shall be spoken as part of the advertisement in |
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| 117 | 117 | | 9 the first instance. |
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| 118 | 118 | | 10 |
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| 119 | 119 | | 11 (j) A person who violates this section commits an |
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| 120 | 120 | | 12 unlawful practice under W.S. 40-12-105. |
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| 121 | 121 | | 13 |
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| 122 | 122 | | 14 |
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| 123 | 123 | | 15 paragraph (xviii) is amended to read: |
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| 124 | 124 | | 16 |
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| 125 | 125 | | 17 |
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| 126 | 126 | | 18 |
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| 127 | 127 | | 19 (a) A person engages in a deceptive trade practice |
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| 128 | 128 | | 20 unlawful under this act when, in the course of his business |
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| 129 | 129 | | 21 and in connection with a consumer transaction, he |
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| 130 | 130 | | 22 knowingly: |
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| 131 | 131 | | 23 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-05817HB02101 |
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| 132 | 132 | | 2 |
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| 133 | 133 | | 3This act shall apply to business |
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| 134 | 134 | | 4 relationships or agreements that concern any veterans' |
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| 135 | 135 | | 5 benefits matter where the business relationship begins on |
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| 136 | 136 | | 6 and after July 1, 2025. Nothing in this act shall be |
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| 137 | 137 | | 7 construed to impair existing agreements, contracts or other |
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| 138 | 138 | | 8 obligations that concern any veterans' benefits matter that |
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| 139 | 139 | | 9 were entered into before July 1, 2025. |
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| 140 | 140 | | 10 |
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| 141 | 141 | | 11This act is effective July 1, 2025 |
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| 142 | 142 | | 12 |
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| 143 | 143 | | 13 (END) |
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