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CIVIC HERALD
HR 3123 · 119th Congress · HouseIn committee

Ernest Peltz Accrued Veterans Benefits Act

Provisional: our plain-language summary, pending review.

In plain language: This bill ensures that if the Department of Veterans Affairs approves a veteran's pension but the veteran dies before the check is issued, the money is still paid out to their surviving family. The unpaid benefits go first to a surviving spouse, then to any surviving children, dependent parents, or the veteran's estate. The legislation also extends an existing cap on monthly pension payments for certain veterans receiving Medicaid-funded nursing home care through February 2033.

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Provisionalunreviewed: impact, issue tags, provisions, stakeholders, summary
People affected—Not determinable from the text provided; applies only to qualifying deceased veterans with pending pension payments and their eligible heirs or estates.
Fiscal magnitude—Not determinable from the text provided; the bill specifies no appropriation or revenue totals, only extending an existing statutory payment cap for one month.
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provisional · pending review18rigor: heuristic llm
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Issues

What this bill touches.

Spending vs. restraintWelfare & anti-poverty+24

The sign shows the bill's direction on each issue (+ toward, − away); the number is its magnitude. Color never encodes good or bad, and never party.

Who it affects

Who it helps · who it burdens.

Provisional: our reading of who it affects, pending review.

Who it helps

  • Surviving family members of deceased veteransUnder Section 2(a), surviving spouses, children, and dependent parents are entitled to receive a deceased veteran's unpaid pension payments that were awarded before death but paid afterward.provisional
  • Estates of deceased veteransUnder Section 2(a), a deceased veteran's estate receives unpaid pension funds awarded before death if there are no living eligible family members or if no relative applies within one year of the death (unless the estate escheats).provisional

Who it burdens

  • Veterans in Medicaid-covered nursing homesUnder Section 3, the $90 monthly limit on Department of Veterans Affairs pension payments for certain veterans receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care is extended for an additional month, through February 28, 2033.provisional
  • Department of Veterans AffairsUnder Section 2(a), the Department of Veterans Affairs is required to route and disburse accrued pension payments to specified surviving family members or the veteran's estate when pension awards are paid post-mortem.provisional

Dollar-level funding (FEC sector totals) is coming in a later phase.

What it does

The provisions, in plain language.

Provisional: our reading of what the bill does, pending review.

  1. Requires the Department of Veterans Affairs, when a veteran is awarded a pension before dying but payment is issued after their death, to pay the unpaid money to the veteran's living spouse, children, dependent parents, or estate, in that order, for deaths on or after enactment.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  2. Directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to pay a deceased veteran's unpaid pension directly to their estate if no eligible family members apply for the funds within one year of the veteran's death.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  3. Extends through February 28, 2033, the $90 monthly cap on Department of Veterans Affairs pension payments for certain veterans receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care.

    Sec. 3provisional

How your members of Congress line up

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The record

How members voted on Ernest Peltz Accrued Veterans Benefits Act.

Recorded roll calls on this bill, most recent first. Open one to see each member's position.

  • House · Feb 2, 2026 · 2/3 YEA-AND-NAY

    On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass, as Amended · Passed

    Source →

Timeline

How it moved.

Show all 18 actions
  1. Feb 3, 2026Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  2. Feb 2, 2026Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  3. Feb 2, 2026On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 405 - 1 (Roll no. 50). (text: CR H1930-1931)
  4. Feb 2, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 405 - 1 (Roll no. 50). (text: CR H1930-1931)
  5. Feb 2, 2026Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H1937-1938)
  6. Feb 2, 2026At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
  7. Feb 2, 2026DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 3123.
  8. Feb 2, 2026Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H1930-1932)
  9. Feb 2, 2026Mr. Bost moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
  10. Oct 8, 2025Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 291.
  11. Oct 8, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. H. Rept. 119-339.
  12. Jul 23, 2025Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
  13. Jul 23, 2025Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
  14. Jul 23, 2025Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Discharged
  15. Jun 24, 2025Subcommittee Hearings Held
  16. May 15, 2025Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
  17. Apr 30, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  18. Apr 30, 2025Introduced in House
  1. Feb 3, 2026Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  2. Feb 2, 2026Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  3. Feb 2, 2026On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 405 - 1 (Roll no. 50). (text: CR H1930-1931)
  4. Feb 2, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 405 - 1 (Roll no. 50). (text: CR H1930-1931)
  5. Oct 8, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. H. Rept. 119-339.
  6. Jul 23, 2025Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
  7. Apr 30, 2025Introduced in House

The original text

Read it for yourself.

Read the original text →

Sources & provenance

Congress.govrefreshed 4 months ago

Cite this page

Civic Herald. “Ernest Peltz Accrued Veterans Benefits Act (H.R. 3123, 119th Congress).” https://civicherald.app/bills/119-hr-3123. Congress.gov record as of Jul 13, 2026.

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