Barrett Introduces Two Bills to Ensure Transparency, Accountability for AI Use at the VA

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) this week introduced the VA Claims AI Accountability Act (H.R. 10418) and the VA AI Transparency Act (H.R. 10417) to ensure veterans get efficient, transparent, quality service and human review for benefit claims when the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) uses artificial intelligence.

"Technology is supposed to be a tool to provide better, faster service. It should never get in the way of the care and benefits veterans earned," Barrett said. "The bills I'm introducing will always put veterans first at the VA by requiring transparency about any AI use and making sure a real person - not just an AI system - reviews every veteran's claim."

Barrett, who chairs the House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization, has been leading efforts in Congress to oversee technological upgrades at the VA to ensure new systems are truly helping VA staff meet veterans' needs. At a recent hearing, he discussed with senior VA officials the need for transparency and human accountability for AI use at the department.

Background

The VA provides a variety of benefits and services to veterans based on disabilities resulting from their military service. The VA Claims AI Accountability Act (H.R. 10418) would:

• Ensure VA employees make all final decisions for approval of disability claims and benefits, including human review of each individual disability condition claimed;
• Require the VA to maintain and continue improving its digital disability claims processing system to make sure it is accurately and efficiently getting veterans the benefits they earned; and
• Strengthen oversight and accountability from Congress and the independent comptroller general.

The VA AI Transparency Act (H.R. 10417) would require the VA to disclose to every veteran any use of AI by the VA, including in claims processing and customer service chats.

Barrett has been a leader in reining in government overreach and increasing transparency and accountability for artificial intelligence technology and data center facilities. He has introduced or co-sponsored the following bills in Congress:

• The Doctors Not AI Act (H.R. 10210)to ensure that artificial intelligence cannot make or dictate health insurance coverage decisions involving medical judgment.
• The Children Harmed by AI Technology (CHAT) Act (H.R. 7218)to require AI chatbots to implement age verification measures to protect minors. The bill requires parental consent for minors using chatbots, bans chatbots from engaging in sexually explicit communications with minors, and requires chatbots to notify a minor's parent if the minor's chat shows signs of suicidal ideation.
• The AI Threat Output and Monitoring Incident Containment Act (H.R. 9965) to test advanced AI systems to prevent risks to nuclear safety.
• The Human Authority over Autonomous Weapons Act (H.R. 9729) to ensure that no autonomous or artificial intelligence-enabled weapon system used by the United States military can carry out an intentionally lethal strike without meaningful human oversight or a human decision-maker in the loop.
• The Protecting Local Control of Data Centers Act (H.R. 10119) to prohibit federal agencies from overriding local land-use, zoning, siting, or permitting authority related to data centers.
• The No Data Center NDAs Act (H.R. 10118) to prohibit members of Congress from signing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) about data centers, including any information about possible locations or how much water or energy a facility is expected to consume.

CLICK HERE to read the VA Claims AI Accountability Act.

CLICK HERE to read the VA AI Transparency Act.