NCD letter to Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs

June 23, 2026

The Honorable Jerry Moran, Chairman
U.S. Senate
Committee on Veterans Affairs
412 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

The Honorable Richard Blumenthal, Ranking Member
U.S. Senate
Committee on Veterans Affairs
412 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

Dear Honorable Chairman Moran and Ranking Member Blumenthal:

I am writing as Acting Chairman of the National Council on Disability (NCD) – an independent, bipartisan federal agency that advises Congress, the President, and other federal agencies on matters affecting the lives of people with disabilities – to provide NCD’s advisement in advance of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee’s potential consideration of the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act (H.R. 1041 / S. 478). Our advice is based on comprehensive and objective research and analyses.

For nearly a decade, NCD has consistently cautioned lawmakers against implementing any policy that reinforces a social stigma about those who, due to their disabilities, need a benefits counselor, financial advisor, or representative payee to assist with managing their finances. In January 2017, NCD advised the Senate and House leadership to overturn the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) December 2016 final rule implementing provisions of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, 81 FR 91702, which required SSA to report information about disability beneficiaries to the NICS, stating:

[t]here is, simply put, no nexus between the inability to manage money and the ability to safely and responsibly own, possess or use a firearm. This arbitrary linkage not only unnecessarily and unreasonably deprives individuals with disabilities of a constitutional right, it increases the stigma for those who, due to their disabilities, may need a representative payee[.] ¹

Unlike the SSA’s 2016 final rule with which NCD expressed concern, the Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act (H.R. 1041 / S. 478) is consistent with NCD’s past advisement and will protect veterans against the broader social stigma that could result in the denial of their constitutional right guaranteed under the Second Amendment. Specifically, it prohibits the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from sending personally identifying information of a veteran or a beneficiary that has been appointed a fiduciary to be listed in the Department of Justice’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), a database that instantly verifies if a buyer is legally prohibited from purchasing or possessing firearms, unless there is an order or finding of a judicial authority that such veteran or beneficiary is a danger to themselves or others. This bill would also prohibit the VA from determining that an individual should be subject to legal restrictions on firearm possession solely because the VA determined that the veteran is not competent to manage their finances.

NCD has no position on gun ownership or gun control other than its long-held position that disability-related restrictions must be based on a verifiable concern as to whether the individual poses a heightened risk of danger to themselves or others if they are in possession of a weapon. Further, it is critically important that any restriction on gun possession or ownership on this basis is imposed only after the individual has been afforded due process and given an opportunity to respond to allegations that they are not able to safely possess or own a firearm due to his or her disability.

The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act protects people with disabilities against baseless social stigma resulting from the VA’s determination that certain veterans and VA beneficiaries are unable to manage their VA benefits and require a fiduciary. It ensures they are given the same constitutional due process rights as other civilians who must be found to be a danger to themselves or others by a judge before their information can be sent to NICS. These bill features are consistent with NCD’s prior advisement. Please contact NCD’s Director of Legislative Affairs and Outreach, Anne Sommers McIntosh, amcintosh@ncd.gov, who will be glad to address any questions or a request for follow-up.

Respectfully,

Neil Romano
Acting Chairman

Cc: Members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee