The Department of Veterans Affairs is making a major change in its policies towards veterans who've had a fiduciary appointed to help manage their benefits. For decades, having a fiduciary meant that the veteran was reported to the FBI's National Instant Check System as a prohibited person because the VA saw that as being adjudicated as mentally defective.
On Tuesday, VA Secretary Doug Collins announced that will no longer be the case.
This corrects a three-decade-old wrong that deprived many thousands of Veterans in VA’s Fiduciary Program of their constitutional right to own a firearm without a legal basis.
After a thorough review, VA recognized that many Veterans had been deprived of their Second Amendment rights without hearings or adequate determinations that they posed a sufficient risk of danger to themselves or others. In consultation with the Department of Justice, VA has determined this practice violates both the Gun Control Act and Veterans’ Second Amendment rights. According to federal law, a decision by a judicial or quasi-judicial body is needed before someone can be reported to NICS.
A determination by the VA that a fiduciary is needed to help manage a Veteran’s VA benefits falls far short of this legal standard.
In addition to immediately stopping the reporting of VA Fiduciary Program participants to NICS, the department is working with the FBI to remove all past VA reporting from NICS, so no Veterans are unfairly deprived of their Second Amendment rights based solely on participation in VA’s Fiduciary Program.
Collins says the new policy takes effect immediately, which should be of huge peace of mind to many veterans and their families.
Of course, the gun control lobby isn't cheering the move. Everytown for Gun Safety, for instance, claimed on Bluesky that the Trump administration "just made it easier for veterans in mental health crisis to get their hands on guns in the middle of a veteran suicide epidemic."
If the gun control group were truly concerned about veterans' mental health, they'd be pushing to increase funding for mental health resources for veterans. They'd be donating money to the VA"s suicide prevention efforts, which include a $1 million grant to the developers of the Sentinel app, who include Second Amendment advocates.
Instead, Everytown says it's "vital to protect against veteran suicide by promoting secure firearm storage in and outside the home, utilizing Extreme Risk laws, raising awareness of firearm risks, addressing upstream factors, and ensuring timely data collection."
Red-flagging every veteran who reaches out for help is a good way to keep veterans from asking for help, whether its to a trusted friend, family, or mental health professional.
Besides, the VA's move doesn't mean that those in crisis can't be adjudicated as mentally defective if they truly do pose a threat to themselves or others. It simply means that having someone appointed to help manage benefits or financial affairs doesn't automatically strip a vet of their right ot keep and bear arms.
“Many Americans struggle with managing their finances, and Veterans’ Second Amendment rights shouldn’t be stripped just because they need help in this area. But for too long, Veterans who needed the services of a VA fiduciary were deprived of their right to bear arms,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins. “Under the leadership of President Trump, we’re correcting this injustice and ensuring Veterans get the same due-process and constitutional rights as all Americans.”
The Department of Justice supports this action.
“It is both unlawful and unacceptable for Veterans who serve our country to have their constitutional rights threatened,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “It has been my pleasure to partner with Secretary Collins on this project, and I am directing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms to review its regulations and propose changes that will prevent current and future violations of our Veterans’ Second Amendment rights.”
Editor’s Note: President Trump and Republicans in most states across the country are doing everything they can to protect our Second Amendment rights and right to self-defense.
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