United States · Bill · HR
H.R. 1954 (115th)
Servicemembers and Veterans Empowerment and Support Act of 2017
Introduced
5 April 2017
Last action
24 April 2017 · Referred
Status
Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.
Sponsors
Rep. Pingree, Chellie [D-ME-1], Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3], Rep. Tsongas, Niki [D-MA-3], Rep. Brownley, Julia [D-CA-26], Rep. Titus, Dina [D-NV-1], Rep. Rush, Bobby L. [D-IL-1], Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39], Rep. Esty, Elizabeth H. [D-CT-5], Rep. Peters, Scott H. [D-CA-50], Del. Sablan, Gregorio Kilili Camacho [D-MP-At Large], Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2], Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4], Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [D-FL-24], Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large], Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ], Rep. Poliquin, Bruce [R-ME-2], Rep. Dingell, Debbie [D-MI-6]
Subjects
Defence
Source updated
5 December 2025
Summary
Servicemembers and Veterans Empowerment and Support Act of 2017 This bill expands Department of Defense (DOD) sexual trauma counseling and treatment to include: (1) cyber harassment of a sexual nature, and (2) members of the Armed Forces on active duty for training or inactive duty training. The bill sets forth the standard of proof, which may be rebutted, in the case of a veteran who claims that a covered mental health condition was incurred in or aggravated by military sexual trauma during active service. The reasons for granting or denying service-connection in each case shall be recorded in full. DOD shall ensure that: (1) in a compensation claim for post-traumatic stress disorder based on sexual assault, battery, cyber harassment, or harassment experienced during active military service, non-DOD evidence may corroborate the veteran's account of such assault, battery, or harassment; and (2) behavior changes may be considered as corroborating evidence. DOD shall: (1) report annually through 2027 on submitted claims to identify and track the consistency of decisions across regional offices, (2) inform members of the Armed Forces of their eligibility for services at Vet Centers, and (3) ensure that Sexual Assault Response Coordinators advise members of the Armed Forces who report instances of military sexual trauma about their eligibility for Vet Center services.
This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.
Timeline
5 April 2017
Introduced
Introduced in House
Source: IntroReferral
5 April 2017
Introduced
Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Source: IntroReferral
5 April 2017
Introduced
Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Source: IntroReferral
5 April 2017
Introduced
Introduced in House
Source: IntroReferral
6 April 2017
Referred
Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
Source: Committee
24 April 2017
Referred
Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.
Source: Committee
Votes
No vote records are attached yet.
Versions
- Introduced in House · 5 April 2017 · Download file
Documents
3 official files
Introduced in House (text)
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Introduced in House (text)
Introduced in House · EN · 5 April 2017
Introduced in House (PDF)
Introduced in House · EN · 5 April 2017
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Introduced in House
summary · EN · 5 April 2017
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Sponsors
- Rep. Pingree, Chellie [D-ME-1] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Tsongas, Niki [D-MA-3] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Brownley, Julia [D-CA-26] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Titus, Dina [D-NV-1] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Rush, Bobby L. [D-IL-1] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Esty, Elizabeth H. [D-CT-5] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. Peters, Scott H. [D-CA-50] · D · Sponsor
- Del. Sablan, Gregorio Kilili Camacho [D-MP-At Large] · D · Sponsor
- Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2] · D · Cosponsor
- Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4] · D · Cosponsor
- Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [D-FL-24] · D · Cosponsor
- Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large] · D · Cosponsor
- Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] · D · Cosponsor
- Rep. Poliquin, Bruce [R-ME-2] · R · Cosponsor
- Rep. Dingell, Debbie [D-MI-6] · D · Cosponsor
- · hsas00 · Standing
- · hsvr00 · Standing
Related records
Sources
PoliticalRepo is an index and interpretation layer, not the authoritative legal source.
- Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1954
- Open data entity: https://api.congress.gov/v3/bill/115/hr/1954
- us · 115-hr-1954 · source updated 5 December 2025