Why It Matters
The Board of Veterans' Appeals ended fiscal 2024 with 200,805 appeals pending, and all three dockets ran past goals, according to a new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report.
The board is the highest level of appellate review within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Legislators have introduced bills in recent Congresses that would add procedural requirements to that process. Congress may wish to weigh how those requirements affect the board's ability to conclude appeals efficiently.
The Big Picture
CRS calls the board's caseload and backlog "a perennial issue for Congress." In fiscal 2024 the board rendered 116,192 decisions and received 108,842 new cases.
Average completion times for fiscal 2024 exceeded the board's stated goals on each docket, CRS reports:
- Direct review: 937 days, against a goal of one year.
- New evidence: 1,028 days, against a goal of 550 days.
- Hearing: 1,091 days, against a goal of 730 days.
The report describes the process under the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017, which Congress enacted to "expedite VA's appeals process while protecting veterans' due process rights." The system took effect Feb. 19, 2019, and the board is still closing out appeals under the older legacy system.
A claimant dissatisfied with a VA regional office or medical center decision may request higher-level review, file a supplemental claim or appeal to the board. To elect board review, the claimant files a notice of disagreement within one year of that decision. The claimant then picks the direct review, new evidence or hearing docket.
Veterans Law Judges decide the appeals. Their number rose from 92 at the end of fiscal 2018 to 132 at the end of fiscal 2024 in an effort to address the backlog.
Claimants who disagree with a board decision may file a supplemental claim or seek review at the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, which has exclusive jurisdiction over final board decisions. Only claimants may appeal to that court, so VA cannot.
CRS says legislators in recent Congresses have introduced bills that would:
- Let claimants submit additional evidence after court remands.
- Require VA's Inspector General to report on the backlog.
- Require more information in decision notices.
- Allow the board to aggregate appeals that raise substantially similar questions of law or fact.
The Bottom Line
No vote, markup or deadline is attached to these proposals in the sources.
The board continues to close out legacy appeals while it handles appeals filed under the 2017 law.
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