Empowering States to Serve Veterans Act

This bill would require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to share basic contact information for veterans with the veterans agency of the state where they reside, at least quarterly, so those state agencies can conduct outreach and statistical work. It excludes sensitive data such as protected health information, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and financial, disability, appeal, or claims information. Veterans must receive advance notice and can opt out at any time through an online form or toll-free phone line; if they opt out, the VA must stop sharing their information and any state agency holding it must destroy it.

The bill primarily affects veterans, who gain a notice-and-opt-out right over this data sharing, and state veterans agencies, which would receive the information but are restricted to using it only for authorized outreach and statistical purposes — they cannot sell, transfer, or publish it, and must meet federal-standard data security requirements verified by the VA before receiving any data. The Secretary must also issue implementing regulations within 180 days of enactment.

The bill was introduced in the Senate on August 6, 2026, by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), with Sens. Blumenthal and Rosen as cosponsors, and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. It would need to pass committee, the full Senate, the House, and be signed into law before taking effect; the core sharing provisions would not take effect until one year after enactment.

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