Vets Connect Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 7176 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7176 To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a secure database and messaging platform to enable veterans to reconnect with other veterans with whom they served, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 21, 2026 Mr. Edwards (for himself and Ms. Budzinski) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a secure database and messaging platform to enable veterans to reconnect with other veterans with whom they served, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Vets Connect Act''. SEC. 2. VETS CONNECT SECURE DATABASE AND MESSAGING PLATFORM. (a) Establishment of Secure Database and Messaging Platform.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall establish and maintain a secure, privacy-preserving database and messaging platform (in this section referred to as the ``Vets Connect System'') for the purpose of enabling veterans to reconnect with other veterans with whom they served, without disclosing personal contact information such as phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses, or social media identifiers unless expressly authorized by the veteran. (b) Content of System.--The Secretary shall ensure that the Vets Connect System includes only the minimum information necessary to facilitate service-based matching between veterans, including-- (1) service-connection information, such as branch of service, units,