Lethal Means Safe Storage for Veteran Suicide Prevention Act

Where This Stands

Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

Signed

Currently IN_COMMITTEE. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

The Frame

What this does

The bill mandates new annual training requirements for all VA and community care health providers and authorizes $2 million annually through 2030 for the distribution of free firearm storage devices to veterans.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Veterans

Veterans may receive free gun lock boxes or safes and will be the target audience for new public education campaigns.

Veterans Health Administration health care providers

Providers are required to complete annual training on lethal means safety and suicide prevention.

Veterans Community Care Program providers

These providers must complete annual training as a condition of serving in the program.

Veterans service organizations

These organizations are eligible to receive grants and are tasked with coordinating public education campaigns with the VA.

What changed

Current stage: IN_COMMITTEE.

What's next

Floor Vote.

Summary

This bill requires Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care providers to undergo annual training on suicide prevention and . It also establishes a grant program to provide free gun lock boxes and safes to veterans and mandates public education campaigns on safe storage.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the VA track my firearm ownership if I get a free lock box?

No. The bill explicitly prohibits grant recipients from collecting personal information or inquiring about gun ownership, and it does not require veterans to register firearms with the VA.

Who is eligible to receive a free gun lock box or safe?

Veterans who provide proof of status, such as a Department of Defense Form 214, are eligible to receive these items from entities awarded grants under the program.

Does this bill make firearm storage mandatory for veterans?

No. The bill includes a stating that nothing in the act shall be construed to require mandatory firearm storage for participating veterans.

Why It Matters

The bill mandates new annual training requirements for all VA and community care health providers and authorizes $2 million annually through 2030 for the distribution of free firearm storage devices to veterans.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift100% confidence

Mandatory Training Expansion

The bill shifts lethal means safety training from a potential elective or internal policy to a mandatory annual requirement for both internal VA staff and external community care providers.

Veterans Health Administration Veterans Community Care Program

Connected Entities

bill_numberLethal Means Safe Storage for Veteran Suicide Prevention Act“short title of the Act”Map →

organizationVeterans Community Care Program“healthcare providers under this program require training”Map →

othersection 1712A(h)“section of title 38 defining Vet Centers”Map →

dateAugust 1, 2024“date the bill was introduced”Map →

othertitle 38, United States Code“referenced for community care program and veterans service organizations”Map →

personKing“introduced the bill”Map →

organizationASTM International“sets standards for gun lock boxes and safes”Map →

date2030“end fiscal year for appropriations”Map →

date2025“start fiscal year for appropriations”Map →

othersection 922(g)“section of title 18 related to prohibited persons”Map →

dollar_amount$2,000,000“total amount of grants awarded under the grant program”Map →

dollar_amount$100,000“maximum amount an individual grant can be”Map →

otherDepartment of Defense Form 214“method for confirming veteran status”Map →

othersection 5902“section of title 38 defining veterans service organizations”Map →

organizationDepartment of Veterans Affairs“responsible for updating policy and carrying out programs”Map →

othersection 1703“section of title 38 related to Veterans Community Care Program”Map →

organizationVeterans Health Administration“healthcare providers within this administration require training”Map →

bill_numberS. 4929“bill number”Map →

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance75
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy40
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment10
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz30
Current news / social attention level