Citation Nr: 20002862 Decision Date: 01/13/20 Archive Date: 01/13/20 DOCKET NO. 15-32 298 DATE: January 13, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to a waiver of recovery of an overpayment of indebtedness for the period from February 1, 2009, through September 30, 2013. Whether the indebtedness for the period February 1, 2009, through September 30, 2013, was validly created. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from December 1965 to December 1967. Unfortunately, he died in August 2007. The Appellant is his surviving spouse. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a January 2015 decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Committee on Waivers and Compromises at a VA Regional Office (RO). In September 2019, the Appellant testified during a video-conference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A copy of the hearing transcript is of record and has been reviewed. The Board notes that the appellant raises objection to the validity of the debt as well as to the amount of the waiver, which is reflected in the Order, above. See Board hearing transcript dated September 26, 2019 at pg. 6; see also Notice of Disagreement received July 7, 2015. After reviewing the file, it is unclear how the waiver calculation was made or the amount of indebtedness determined by VA, as there are conflicting dollar amounts that are impossible to reconcile on this record. The appellant was notified in October 2013 of an overpayment in the amount of $24,650. In January 2014, the appellant requested a waiver of the overpayment. An April 1, 2014 Decision of Waiver of Indebtedness granted a partial waiver in the amount of $22,394. However, in May 2014, the appellant stressed that an April 25, 2014 VA letter notified her the debt amount was $21,830. While this letter is not in the file, internal VA e-mails dated June 19, 2014 reflect a “receivables balance of $21,830” that should be “cleared.” Thereafter, a July 2015 Statement of the Case (SOC) specified that a waiver of overpayment of $20,800 had been denied, leaving a remaining balance of $18,371 without any explanation as to how the overpayment and balance amounts were calculated. A second SOC dated October 2015 references the denial of a request to waive $2,307.30 without referencing the $20,800 or $18,371 noted in the earlier SOC. Accordingly, the RO should obtain from the Debt Management Center an accounting clearly detailing the amount of the initial debt, the legal and factual basis for its validity, and the amount and supporting calculations of any debt waiver. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Contact the appellant and the VA Debt Management Center and request that they provide copies of the April 25, 2014 VA letter that notified the appellant that the debt amount was $21,830. Associate a copy of the letter with the file. 2. Contemporaneously with the above, invite the appellant and her representative to provide any additional evidence, including statements, in support of her appeal. 3. Then, render or obtain a complete ACCOUNTING of the debt and provide a single report specifying: (1) the validity of the creation of the debt, including the source or reason for the debt and its amount; and (2) the amount of any debt waiver and the reasons for entitlement thereto. A copy of the accounting should be provided to the appellant and her representative. 4. After completing all of the above, and any additional development deemed warranted, readjudicate the appeal, to include the issues of the validity of the debt and entitlement to a waiver. 5. Thereafter, readjudicate the remanded claims. If the appeal remains denied, furnish the appellant and her representative with a Supplemental Statement of the Case. The appellant and her representative should be reminded that she may again request a Board hearing. S. B. MAYS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Brad Farrell, Associate Attorney The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential, and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.