The House of Representatives is preparing to vote on a $3 billion supplemental funding bill to bolster veterans' care, despite tensions over government spending and an impending shutdown deadline.
The House of Representatives is poised to cast its votes early this week on a roughly $3 billion veterans supplemental funding bill. This move comes as Congress grapples with an impending partial government shutdown deadline on October 1st and continues to clash over federal spending in the upcoming fiscal year.
House Set to Vote on $3B Veterans' Funding Bill Amid Government Shutdown Concerns
Spearheading the veterans bill, Rep. Mike Garcia (R-Calif.) expressed optimism that his legislation would garner sufficient support to remain unaffected by the political quagmire surrounding fiscal year 2025 funding.
"Amidst the election and funding drama, bipartisan efforts persist to ensure that our veterans' needs are met," Garcia asserted to Fox News Digital. "We hope the Senate and President recognize the significance of this and collaborate to address this urgent matter."
House Set to Vote on $3B Veterans' Funding Bill Amid Government Shutdown Concerns
In July, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) notified Congress of a $3 billion funding shortfall for the current fiscal year and an estimated $12 billion deficiency in the subsequent year. The VA stressed that without the additional funding by September 20th, approximately 7 million veterans might face benefit disruptions by October 1st.
"Providing a blank check to a federal agency with poor performance and budgetary overruns is unacceptable," Garcia explained. "This issue extends beyond the 7 million veterans directly impacted; it affects their families and dependents who rely on these essential benefits."
House Set to Vote on $3B Veterans' Funding Bill Amid Government Shutdown Concerns
The bill mandates that the VA submit detailed budget accountings to Congress and establishes accountability measures to ensure responsible management of future funds. It also requires the VA secretary to report any future modifications to budget estimates.
Garcia attributes the budget shortfall to "mismanagement and faulty budgeting by the VA, as well as mishandling of other accounts that have compromised veterans' benefits."
House Set to Vote on $3B Veterans' Funding Bill Amid Government Shutdown Concerns
Despite the VA citing increased demand for healthcare services and the passage of the PACT Act as contributing factors to the shortfall, Garcia remains skeptical.
The House vote is expected early this week, with lawmakers returning to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday afternoon. They have less than 10 working days to reach a solution on broader government funding issues before the partial shutdown deadline.
Government funding has been a contentious issue, leading to significant political turmoil within the 118th Congress. Last week, an anticipated vote on a short-term fiscal year 2024 continuing resolution (CR) was postponed due to internal GOP disagreements. The CR vote is anticipated to take place this week as well.
Garcia implored House leaders, including Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), to separate the VA funding bill from larger federal spending negotiations. He expressed concern that the former could be undermined by the latter.
"Since this bill expires on September 20th, we cannot afford to link it to a CR package," Garcia emphasized. "I urge leadership not to employ our veterans as political pawns for unrelated legislative objectives."
The House bill enjoys bipartisan support, with GOP lawmakers House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Mike Bost (R-Ill.) serving as co-sponsors. This initiative follows a similar bill introduced in the Senate in August.
