The Senate passed a bill on Sept. 19 to give almost $2.9 billion to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) amid a budget shortfall, sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
The bill would provide veterans with almost $2.29 billion in compensation and pensions and nearly $596.97 million in benefits to help them readjust to everyday society. The House passed the bill on Sept. 17.
Citing an increase in veterans benefits as the cause of the shortfall, the VA told Congress in July that it was almost $3 billion short through the end of this fiscal year on Sept. 30. The agency is also nearly $12 billion short for the following year.
The late notice of the shortfall led House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost (R-Ill.) to accuse the agency of “mismanagement” in a July 17 letter addressed to VA Secretary Denis McDonough.
The legislation requires the VA secretary to submit a report to Congress within 30 days of the bill’s enactment to state how the agency will improve its budget projections when requesting funding from Congress.
Additionally, the bill would require the VA secretary to submit a report to Congress about the status of the funds within 60 days of its enactment and every 90 days thereafter, as well as “information detailing any changes to estimates or assumptions on obligations and expenditures, including data supporting these changes.”
Moreover, the measure requires the VA’s inspector general to do a review of the shortfalls for the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years. The inspector general would submit a report to Congress within 180 days of the bill’s enactment.
The review is to include discrepancies in its spending from its budget and the accuracy of the budget projections.
In a statement to The Epoch Times, the VA said that the shortfall was caused by factors such as more veterans enrolling in VA health care.
“These important results for Veterans and survivors have exceeded even the most aggressive projections and expectations,” said VA press secretary Terrence Hayes.
In statements, veterans groups expressed support for the measure.
“It is unacceptable that a lack of basic fiscal responsibility has endangered our nation’s veterans’ well-being,” said John Byrnes, strategic director for Concerned Veterans for America. “This bill covers the recent shortfall while providing for the desperately needed robust oversight of the VA’s budget process. Spending accountability at the VA is long overdue, and it is unfortunate that lack of responsibility there put veterans at risk.”
“Funding and benefit gaps are unacceptable to us and the veterans we serve, and Congress must continue to hold the VA accountable for the excessive spending, potential waste, and ineffective programs that put us in this position,” said AMVETS National Executive Director Joe Chenelly.
The White House has not indicated its position on the funding bill.
The Epoch Times reached out to the Biden administration for comment on whether President Joe Biden will sign the legislation but did not receive a reply by publication time.
From The Epoch Times