Republican leadership blocked Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal’s attempt to pass an amended version of the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act on July 29. The legislation proposed by Blumenthal would have replaced a Republican proposal to cut veterans’ benefits with an alternative that uses a portion of $75 billion in unobligated and unspent Department of Defense funds from H.R. 1.
Blumenthal said his proposal had bipartisan support, stating, “It would utilize unspent Department of Defense funds from H.R.1, the so-called Big Beautiful Bill, to cover the entire cost of the bill. It’s the only offset proposal for the Take Care of Veterans Act that has garnered bipartisan support, and it is the one that doesn’t pit some veterans against other veterans…More than $75 billion of the Department of Defense funds in H.R. – a bill signed into law more than one year ago – remain unspent and unobligated. And CBO has confirmed, absolutely confirmed, enactment of my proposal prior to the Department’s obligation of those funds would provide the savings we need.”
Blumenthal objected to proposed cuts affecting more than one million veterans eligible for benefits related to tinnitus or sleep apnea: “These disabilities are not hypothetical or abstract. They’re real, and they do disable people. And often, they are the result directly from combat or training…It may seem like an abstract principle, but to veterans who would lose sleep apnea and tinnitus benefits, it’s a big deal. In fact, it can be a life-changing deal…We are creating a new generation of combat-injured veterans. It is unconscionable to claim that we can only care for them by forcing other veterans to sacrifice.” He also rejected Republican leadership’s defense for these cuts: “(Their) argument essentially is that VA is going to take away these benefits through rule-making. And therefore, we should take advantage of the savings by action that is wrong, unconscionable, and deeply hurtful to veterans.”
Last month saw House Republicans pull a planned vote on this legislation after a bipartisan House vote supported using unobligated defense funds instead of cutting veteran benefits as originally proposed by Republicans. Congressional Democrats and many Veterans Service Organizations have opposed funding proposals included in this act.
The Senator’s amended legislation also sought to replace what he described as a watered-down version of the Major Richard Star Act with his own version fully repealing what he called “the wounded veteran tax.” The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee oversees programs supporting U.S. veterans including health care access and transition assistance; it maintains offices in Washington, D.C., collaborates with entities such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, exercises jurisdiction over national veteran programs across all states—including having Jerry Moran serve as chairman while Blumenthal serves as ranking member—according to the official website.
Blumenthal concluded his remarks urging colleagues not to proceed with benefit reductions: “We need to do the right thing. Veterans deserve meaningful results from a grateful nation, and they should never be handed an invoice when the costs of war come due.”