VA funding plan passes House with more controversial provisions – By Leo Shane III (The Federal Times) / July 27, 2023
House Republicans responded to President Joe Biden’s veto threat on their Veterans Affairs appropriations bill by adding even more controversial social issues into the measure, further complicating negotiations on how to fund veterans programs into next year.
On Thursday, the chamber advanced a $320 billion funding measure for the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal 2024, which would give the agency its largest budget ever. The final 219-211 vote was along party lines, with only Republicans backing the plan.
The cost of the spending plan matches what White House officials requested earlier this year and has not been a sticking point in negotiations. Rather, Democrats objected to amendments included in the bill which would bar VA officials from providing any abortion services, severely limit health care options for transgender veterans, and bar department facilities from displaying the LGBT pride flag at any time.
“VA Is a place where all veterans should feel welcomed, included, and cared for,” said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., and ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee’s panel on veterans issues, ahead of the vote. “All veterans means all veterans. And what this bill does is shameful.”
