Historic Increase In Veterans Funding

Floor Speech

HISTORIC INCREASES IN VETERANS FUNDING -- (House of Representatives - June 13, 2007)

(Mrs. McCARTHY of New York asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Mr. Speaker, for far too long our veterans have been left behind. In fact, last year the Republican Congress and the Bush administration proposed cutting funding for the operation and maintenance of veterans' medical facilities by $464 million. Earlier this year, we saw the effects of these budget cuts manifested in the conditions of Walter Reed Hospital and other VA hospitals across the country.

Fortunately, this new Democratic Congress has a different set of priorities. We allocate the largest increase in funding for veterans health care in history, and we do it in a fiscally responsible way that does not produce budget deficits down the line.

The 2008 MILCON and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill includes $70 million more than the President requested for veterans substance abuse programs, $69 million more than he requested for medical and prosthetic research, and $127 million more to address the 400,000-deep backlog of veterans benefits claims.

Mr. Speaker, we are finally keeping our promise to our veterans, not only to the veterans serving in Iraq and Afghanistan today, but all veterans.

Source