[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 164 (Wednesday, November 12, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S14792-S14793]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




THE VA-HUD APPROPRIATIONS BILL AND THE DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION CONFERENCE 
                                 REPORT

  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, hardly a day goes by without an 
announcement of new casualties in Iraq, a news story about the family 
of a fallen service member, or the profile of a heroic soldier learning 
to cope with the aftermath of wounds suffered in Iraq. While the 
conflict is Iraq prompts quick approval of the defense spending bills, 
there is less appreciation for mounting costs to the Department of 
Veterans Affairs.
  I was most distressed at last month's refusal by the White House to 
support the Senate's addition to the Iraq-Afghanistan emergency 
supplemental of $1.3 billion in funding for veterans' health care. Most 
Senators understand that military activities in Iraq are significantly 
increasing the burden on the VA, and supported the addition of $1.3 
billion to the Iraq supplemental. Seeing that this amendment was poised 
for inclusion in the final bill, the White House sent notice to 
Congress that it would veto the entire package if money for the VA were 
included. Sadly, Congress gave in to administration pressure and 
removed this critical funding.
  I am pleased that the Senate leadership finally saw fit to bring the 
VA-HUD appropriations bill to the Senate floor this week. This critical 
legislation, setting funding levels for fiscal year 2004, which 
actually began 6 weeks ago, is long overdue. This legislation provides 
$62 billion for the Veterans Administration, $27 billion of which goes 
to the Veterans Health Administration, an increase of $3.9 billion over 
last year's spending level and $1.3 billion over the President's 
request. Because of budget constraints and the unwillingness of the 
administration to endorse additional funding for the VA, the Senate 
Appropriations Committee designated the additional $1.3 billion as 
emergency spending so as not to count against the annual spending caps. 
However, this also made the increase subject to the President's 
approval, and it risked meeting the same fate as other increases 
rejected by President Bush.
  I am very pleased that during debate on the VA-HUD appropriations 
bill, the

[[Page S14793]]

managers successfully offered an amendment to remove the emergency 
designation and incorporate the $1.3 billion into the bill, thereby 
greatly increasing the chances that this money will actually get to 
veterans this year. It seems that a majority of Senators have been 
listening to the few of us who have been decrying the state of VA 
funding for some time, and they are now coming to understand that even 
these modest increases do not make up for the continual shortfall 
experienced by the VA in recent years. It's long past time that this 
trend be reversed.
  The Senate VA-HUD appropriations bill also supports the Rural Health 
Initiative, RHI, a successful examination of innovative methods of 
delivering health care to veterans in rural areas. The VA must become 
more adept at spreading its health care dollars further across rural 
America. I am encouraged that the RHI will help improve the VA's 
performance in this area.

  After making significant progress on this legislation, I was 
discouraged that the Senate leadership decided to pull this VA-HUD bill 
off the floor prior to its completion in order to begin a 30-hour 
discussion of the status of judicial nominations. While I agree that 
judicial nominations are important, I was most disappointed that a 
largely partisan political debate took precedence over the completion 
of much needed funding for veterans. I urge the leadership to quickly 
bring us back to the people's business--the work we were sent here to 
accomplish.
  I would like to mention another issue of concern to veterans that 
came before the Senate this week. For years I have been a primary 
promoter of concurrent receipt--the payment to disabled veterans of the 
full disability and retirement benefits to which they are entitled. For 
many years, disabled military retirees have been forced to choose 
between receiving their full retirement pay or their disability 
benefits. This injustice has finally been recognized by a majority of 
the Congress, in large part due to the unflagging commitment of Senator 
Harry Reid. In recent years, Congress has moved to partially restore 
these benefits. The fiscal year 2004 Defense authorization conference 
report contains legislation allowing combat disabled veterans with a 
disability greater than 10 percent to receive their full disability and 
retirement benefits. It also provides for a 10-year phase-in of full 
disability and retirement benefits for those with a noncombat related 
disability rating of over 50 percent.
  While I am pleased to see this important improvement in benefit 
payments, I am concerned that some might view this as the end of the 
road for this issue. I intend to work closely with Senator Reid to 
continue to press the administration and the Congress to fully fund 
concurrent receipt for all disabled veterans. This is a basic principle 
of fairness that is not rectified by halfway measures.
  I regret that, for a number of reasons, I was unable to support 
passage of the Defense authorization conference report, despite its 
progress on concurrent receipt. Unfortunately, the legislation included 
unacceptable environmental provisions. As a former Navy Officer and 30-
year reservist. I understand the need for the best possible military 
training. As the ranking member of the Environment and Public Works, 
EPW, Committee, I was quite concerned by a request from the Bush 
administration to exempt the Department of Defense, DoD, from five of 
our Nation's most important and effective environmental laws. After 
careful review by the EPW Committee, I was convinced that the waivers 
contained in current law are quite sufficient to provide flexibility 
for DoD if it needs greater leeway to conduct military readiness 
exercises.
  In an effort to forge a reasonable compromise between DoD's request 
and sound environmental policy, Senator Lautenberg and I authorzed as 
amendment to the defense authorization bill that was supported by a 
majority of Senators. While this amendment carefully balanced the 
Defense Department's need for training with the Interior Department's 
mandate to protect endangered species, it was dropped in conference 
with the House of Representatives. In its place, the conferees added 
language providing DoD with broad authority to sidestep the Endangered 
Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, even dropping 
requirements that any waivers be related to military readiness. I 
cannot in good conscience support legislation that undermines such 
critical environmental legislation. Therefore, I had no choice but to 
vote against the defense authorization conference agreement in spite of 
its improvement on concurrent receipt.
  Mr. President, we have a long way to go before our veterans health 
system is fully funded and before veterans receive the full 
compensation they deserve for their years of service to the Nation. I 
hope that the daily stories of herosim coming out of Iraq will compel 
more Members of Congress to stand with the veterans and not to rest 
until justice is done.

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