[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 34 (Thursday, February 20, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S1224]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 663. Mr. BLUMENTHAL submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by him to the concurrent resolution S. Con. Res. 7, setting forth the
congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year
2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal
years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as
follows:
At the end of title III, add the following:
SEC. 3___. DEFICIT-NEUTRAL RESERVE FUND RELATING TO ENSURING
THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS' TOP
CLINICAL PRIORITY OF ENDING VETERAN SUICIDE IS
NOT IMPACTED BY STAFFING OR FUNDING REDUCTIONS
OR FREEZES.
The Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of the Senate
may revise the allocations of a committee or committees,
aggregates, and other appropriate levels in this resolution,
and make adjustments to the pay-as-you-go ledger, for one or
more bills, joint resolutions, amendments, amendments between
the Houses, motions, or conference reports relating to
preventing veterans suicide, including legislation that
ensures that staff and programs related to or administered by
the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention of the
Department of Veterans Affairs are not reduced below levels
at the end of fiscal year 2024 due to hiring freezes,
deferred resignation, or buyout offers, reductions in force,
mass terminations or layoffs, or funding freezes or
reductions, by the amounts provided in such legislation for
those purposes, provided that such legislation would not
increase the deficit over the period of the total of fiscal
years 2025 through 2034.
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