June 16, 2009 – 4:50 p.m.
The Veterans Benefits Administration, which pays out financial assistance, would receive a total of $56 billion, about 19 percent more than it received in fiscal 2009 and the same level as the president’s request.
Subcommittee Chairman Chet Edwards , D-Texas, stressed the need to hire more veterans claims processors.
“Knowing that veterans who have served our nation and answered Uncle Sam’s call when called, they should not have to wait six, eight, 10 and 12 months to get their earned benefits,” he said.
Accounts for the Veterans Health Administration, which runs the veterans’ hospital system and other programs, would receive $45.1 billion, roughly 11 percent more than the amount appropriated for fiscal 2009, also matching Obama’s request.
The legislation also would include money for veterans’ health programs in fiscal 2011, a move that would put the politically sensitive programs on a two-year budget cycle, making their funding more predictable.
The portion of the bill dealing with the Defense Department — primarily for military construction projects, family housing and base realignment and closure — would decrease by 7 percent in fiscal 2010, with a total of $23.3 billion. However, that spending level would be $317.7 million more than the administration’s budget request.
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