At Hearing, Tester Stresses Urgent Need to Provide Emergency Funding for Veterans Benefits

(U.S. Senate) - Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester today led an oversight hearing to evaluate the Department's supplemental budget request for fiscal year (FY) 2024 to fund VA disability compensation, pension, and readjustment benefits.

During the hearing, Tester stressed the urgent need for the Senate to immediately pass bipartisan, bicameral legislation to provide VA the emergency funding it needs to deliver veterans benefits on October 1^st: "Today, we will discuss an urgent matter - providing additional funding to the Veterans Benefits Administration so it can deliver benefits payments to veterans and their families on time…Simply put, VA is providing more disability benefits to more veterans than ever before. From my perspective, that's a part of living up to [our] promises."

Tester continued pressing his colleagues for action, "…Like I've always said - if people up here have a problem addressing the true costs of war, they shouldn't send these folks to war to begin with. Today, I'm hopeful the Senate is finally going to act on this supplemental funding. It is not the time for partisan politics, or for misleading rhetoric about a 'manufactured crisis.' It is time to act to ensure that seven million veterans and families aren't left wondering whether they'll receive their benefits checks in 13 days."

The Chairman also questioned VA Under Secretary for Benefits Josh Jacobs on what the implications would be for veterans if Congress does not deliver VA the emergency funding its needs for benefits by Friday, September 20^th. Jacobs highlighted that this would delay VA's delivery of monthly disability benefits to veterans, and would disproportionately, negatively impact veterans "living in rural areas, [with] poor health conditions, or [who are] older" by delaying their checks for up to two weeks. In his responses, Jacobs also noted the shortfall was a result, in part, of VA's workforce over delivering on its projections for the year, and delivering "more benefits to more veterans than at any time in [VA] history."

While Tester emphasized the necessity of quickly providing VA the emergency funding it needs to cover the veterans benefits shortfall, he also highlighted the need for more transparency and reporting from VA on its budget projections and executions. Tester-supported oversight language is included in the funding shortfall bill to require the Department to provide increased reporting on its budget and spending.

Finally, Tester pushed back on lawmakers who have criticized VA for its expedited implementation of the PACT Act, in light of the shortfall: "I'm aware of the letters from my colleagues that are blasting the VA for moving too quickly to provide benefits under the PACT Act. But the message I've heard from the veterans in my Treasure State of Montana and across the country has been very clear…these benefits are having lifesaving effects. Many of them - particularly the Vietnam-era veterans - waited decades for these benefits. It's shocking to me that some are now telling them they should have waited longer because the price-tag was too steep."

With more veterans and their families receiving VA health care and benefits than ever before, the Department currently faces a $3 billion shortfall in benefits funding for FY 2024. To address this shortfall and provide veterans and their families the timely benefits they have earned and rely on, Tester introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation with his Senate and House colleagues to cover the FY 2024 benefits shortfall. The House passed this legislation yesterday, and it is now being considered by the Senate.

VA needs the $3 billion provided by Tester and his colleagues' funding bill before Friday, September 20^th in order to prevent a delay in compensation and pension benefit payments to as many as seven million veterans and their survivors, and to issue readjustment benefit payments to more 500,000 veterans and their beneficiaries.<_o3a_p>