Press Releases

This week, Rep. Jon Runyan (NJ-03), chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs (DAMA) and subcommittee staff toured the Veterans Affairs Regional Office and Insurance Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The site visit included several presentations, including an overview of VA’s insurance programs, current processes for adjudicating disability… Read more »

House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman, Jeff Miller, praised the fiscal year 2011 budget deal reached by House Speaker John Boehner and its preservation of critical funding for veterans’ programs. The agreement to keep the government running through the end of the fiscal year would reduce overall spending by $38 billion below fiscal year 2010 levels, but would provide… Read more »

Chairman Jeff Miller (FL-01) of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Chairman Marlin Stutzman (IN-03) of the Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity introduced H.R. 1383, the Restoring GI Bill Fairness Act of 2011 yesterday. H.R. 1383 will temporarily authorize the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to pay tuition and fees on behalf of eligible veterans… Read more »

Today, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs held its first “Deconstructing the Department of Veterans Affairs Construction Planning” hearing to discuss the transition of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) construction planning process from a five-year to a 10-year plan. The hearing focused on examining VA’s capital asset planning and construction plan… Read more »

Members of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity met yesterday to hear testimony regarding the Department of Veterans Affairs Fiscal Year 2012 budget for the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program. VR&E is a program designed to return disabled veterans to the workplace through individualized rehabilitation plans,… Read more »

Today, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, chaired by Rep. Jon Runyan (R-NJ), held an oversight hearing entitled “U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs FY 2012 Budget for the Veterans Benefits Administration, National Cemetery Administration, and Related Agencies.”    Chairman Runyan made the… Read more »

Congressman Jon Runyan (NJ-3), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs (DAMA) of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, visited Arlington National Cemetery yesterday to receive a status report regarding ongoing efforts by the Department of the Army to rectify mismanagement at the Cemetery, including lax management and oversight, damaged graves,… Read more »

Today, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health, chaired by Ann Marie Buerkle (NY-25), held an oversight hearing on the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) implementation plan of the caregiver assistance law. “I recognize that no matter how good a health care system is, it can only go so far,” commented Chairwoman Buerkle.  “We… Read more »

Leaders of the Senate and House Veterans’ Affairs Committee sent a bi-partisan, bi-cameral letter to President Barack Obama yesterday calling on him to ensure that eligibility for a law Congress passed to support veterans caregivers is not limited and that the law is implemented in a timely manner. In the letter, the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the Congressional Committees that… Read more »

Today, the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs held an oversight hearing on the FY2012 budget for the Veterans Employment and Training Service.  Chairman Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) made the following opening statement:  “Good morning.  We are here today to examine the FY 2012 budget for the Department of Labor’s… Read more »