Press Releases

Today, Rep. Phil Roe, M.D. (R-Tenn.), chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s budget proposal:

“I am pleased President Trump’s budget request includes one of the largest increases in funding for veterans in a decade. The president has made it clear veterans are a priority for this administration, and this budget request doubles down on that commitment. As long as I am chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I will tirelessly advocate for the resources VA needs to meet our obligations to our nation’s heroes. With that said, we’ve seen that simply increasing VA’s bottom line seldom results in better services for veterans. We all know that throwing money at VA’s problems will not bring veterans the certainty or benefits they deserve, which is why I believe it’s time for VA to take a hard look at how they utilize resources and make the tough decisions necessary to responsibly preserve veterans’ benefits as we work to get our fiscal house in order. I thank President Trump and Secretary Shulkin for their leadership and commitment to veterans, and I look forward to thoroughly reviewing this budget request.”

Note: On Wednesday, May 24, 2017, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a hearing to examine the budget request for Fiscal Year 2018. The hearing, which you can read more about and stream here, is open to press and will begin at 10:30 a.m. in Cannon 334.