On May 15, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans’ Affairs, and Related Agencies approved, by voice vote, the FY2014 Military Construction, Veterans’ Affairs, and Related Agencies spending bill (as-yet-unnumbered).
According to the subcommittee summary, the measure would provide $73.3 billion in FY2014 for military construction. This amount is $1.4 billion over FY2013 and $1.4 billion below President Barack Obama’s FY2014 budget request. The total includes $1.5 billion for military family housing and $798 million for Department of Defense (DoD) Education activities.
The bill also would provide $147.6 billion in overall funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Based upon VA budget documents, this amount is $9.1 billion over FY2013 and $5.1 billion below the president’s FY2014 request. The $63.1 billion in VA discretionary funds includes $43.6 billion for VA medical services, which is $2.1 billion over FY2013 and just under the president’s FY2014 request of $43.7 billion.
Additional information about programs important to women and their families will be available once the committee releases its report.
