On July 13, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved, 31-0, the FY2018 Military Construction, Veterans’ Affairs (VA), and Related Agencies spending bill (as-yet-unnumbered). The Military Construction, VA, and Related Agencies Subcommittee approved the measure by voice vote on July 12.
According to the committee summary, the bill would allocate $88.9 billion in discretionary funds for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), military construction programs, and other agencies. This amount is $6.1 billion over FY2017 and includes $78.4 billion for VA ($4 billion over FY2017) and $9.5 for military construction ($1.8 billion over FY2017).
The bill would provide $70.1 billion for VA medical care, which includes $525 million in health care specifically for women veterans. The committee notes that the measure would provide funding to prevent veteran suicides and address opioid addiction nationwide.
Family housing programs would be funded at $1.4 billion in FY2018, $133 million over FY2017. The bill also would allocate $249 million for Department of Defense education facilities.
Additional details will be made available once the committee releases its report.
