<DOC>
[110 House Committee Prints]
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[DOCID: f:33868.wais]
110th Congress
1st Session HOUSE COMMITTEE PRINT NO. 2
_______________________________________________________________________
REPORT
to the
COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET
from the
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
SUBMITTED PURSUANT TO SECTION 301 OF THE
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT OF 1974
on the
BUDGET PROPOSED FOR FISCAL YEAR 2008
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
March 1, 2007.--Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs of the House of Representatives
______
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COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
BOB FILNER, California, Chairman
CORRINE BROWN, Florida STEVE BUYER, Indiana, Ranking
VIC SNYDER, Arkansas CLIFF STEARNS, Florida
MICHAEL H. MICHAUD, Maine DAN BURTON, Indiana
STEPHANIE HERSETH, South Dakota JERRY MORAN, Kansas
HARRY E. MITCHELL, Arizona RICHARD H. BAKER, Louisiana
JOHN J. HALL, New York HENRY E. BROWN, Jr., South
PHIL HARE, Illinois Carolina
MICHAEL F. DOYLE, Pennsylvania JEFF MILLER, Florida
SHELLEY BERKLEY, Nevada JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas
JOHN T. SALAZAR, Colorado GINNY BROWN-WAITE, Florida
CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ, Texas MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California
JERRY McNERNEY, California DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado
ZACHARY T. SPACE, Ohio GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida
TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota
Malcom A. Shorter, Staff Director
DEMOCRAT LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
------
House of Representatives,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Washington, DC, March 1, 2007.
Hon. John Spratt,
Chairman, Committee on the Budget,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: Pursuant to section 301(d) of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, clause 4(f) of rule X of the
Rules of the House of Representatives, and Rule 7 of the Rules
of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, the Committee on
Veterans' Affairs hereby submits its views and estimates, along
with Additional Views and Estimates with regard to programs and
matters within the jurisdiction of the Committee to be set
forth in the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal
year 2008. The Minority will be submitting Additional and
Dissenting Views under separate cover.
Caring for our veterans is an ongoing cost of war, and a
continuing cost of our national defense. As a Congress, and a
nation, we must fulfill our obligations to the men and women
who have served. We hope that you will carefully consider these
Committee views and estimates. We have a lot of work ahead of
us if we are to keep our promises to veterans. Working
together, we can make sure that our veterans are not forgotten,
and that we meet our obligations to them as a nation.
Sincerely,
Bob Filner, Chairman; Corrine Brown, Vic Snyder,
Michael H. Michaud, Stephanie Herseth,
Harry E. Mitchell, John J. Hall, Phil Hare,
Michael F. Doyle, Shelley Berkley, John T.
Salazar, Ciro Rodriguez, Joe Donnelly,
Jerry McNerney, Zachary T. Space, Timothy
J. Walz.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
U.S. House of Representatives
110th Congress
Views and Estimates
March 1, 2007
SECTION 1--DISCRETIONARY ACCOUNTS
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
The Committee \1\ is recommending a total of $41.028
billion for discretionary accounts for the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA). This recommendation is $4.562 billion,
or 12.5 percent, above FY 2007 levels, and $1.611 billion above
the Administration's FY 2008 request. This recommendation
includes an increase in appropriated dollars for VA medical
care of $3.254 billion over FY 2007, and $1.310 billion above
the Administration's request. The Committee believes these
additional resources are necessary if we are to provide
adequate funding for veterans' health care.
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\1\ While the Views and Estimates reflect a consensus effort, the
Committee wishes to note that not all Members of the Committee
necessarily agree with every aspect of the report. Accordingly, the
Committee reserves its flexibility to determine program needs and
recognizes the potential for funding changes as the Committee and
Congress work their will through the legislative process.
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VA Medical Care
We are recommending a total of $35.512 billion in
appropriated dollars for the three accounts comprising VA
medical care (Medical Services, Medical Administration, and
Medical Facilities). This amount is $1.310 billion above the
Administration's FY 2008 budget request of $34.202 billion, and
is a 10.1 percent increase over the FY 2007 \2\ levels,
compared to the Administration's increase of 6 percent over FY
2007 levels. This recommended level is less than the $36.348
billion (which represents a 12.7 percent increase over FY 2007
levels) recommended by the Independent Budget, co-authored by
AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of
America, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The Committee is
recommending a total for the Veterans Health Administration
(VHA) (which includes Medical Care accounts and Medical and
Prosthetic Research) of $35.992 billion, $3.320 billion over FY
2007 levels and $1.379 billion above the Administration's FY
2008 request.
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\2\ Amounts for FY 2007 are from P.L. 110-5, H.J. Res. 20, a joint
resolution making further continuing appropriations for the fiscal year
2007, and for other purposes. This measure was signed into law on
February 15, 2007.
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This recommended increase would better enable the VA to
meet high-priority needs in the coming fiscal year. These
increases would provide additional dollars for increased
patient workload, including estimated increases due to
servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, mental
health, long-term care, homeless programs, prosthetics, and
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Polytrauma Centers, which care
for our most grievously wounded veterans. The Committee's
medical care recommendation also includes additional funding
for the VA to begin to address urgent non-recurring maintenance
needs at VA facilities.
Medical Services
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation vs. Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
25,512,000,000.................. 27,167,671,000 28,979,000,000 28,407,975,000 +1,240,304,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Medical Services appropriation provides for medical
services of eligible veterans and beneficiaries in VA medical
centers, outpatient clinic facilities, contract hospitals,
State homes, and outpatient programs on a fee basis.
The Medical Services account comprises the majority of
funding for VA health care--nearly 80 percent of the total of
the three accounts that make up ``VA medical care.'' The
Committee is recommending a total increase in appropriated
dollars, above the Administration's request, of $1.240 billion.
workload increases
The Committee is concerned that the Administration may have
once again underestimated the total number of unique patients
it expects to see in FY 2008. Over the five-year period from FY
2002 through FY 2007, the VA saw an average annual increase in
unique patients of 4 percent, or approximately 203,000
additional patients per year.
The VA's FY 2008 budget request estimates a total of
5,819,176 total unique patients, a 134,030 increase above FY
2007 estimates of 5,685,146. This estimate is 2.4 percent above
the FY 2007 level. Out of the 134,030 increase in patients, the
VA estimates that 54,037 are attributable to an increase in
Operation Enduring freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/
OIF) veterans.
The Committee is recommending increased funding to care for
an additional 25,000 OEF/OIF veterans. In the FY 2007 VA budget
submission, the VA estimated that it would see 110,566 OEF/OIF
veterans in FY 2006 and 109,191 in FY 2007. In the current
submission, the VA now estimates 155,272 for FY 2006 and
209,308 for FY 2007. The Committee believes it is prudent to
provide additional resources to account for increased OEF/OIF
demand in case the Administration's estimates prove as
divergent in the coming year as these estimates have been in
the past.
The Committee has also requested additional funds to fully
fund the level of the average annual increase the VA has
experienced over the last five years (FY 2002-FY 2007). We note
that we have estimated costs separately for our estimate of an
additional 25,000 OEF/OIF veterans (which are a component of
the overall increase of 70,000 additional patients). The
committee has also included resources for an additional 30,000
patients (for a total overall increase including OEF/OIF
veterans of 100,000), recognizing the inherent volatility of
these estimates and the cost of health care, for a total
recommended increase for additional workload of $534 million.
The Committee notes that a possible reason for the VA
estimating a lower increase in workload may be attributable to
the Administration's proposal to increase the pharmacy
copayment from $8 to $15 for priority 7 and 8 veterans. The
Administration's proposal to institute an annual enrollment fee
would, if enacted, begin in FY 2009.
The Committee recommends an additional $534 million to
account for increased workload and to bring the VA's estimates
up to the average increase over the past five years.
<bullet> Increase attributable to additional demand from
OEF/OIF veterans--$71 million
<bullet> Increase attributable to overall health care
demand--$463 million
priority programs
Mental Health
VA Secretary R. James Nicholson testified before the
Committee regarding the VA's FY 2008 budget request on February
8, 2007, and stated:
The President's request includes nearly $3 billion to
continue our effort to improve access to mental health
services across the country. These funds will help
ensure VA provides standardized and equitable access
throughout the Nation to a full continuum of care for
veterans with mental health disorders. The resources
will support both inpatient and outpatient psychiatric
treatment programs as well as psychiatric residential
rehabilitation treatment services. We estimate that
about 80 percent of the funding for mental health will
be for the treatment of seriously mentally ill
veterans, including those suffering from post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD).
Colonel Charles W. Hoge, M.D., stated in testimony before
the Subcommittee on Health on September 28, 2006 ``[t]here are
now robust data from different sources that indicate that
approximately 10-15% of Soldiers develop PTSD after deployment
to Iraq and another 10% have significant symptoms of PTSD,
depression, or anxiety and may benefit from care. Alcohol
misuse and relationship problems add to these rates. Conditions
often overlap.''
An article in the Miami Herald, Combat Stress Takes its
Toll, But VA's Response Falls Short, from February 11, 2007,
calls into question VA's response to the mental health crisis
it faces, finding that mental health care is ``wildly
inconsistent from state to state'' and that the ``lack of
adequate psychiatric care strikes hard in the western and rural
states that have supplied a disproportionate share of the
soldiers in the wars of Iraq and Afghanistan[.]''
Not only is the VA facing a surge in mental health needs
due to servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, but
soldiers from previous conflicts are seeking more mental health
treatment.
The Committee believes that the VA needs additional
resources in this area, and believes that the VA should fully
allocate resources dedicated to mental health. The Committee is
recommending a $125 million increase to address increasing
demand, as well as an additional $13 million for VA's Vet
Centers. The VA currently operates 207 Vet Centers, community-
based counseling centers that provide readjustment counseling
and outreach services to all veterans who served in any combat
zone. Vet Center services are also available for family members
for military related issues. The Committee's recommendation for
Vet Centers would provide for $125 million for Vet Centers, and
enable the hiring of 100 veterans to provide outreach services,
as mandated by P.L. 109-461.
VA's ability to treat veterans with substance abuse
problems has continued to diminish. It has been reported that
many veterans who suffer from mental illness also suffer from
substance abuse. Also, early reports suggest that alcohol
misuse will have a profound impact on the reintegration efforts
of returning OEF/OIF veterans. The VA needs to be able to
handle not only the increase, but the veterans of past wars who
are on VA waiting lists to get into a substance abuse program.
The Committee recommends an additional $148 million for
mental health, to enhance capacity to meet the needs of new
veterans and veterans from previous conflicts who bear the
psychological wounds of war.
<bullet> Increase to address the increasing demand on VA's
mental health services--$125 million
<bullet> Increase funding for Vet Centers--$13 million
<bullet> Increase VA's capacity to provide substance abuse
treatment--$10 million
Long-Term Care
The Administration is in violation of its statutory
responsibility to maintain FY 1998 levels for the Average Daily
Census (ADC) for VA nursing home care, as mandated by P.L. 106-
117, the Veterans Millennium Health Care and Benefits Act. The
VA's FY 2008 budget submission requests resources to support an
estimated 11,000 ADC, an amount 2,391 below the 1998 figure.
The non-institutional programs are indeed a necessary part
of VA's care continuum, but we should hold to the 1998
recommendations of the Federal Advisory Committee on the Future
of VA Long-Term Care that VA should maintain its bed capacity,
increase capacity in the state homes and double or triple
capacity in its non-institutional long-term care settings.
While telemedicine and home care are important components of
long-term care, telemedicine cannot help a veteran to get out
of bed or take a shower. Home care may not be suitable for many
severely disabled veterans who need 24-hour care for complex
medical and psychiatric conditions.
The Committee estimates that it would cost $567 million to
bring the VA up to compliance with P.L. 106-117. We recommend
increasing the VA's capacity to provide additional ADC in
nursing home care over the next three years. We believe that
this will enable veterans who need nursing home care to receive
it and enable this Committee to better analyze the VA's
argument that these nursing home beds are unnecessary. We
therefore recommend an increase of $189 million to enable the
VA to add an additional 800 ADC to its budget request of 11,000
and to begin to meet its statutory obligations.
While increasing the funding for VA to meet the statutory
requirements of VA operated nursing home care, we also
recommend that VA develop a long-term plan to meet the extended
care needs of its patient population. VA projects that in FY
2008, the demand for VA-sponsored institutional care will be
nearly 87,000 ADC. Neither VA, nor Congress, can ignore the
urgent and increasing needs consequent to the exponential
growth in the population of veterans who are frail and aging.
<bullet> Increase for VA long-term care--$189 million
Prosthetics
We recommend providing an additional five percent increase
above the Administration's request for prosthetics. We remain
very concerned that we are not providing the necessary
resources to fund this area, especially in light of the
increased needs of our servicemembers returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan.
<bullet> Increase for prosthetics--$62 million
Homeless Veterans
VA is the largest single provider of direct service to
homeless veterans, reaching 100,000 or 25 percent of the
homeless veterans a year through their various programs. Like
their non-veteran counterparts, veterans are at high risk of
homelessness due to extremely low or no livable income, extreme
shortage of affordable housing, and lack of access to health
care. But these factors combined with their military service
put them at even greater risk of homelessness.
Last Congress, P.L. 109-461, the Veterans Benefits, Health
Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, increased the
authorization level for the VA's homeless grant and per diem
program to $130 million. The VA estimates that it will spend
$107 million in FY 2008. The Committee recommends that an
additional $23 million be made available to fund this program.
<bullet> Increase in VA's grant and per diem program--$23
million
TBI/Polytrauma
VHA Directive 2005-024, Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers,
dated June 8, 2005, states that:
While serving in Operations Iraqi and Enduring
Freedom, military service members are sustaining
multiple severe injuries as a result of explosions and
blasts. Improvised explosive devices, blasts, landmines
and fragments account for 65 percent of combat
injuries. Congress recognized this newly emerging
pattern of military injuries with the passage of Public
Law 108-422, Section 302, and Public Law 108-447.
Of these injured military personnel, 60-62 percent
have some degree of traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Operating under a national Memorandum of Agreement with
the Department of Defense (DOD), the four current
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) TBI Lead
Rehabilitation Centers have provided rehabilitation
care to the majority of the severely combat injured
personnel requiring inpatient rehabilitation.
Consequently, they have developed the necessary
expertise to provide the coordinated interdisciplinary
care required. This experience has demonstrated that
treatment of brain injury sequelae needs to occur
before or in conjunction with rehabilitation of other
disabling conditions.
Recognizing the specialized clinical care needs of
Polytrauma patients, VA has established four Polytrauma
Rehabilitation Centers (PRCs). The mission of the PRCs
is to provide comprehensive inpatient rehabilitation
services for individuals with complex cognitive,
physical and mental health sequelae of severe and
disabling trauma and provide support to their families.
Intensive clinical and social work case management
services are essential to coordinate the complex
components of care for polytrauma patients and their
families. Coordination of rehabilitation services must
occur seamlessly as the patient moves from acute
hospitalization through acute rehabilitation and
ultimately back to his or her home community.
The Committee notes that TBI is considered by many to be
the signature injury of this war. We must ensure that the VA
has the resources it needs to begin tackling the issues
surrounding TBI, as well as the resources it needs for VA
Polytrauma centers to treat our most grievously wounded
veterans.
<bullet> Increase funding for TBI/Polytrauma--$285 million
OTHER AREAS OF CONCERN
Priority 8 Veterans
The Committee believes that all veterans should have access
to VA health care. In January, 2003, the Administration banned
the enrollment of new Priority 8 veterans. The VA currently
estimates that lifting this ban would result in approximately
1.6 million veterans seeking health care at a cost of $1.7
billion. The Independent Budget estimates a total expenditure
of $366 million, but the Independent Budget's calculation uses
a utilization rate and subtracts out estimated collections.
Last year, in the Democratic Views and Estimates, the estimate
was $341 million, which included subtracting estimated
collections. The Committee will explore ways to re-open access
to all veterans.
We note that the authority of the Administration to deny
enrollment to an entire class of veterans was never meant to
extend ad infinitum, but was provided to the VA as a management
tool in order for it to address unexpected shortfalls that
might arise during the course of the year. Finally, we note
that these veterans are not necessarily ``high income''
veterans, as they are often described by some. These veterans,
who may be combat-decorated, can make as little as $27,000 per
year and be categorized as Priority 8 veterans and be shut out
of the system.
Recruitment and Retention of Health Care Professionals
Over the past few years, VA has received accolades for the
quality of health care it provides as an institution. To
maintain that quality, it is essential that VA develop and
execute an effective recruitment and retention program for
highly qualified medical personnel.
Through the VA's affiliations with 107 medical schools and
over 1,200 educational institutions, VA trains over 76,000
medical and associated health students, residents and fellows.
The Committee believes that it is essential that the VA
address recruitment and retention issues in order to ensure
that veterans receive quality health care not only today, but
in the coming years.
Efficiencies
The VA, in its FY 2008 budget submission, claims it will
achieve ``clinical and pharmacy cost avoidance.'' The VA does
not provide any estimates as to the totals of these ``cost
avoidances.''
The VA's FY 2007 budget submission, estimated a base level
of ``efficiencies'' of $884 million for FY 2006, and estimated
additional ``efficiencies'' of $197 million ($107 million in
clinical efficiencies and $90 million in pharmaceutical
efficiencies) for a total level of ``efficiencies'' of $1.1
billion. The GAO last year found that the VA was unable to
document previous claims of ``efficiencies.'' The VA's clinical
and pharmacy ``efficiencies'' language from the FY 2007 budget
submission is remarkably similar to the language on ``cost
avoidance'' in the FY 2008 budget submission.
The Committee is concerned that the VA is still relying on
``efficiencies'' without providing cost estimates for the level
of ``efficiencies'' it is relying upon, nor justifications
demonstrating that it is achieving ``efficiencies'' it has
claimed to achieve.
Medical Administration
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3,177,000,000................... 3,442,000,000 3,378,067,000 3,442,000,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Medical Administration appropriation provides funds for
the expenses of management and administration of the VA health
care system. Included under this heading are provisions for
costs associated with operation of VA medical centers, other
facilities, and VHA headquarters, plus the costs of VISN
offices and facility director offices, chief of staff
operations, quality of care oversight, all information
technology hardware and software, legal services, billing and
coding activities, and procurement.
The Committee is proposing the same level of funding for
Medical Administration as requested by the VA.
Medical Facilities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3,569,000,000................... 3,592,000,000 3,991,152,000 3,661,974,000 +69,974,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Medical Facilities appropriation provides funds for the
operation and maintenance of the VA health care system's vast
capital infrastructure. Included under this heading are
provisions for costs associated with utilities, engineering,
capital planning, leases, laundry and food services,
groundskeeping, garbage, housekeeping, facility repair, and
property disposition and acquisition.
The Committee is recommending an additional $70 million in
order to provide for a 25 percent increase for non-recurring
maintenance.
<bullet> Provide additional resources to equal a 25 percent
increase for Non-Recurring Maintenance obligations over FY 2007
level--$70 million
The Committee notes that the VA's FY 2008 request transfers
$400 million and 5,689 FTE for Food Services from this account
to the Medical Services account. The Committee hopes that this
transfer does not obfuscate the resource requirements of either
the Medical Facilities or Medical Services accounts, and will
be monitoring these accounts to ensure that adequate resources
are in place to meet the needs of veterans.
Medical and Prosthetic Research
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation vs. Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
413,700,000..................... 411,000,000 480,000,000 480,000,000 +69,000,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This account includes medical, rehabilitative and health
services research. Medical research is an important aspect of
the Department's programs, providing complete medical and
hospital services for veterans. The prosthetic research program
is also essential in the development and testing of prosthetic,
orthopedic and sensory aids for the purpose of improving the
care and rehabilitation of eligible disabled veterans,
including amputees, paraplegics and the blind. The health
service research program provides unique opportunities to
improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the health care
delivery system. In addition, budgetary resources from a number
of areas including appropriations from the medical care
accounts; reimbursements from the Department of Defense; and
grants from the National Institutes of Health, private
proprietary sources, and voluntary agencies provide support for
the Department's researchers. The Committee recommends $480
million, an increase of $69 million above the Administration's
FY 2008 request of $411 million. The Administration is seeking
a $2.7 million cut below the FY 2007 level.
The Committee recommends $2.7 million to restore the
Administration's proposed cut in its FY 2008 request. The
Committee also recommends $15.3 million to account for the
effects of biomedical inflation on VA research. The Biomedical
Research and Development Price Index, which was developed by
the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis for
use by the National Institutes for Health (NIH) estimates a 3.7
percent increase to account for inflation. By restoring funds
cut from the FY 2007 level and by more accurately projecting
the impact of inflation on VA's research dollars we signal a
strong commitment to VA's research program and achieve
stability for ongoing projects.
The Committee also recommends $3.5 million to restore
proposed cuts to VA's Centers of Excellence. The Administration
proposes $45.8 million in obligations for these Centers, down
from a level of $49.3 million for FY 2007.
The Committee also recommends an additional $47.5 million
in order for VA research to advance its efforts in areas such
as deployment health, genetic medicine, and chronic disease
management.
Deployment health includes prospective research to get
baseline information on the health status of military personnel
being deployed in combat zones. Research funding is needed to
collect pre-deployment health information to assist researchers
and clinicians in better assessing the health needs of
returning personnel. Deployment health is also responsive to
conflict-related conditions faced by returning military from
Iraq and Afghanistan. Such health needs currently include TBI,
PTSD, and injuries related to multiple-blast wounds.
Research into genetic medicine recognizes the need to
unlock the potential of applying genetics to improving
individual patient care and systems of care for veterans.
Funding is needed to understand the genetic composition of
individual veterans and how unique genetic profiles need to
change the way health care is provided. For example, genetic
information could help prevent adverse drug reactions known to
happen with individuals with unique genetic profiles.
Additionally, veterans with known genetic predisposition to
certain diseases could be monitored before diseases develop,
placed on preventative therapy where it exists, be closely
monitored and provided earlier intervention when appropriate.
Not only does genetic medicine have the ability to improve
individual patient care, it has the potential to improve
systems of care for our veterans.
Veterans of all ages and theaters of conflict suffer from
long-term chronic diseases. These diseases include mental
health disorders, lung diseases, diabetes, and heart
conditions. Research is needed to both improve clinical tools
to treat and cure these chronic diseases but also to research
how systems of care can improve both individual patient care
and care of the veterans' population.
The Committee notes that the VA's expectation of receiving
additional federal dollars outside of monies appropriated in
this account may not be realized with the Administration's
proposed flat FY 2008 budget request for the National
Institutes of Health (NIH). This makes increased appropriated
dollars in the Medical and Prosthetic Research account even
more vital to this important program. There was a concerted
effort to double the research budget of the NIH. The Committee
would like to see a similar effort undertaken for VA research.
The Committee recommendation of $480 million, an increase
of $69 million above the Administration's request, is comprised
of the following increases:
<bullet> Restore the proposed cuts from the FY 2007
level--$2.7 million
<bullet> Provide a 3.7 percent increase to account for
estimates of biomedical research inflation--$15.3
million
<bullet> Restore proposed cuts to VA's Centers of
Excellence--$3.5 million
<bullet> Provide additional resources for VA research
to address high priority projects--$47.5 million
General Operating Expenses
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation vs. Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,480,764,000................... 1,471,837,000 2,233,841,000 1,668,925,000 +197,088
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The General Operating Expenses appropriation provides for
the administration of all VA non-medical benefits and support
functions for the entire VA. The account is subdivided into two
activities; the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and
General Administration.
VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION
VBA consists of five programs: Disability Compensation,
Pensions and Burial; Education; Housing; Vocational
Rehabilitation and Employment; and Insurance.
Compensation and pension service
VA provides service-connected compensation to veterans with
disabilities incurred or aggravated during military service,
dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) to surviving
spouses, children and low-income dependent parents of veterans,
pension benefits to elderly and disabled low-income wartime
veterans, death pension to the surviving spouses and children
of wartime veterans and benefits to certain children of
veterans who were disabled by spina bifida or other congenital
conditions related to their parent's military service.
Education service
VA provides education assistance to servicemembers,
veterans, and certain eligible survivors and dependents in
exchange for military service. VA education assistance,
popularly known as the Montgomery GI Bill, is used by the Armed
Forces as a recruiting and retention tool, as well as a
readjustment benefit for servicemembers seeking to achieve
educational and vocational goals in the civilian workforce.
Housing (Loan Guaranty Service)
VA assists veterans and servicemembers to purchase and
retain homes in recognition of their service to the Nation.
VA's partial guarantee on loans made by private lenders enables
veterans and servicemembers to purchase homes with little or no
down payment, thereby making home ownership affordable to many
veterans.
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E)
VR&E provides employment services and assistance to enable
veterans with service-connected disabilities to obtain suitable
employment and, to the maximum extent possible, achieve
independence in daily living.
Insurance
The Insurance Program provides servicemembers and their
families with universally available life insurance, as well as
traumatic injury protection insurance. It also provides for the
conversion to a renewable term insurance policy after a
servicemember's separation from service and provides life
insurance to veterans who have lost the ability to purchase
commercial insurance at standard (healthy) rates due to lost or
impaired insurability resulting from military service.
The Administration's request would provide resources for
13,065 FTE (9,559 in Disability Compensation, Pensions and
Burial; 894 in Education; 893 in Housing; 1,260 in Vocational
Rehabilitation and Employment, and 459 in Insurance).
GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
General Administration funds the Office of the Secretary,
six Assistant Secretaries, the Board of Veterans' appeals, and
the Office of the General Counsel.
RECOMMENDATION
The Administration's request for the GOE account is
comprised of $1,198,294,000 for VBA, an increase of $30.4
million over the FY 2007 level, and $273,543,000 for General
Administration, a decrease of $39.4 million from the FY 2007
level.
The Committee is recommending $1.628 billion for this
account, an increase of $156 million over the Administration's
FY 2008 request. This increase would restore the proposed cuts
to the General Administration component of GOE, while adding an
additional 1,370 FTE, in line with the recommendation of the
Independent Budget for FTE, in order for the VA to begin to
address its enormous claims backlog. The Committee notes that
funding for the Board of Contract Appeals, effective January 7,
2007, was transferred to the General Services Administration
(GSA) as part of a government-wide plan to consolidate contract
appeals within GSA. The Committee has restored proposed cuts in
General Administration, but believes that any resources not
fully needed by the VA for this activity should be made
available to VBA in order to address the claims backlog.
As of February 17, 2007, the total number of compensation
and pension claims pending at the VA was 626,429, an increase
of 5,107 from the previous week (Source: VA Monday Morning
Workload Report, February 17, 2007). The number of pending
claims last year at this same time was 573,597 (Source: VA
Monday Morning Workload Report, February 18, 2006). The
Administration's request provides for 8,320 ``direct labor
FTE'' and an ``output per FTE'' of 101. The VA also estimates
that it will receive the same number of claims in FY 2008 as it
projects it will receive in FY 2007. Based on the VA's
estimates, an additional 1,000 FTE should decrease the claims
backlog in FY 2008 by 100,000 claims. The Committee recommends
that an adequate number of FTE be added to the VBA Education
Services Program to ensure that timely and accurate service
claims processing is provided at the educational services
Regional Processing Centers.
<bullet> Provide for an additional 1,370 FTE to begin to
address claims backlog--$153 million
<bullet> Restore proposed cuts in General Administration
from FY 2007 level--$44 million
Information Technology Systems
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,213,820,000................... 1,859,217,000 1,340,098,000 1,832,517,000 -26,700,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Information Technology Systems account was first
instituted in the FY 2006 VA appropriations bill (P.L. 109-
114). The VA is undergoing a significant change in its
information technology (IT) activities, consolidating all IT
staffing and budgetary resources under a Chief Information
Officer. The VA's FY 2008 request reflects staff transfers for
maintenance and operations but does not include costs for
development employees, who are expected to be transferred at a
later date. Of the request, $1.3 billion is non-pay, and $555
million is pay. The VA's base request represents an increase of
$90 million over the FY 2007 level--the additional monies are
attributable to the transfer of $555 million and 5,529 FTE into
the IT account.
The Committee is recommending $26.7 million less than the
Administration's request. We are recommending decreases in
funding for the Financial and Logistics Integrated Technology
Enterprise (FLITE) program, and Compensation and Pension
Maintenance and Operations program.
The VA requested $35 million for FLITE. The Committee
believes that $20 million is sufficient for this program for FY
2008. The FLITE program is the successor to the VA's Core FLS
program. In an article last year, a spokesman for
Pricewaterhouse Coopers, which was hired by the VA after the VA
had spent $342 million on Core FLS, stated that ``business
standardization is the first step. IT comes later.'' ``VA plans
CoreFLS Successor,'' Government Computer News, March 2, 2006.
The Committee believes that there is much the VA must
accomplish first before it should be spending $35 million on
this program.
The Committee is also recommending a decrease of $11.7
million for the VA's Compensation and Pension Maintenance and
Operations activities. The VA is seeking an increase from $6
million, the FY 2007 level; to $31.7 million, a total increase
of $25.7 million. The Committee believes that this increase is
sought without sufficient supporting documentation and is
therefore recommending a FY 2008 level of $20 million, an
increase of $14 million above FY 2007 levels and a decrease of
$11.7 million below the FY 2008 requested level.
<bullet> Decrease in funding for FLITE and Maintenance and
Operations funding--$26.7 million
National Cemetery Administration
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
160,733,000..................... 166,809,000 217,910,000 166,809,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The National Cemetery Administration was established in
accordance with the National Cemeteries Act of 1973. It has a
fourfold mission: to provide for the interment in any national
cemetery with available grave space the remains of eligible
deceased servicepersons and discharged veterans, together with
their spouses and certain dependents, and to permanently
maintain their graves; to mark graves of eligible persons in
national and private cemeteries; to administer the grant
program for aid to States in establishing, expanding, or
improving State veterans' cemeteries; and to administer the
Presidential Memorial Certificate Program. This appropriation
provides for the operation and maintenance of 125 national
cemeteries and 33 other cemeterial installations in 39 states,
the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
The Administration's requested level for FY 2008 of $167
million represents a 3.8 percent increase over the FY 2007
level of $161 million.
The Committee concurs with the Administration's request.
Office of Inspector General
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
69,500,000...................... 72,599,000 73,233,000 84,445,000 +11,846,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Office of Inspector General was established by the
Inspector General Act of 1978 and is responsible for the audit,
investigation and inspection of all Department of Veterans
Affairs programs and operations. The overall operational
objective is to focus available resources on areas which would
help improve services to veterans and their beneficiaries,
assist managers of Department programs to operate economically
in accomplishing program goals, and prevent and deter recurring
and potential fraud, waste and inefficiencies.
In testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations on February 15, 2007, the VA Inspector General
George J. Opfer stated that from FY 2001-2006: OIG delivered a
return on investment of $31 for every dollar invested in OIG
operations. We produced $11.6 billion in monetary benefits from
recommended better use of funds, savings, costs avoidances,
recoveries, questioned costs, restitutions, and civil
judgments. We issued 1,169 audit and inspection reports with
6,601 recommendations to improve services to veterans and to
improve the economy and efficiency of VA programs, operations,
and facilities. Almost 90 percent of these recommendations have
been implemented by VA to date.
The Administration has requested $72.6 million for FY 2008,
an increase of $3.1 million above FY 2007 levels. The VA's
request assumes a total FTE level of 470, 13 fewer than FY
2007. The Committee recommends $84.4 million for FY 2008, an
increase of $11.8 million, or 21.5 percent over FY 2007 levels
and $11.8 million, or 16.3 percent, above the VA's FY 2008
request.
The Committee believes that as the OIG is being expected to
do more, and the economic benefit of investment in the OIG has
been clearly demonstrated, that an increase in FTE is
necessary. The Committee recommends restoring the proposed cut
in FTE and adding an additional 87 FTE, to provide for a total
FTE of 570.
<bullet> Increase to restore proposed FTE cut of 13--$1.5
million
<bullet> Provide for an additional 87 FTE--$10.3 million
Construction, Major Projects
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
399,000,000..................... 727,400,000 1,602,000,000 727,400,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Construction, Major Projects, appropriation provides
for constructing, altering, extending, and improving any VA
facility, including planning, architectural and engineering
services, assessments, and site acquisition, where the
estimated cost of a project is $10 million, or where funds for
a project were made available in a previous appropriation under
Construction, Major Projects.
For FY 2008, the Administration is requesting $727.4
million, an increase of $328.4 million, or 82.3 percent, over
FY 2007 levels. This recommendation includes $560 million for
VHA-related construction and $167.4 million for National
Cemetery Administration (NCA).
The NCA portion of the request seeks funds for Phase 1
Development for cemeteries in the Columbia/Greenville-area;
Sarasota-area; Jacksonville-area; Southeastern Pennsylvania-
area; Birmingham-area; and Bakersfield-area. The request also
seeks funding for Gravesite Development for the Ft. Sam Houston
National Cemetery and the Advance Planning Fund.
The VHA-related construction request, totaling $560
million, seeks funding for the following projects:
Pittsburgh, PA--Consolidation of Campuses
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$248 million; Funded through
FY 2006--$102.5 million; FY 2008 Request--$40 million
Denver, CO--New Medical Center Facility
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$646 million; Funded through
FY 2006--$55 million; FY 2008 Request--$61.3 million
Orlando, FL--New Medical Facility, Land Acquisition
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$553.9 million; Funded
through FY 2006--$25 million; FY 2008 Request--$35 million
Las Vegas, NV--New Medical Center Facility
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$600.4 million; Funded
through FY 2006--$259 million; FY 2008 Request--$341.4 million
Syracuse, NY--Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Center
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$77.7 million; Funded
through FY 2006--$53.9 million; FY 2008 Request--$23.8 million
Lee County FL--Outpatient Clinic
<bullet> Total Estimated Cost--$109.4 million; Funded
through FY 2006--$10.5 million; FY 2008 Request--$9.9 million
The Additional $48.6 million is for various components of
the Major Construction account, such as the Advanced Planning
Fund, Claims Analysis, Asbestos, Hazardous Waste Abatement, and
other activities.
Construction, Minor Projects
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
198,937,000..................... 233,396,000 541,000,000 248,396,000 +15,000,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Construction, Minor Projects, appropriation provides
for constructing, altering, extending, and improving any VA
facilities, including planning, assessment of needs,
architectural and engineering services, site acquisition and
disposition, where the estimated cost of a project is less than
$10 million, with a minor improvement component costing
$500,000 or more.
The Administration has requested $233.4 million, an
increase of $34.5 million, or 17.3 percent, over FY 2007
levels.
The Committee notes that the VA's 5-Year Capital Plan 2007-
2012, submitted as part of the Administration's FY 2008 budget
request, lists over 1,200 ``FY 2008-2012 Potential Department-
wide Minor Construction Projects.'' The Committee hopes that
the VA is prioritizing these projects and is seeking sufficient
funding to meet these needs and other needs that arise and can
be best addressed through the Minor Construction account.
The Committee is recommending an additional $15 million
above the VA's FY 2008 request to provide funding to upgrade
and modernize research facilities. The Subcommittee on Health,
in a hearing on the VHA's FY 2008 budget request held on
February 14, 2007, received testimony from the Friends of VA
Medical Care and Health Research (FOVA). FOVA recommended ``an
annual appropriation of $45 million in the minor construction
budget dedicated to renovating existing research
facilities[.]'' The Committee notes that the FY 2007 VA
appropriations bill as passed by the House of Representatives
included $12 million in the minor construction account ``to be
used solely for a program of upgrade and modernization of
research facilities to ensure they maintain or attain state-of-
the-art status.'' H.Rept. 109-464, to accompany H.R. 5385, the
Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs and Related
Agencies Appropriations Bill, at 64. The Committee on
Appropriations directed the VA to conduct a comprehensive
review of its research facilities and to report to Congress by
March 1, 2007. The VA has indicated that this review may take
three years to complete.
<bullet> Increase to upgrade and modernize research
facilities--$15 million
Grants for Construction of State Extended Care Facilities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
85,000,000...................... 85,000,000 150,000,000 120,000,000 +35,000,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This program provides grants to assist States to construct
State home facilities, for furnishing domiciliary or nursing
home care to veterans, and to expand, remodel or alter existing
buildings for furnishing domiciliary, nursing home or hospital
care to veterans in State homes. A grant may not exceed 65
percent of the total cost of the project.
State homes play an important role in VA's long-term care
strategy by filling the gap of available beds for elderly and
sick veterans who need them. In FY 2006, there were 80 priority
group 1 projects for a total of $420 million. Priority group 1
projects are those projects that already have the State funding
to start construction. In FY 2007, VA's priority group 1
projects totaled $491 million with 22 of the top 23 needing
life safety corrections.
<bullet> Increase for Construction of State Extended Care
Facilities--$35 million
Grants for Construction of State Veterans Cemeteries
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation vs.
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32,000,000...................... 32,000,000 37,000,000 32,000,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This program provides grants to states for 100 percent of
the cost for the establishment, expansion or improvement of
state cemeteries. The states are responsible for on-going
maintenance. State cemeteries provide a last resting place for
veterans who live in areas not reasonably served by a national
cemetery.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Veterans Employment and Training
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR--VETERANS EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE (VETS)
The Assistant Secretary for VETS serves as the principal
advisor to the Secretary of Labor on all policies and
procedures affecting veterans' employment matters. VETS
furnishes employment and training services to servicemembers
and veterans through a variety of programs, including providing
grants to States, public entities and non-profit organizations,
including faith-based organizations, to assist veterans seeking
employment. VETS also investigates complaints filed under
veterans' preference and re-employment laws. Specifically, VETS
administers the following programs: DVOP/LVER state grant
program; Transition Assistance Program; Veterans' Preference
and Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
(USERRA); Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program (HVRP);
Veterans Workforce Investment Program (VWIP); Federal
Contractor Program; and the National Veterans' Training
Institute (NVTI). The Administration requested a total of
$228.1 million in FY 2008 to support the staffing and grant-
making ability of VETS. This is a $5.1 million, or 2.3 percent,
increase over FY 2007. For FY 2008, the Committee recommends an
increase of $5 million for VETS, for a total of $233.1 million.
This recommended level would provide an additional $3 million
for HVRP, bringing that program up to $26.6 million; $1 million
for NVTI; and $1 million for additional FTE, including one
additional FTE in each of the six regional offices to address
complaints and investigations arising under USERRA.
OTHER AGENCIES
American Battle Monuments Commission
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation vs. Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
41,988,000...................... 53,300,000 N/A 53,300,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Includes appropriation for salaries and expenses, and foreign currency fluctuations.
The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is
responsible for the administration, operation and maintenance
of cemetery and war memorials to commemorate the achievements
and sacrifices of the American Armed Forces where they have
served since April 6, 1917. In performing these functions, the
Commission maintains 24 permanent American military cemetery
memorials and 31 monuments, memorials, markers and offices in
15 foreign countries, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands, and the British dependency of Gibraltar. In addition,
six memorials are located in the United States: the East Coast
Memorial in New York; the West Coast Memorial, the Presidio in
San Francisco; the Honolulu Memorial in the National Memorial
Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii; and, the American
Expeditionary Forces Memorial and the World War II and Korean
War Veterans Memorials in Washington, D.C.
The ABMC is seeking a total of $53.3 million for FY 2008,
consisting of $42.1 million for salaries and expenses, and
$11.2 million for costs associated with foreign currency
fluctuations.
U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent FY 2008 Recommendation
FY 2007 Enacted FY 2008 Request Budget Recommendation vs. Request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20,100,000...................... 21,217,000 N/A 21,217,000 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Veterans' Judicial Review Act, P.L. 100-687,
established the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. The
Court has exclusive jurisdiction to review decisions of the
Board of Veterans' Appeals. The court, one of four Article I
courts in the federal judicial system, may affirm, vacate,
reverse, or remand decisions of the Board of Veterans' Appeals.
Out of the total denials from the Board in FY 2006 of 18,107,
the Court received 3,729 filings, or 21 percent of the number
of total denials from the Board.
The Court's request for FY 2008 includes $1,120,000 for the
Pro Bono Representation Program. This program is administered
by the Legal Services Corporation. The Court includes the
Program's FY 2008 request as an appendix to its submission, and
applauds the ``Program's high success in providing, along with
others, counsel to reduce the percentage of unrepresented
appellants before the Court. Since 1997, the percentage
unrepresented appellants at the decision point of their appeals
has dropped from 48-percent in FY 1997 to 24-percent or less in
FY 2006.''
SECTION 2--MANDATORY ACCOUNTS
FULL EQUITY FOR WORLD WAR II FILIPINO VETERANS WHO SERVED IN THE U.S.
ARMY
Many World War II Filipino veterans, who served and fought
alongside American servicemembers during World War II, do not
receive veterans' benefits. Shortly after the war, Congress
passed the Rescission Acts which stripped away many veterans'
benefits for Filipino service members who served in the U.S.
Army. For the past 60 years, Congress has taken a piece-meal
approach to restoring these benefits.
We recommend an additional $900 million be included to
complete the last step of the process of restoring these
veterans' benefits.
<bullet> Increase for Filipino World War II veterans who
served in the U.S. Army--$900 million
BELATED THANK YOU TO MERCHANT MARINERS
World War II Merchant Mariners suffered the highest
casualty rate of any of the branches of service while they
delivered troops, tanks, food, airplanes, fuel and other needed
supplies to every theater of the war. Despite their efforts
during the war, Merchant Mariners were not covered by the
original G.I. Bill of Rights. No legislation to benefit
merchant seamen was passed by Congress until 1988 when the
Seaman Acts of 1988 finally granted them a ``watered down''
G.I. Bill of Rights. To make up for lost benefits and
opportunities, we recommend an additional $400 million be
included in the budget resolution to permit Merchant Mariners,
and their surviving spouses, to receive a monthly benefit of
$1,000.
<bullet> Increase for Merchant Mariners--$400 million
OTHER AREAS OF CONCERN
There are several mandatory veterans' programs where there
is room for improvement. These are programs that provide
monetary assistance to disabled veterans and their families.
Compensation and pension benefits
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for survivors
with dependent children under 18
DIC is a monthly benefit paid to eligible survivors of a
military service member who died while on active duty, a
veteran whose death resulted from a service-related injury or
disease, or a veteran whose death resulted from a non service-
related injury or disease, and who was receiving, or was
entitled to receive, VA Compensation for service-connected
disability that was rated as totally disabling for at least 10
years immediately before death, or since the veteran's release
from active duty and for at least five years immediately
preceding death, or for at least one year before death if the
veteran was a former prisoner of war who died after September
30, 1999.
In May of 2001, the Program Evaluation of Benefits for
Survivors of Veterans with Service-connected Disabilities
recommended that surviving spouses with dependent children
receive an additional amount per month for the first five years
after the veterans' death. Public Law 108-422 provided an
increase, but only for the first two years of eligibility.
Pension and death pension benefits for veterans and
surviving spouses and children
Veterans who have honorably served the Nation during a
period of war and who have reached age 65 or who are under age
65 and are totally and permanently disabled as the result of
nonservice-connected disabilities are eligible to receive a
pension benefit if they meet certain income criteria. Surviving
spouses and children of such wartime veterans, including adult
disabled children are eligible for a death pension. According
to a 2004 evaluation of VA's pension program, the pension
program is not meeting Congressional intent because it is not
allowing veterans and their survivors to live in dignity.
Insurance
Base premiums for Service-Disabled Veterans Life Insurance
(SDVI) on current actuarial tables
The SDVI program provides life insurance to veterans with
service-connected disabilities who apply within two years of
being service-connected and who would be insurable but for
their service-connected disabilities. At the time the SDVI
program began, premium rates were based on the then current
(1941) actuarial tables used by commercial life insurance
companies. Although commercial life insurance tables have been
updated several times since 1941 (most recently in 2001),
service-connected disabled veterans, including those injured in
Afghanistan and Iraq are subjected to premiums approximately
three times higher than the original program intended because
the actuarial tables are more than 60 years out of date.
In May of 2001, the Program Evaluation of Benefits for
Survivors of Veterans with Service-connected Disabilities
recommended that veterans' premiums should be based on current
mortality rates.
SDVI maximum insurance
In May of 2001, the Program Evaluation of Benefits for
Survivors of Veterans with Service-connected Disabilities
recommended that SDVI coverage limits should be increased. The
basic amount of SDVI available has not been increased from
$10,000 since 1951.
Veterans Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI)
VMLI is a type of mortgage life insurance available only to
those veterans disabled enough by a service-connected
disability to qualify for a specially adapted housing grant.
Today, VMLI covers only about 55 percent of the mortgages of
these veterans. The mortgage coverage has been the same since
1992.
Readjustment benefits
Total Force GI Bill
The Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB), implemented over 20 years
ago, was a landmark piece of legislation that provided
education and training benefits to many veterans. The time has
come to update, modernize, and provide greater flexibility
within the VA's educational assistance programs. For GI Bill
education benefits to remain a relevant recruitment, retention,
as well as readjustment benefit, we must ensure that VA's
education and training programs reflect the manner in which
individuals earn and learn in the 21st Century.
Congress, other than providing benefit increases, has not
significantly modified administrative or process provisions of
the GI Bill since 1985. Due to advances in technology,
recognition of the lifetime learning concept, dynamic workforce
changes, and ever-increasing demands on military recruiting
efforts, Congress should review the current veterans' education
system and make necessary changes to provide servicemembers,
veterans and their families relevant education and training
benefits that meet their educational and vocational goals for
success.
The Committee plans, on a bipartisan basis, to explore a
number of options to improve and modernize the GI Bill. The
VA's Advisory Committee on Education and the Partnership for
Veterans Education--a group made up of traditional veterans and
military service organizations, as well as higher education
advocates all have endorsed a proposal termed the ``Total Force
GI Bill.'' The proposal has three features: one, a clearer
alignment of education benefit rates according to service
rendered; two, establishment of a readjustment element to
reservists' MGIB benefits earned during activation for a
contingency operation (presently, activated reservists eligible
for the new 'Chapter 1607' MGIB can only retain unused
entitlement by remaining in the Selected Reserve--there is no
portability of benefits after completion of a Selected-Reserve
service contract; three, to achieve the first and second
objectives and to ensure future correlation of active duty,
veterans, and National Guard and Reserve benefits in an
equitable and proportional manner, Chapters 1606 and 1607 in
Title 10 and Chapter 30 in Title 38 need to be reorganized
together under Title 38.
State Approving Agencies/Montgomery GI Bill
State Approving Agencies (SAA) have partnered with the VA
in the administration of veterans educational and training
programs for nearly 60 years. Through the program approval and
supervision process, they ensure that money spent on the
Montgomery GI Bill is money well spent. Moreover, SAA provide
critical assistance in reducing the opportunities for fraud,
waste and abuse throughout the system. For FY 2006 and 2007 the
VA's Education Service was allocated $19 million from the
Readjustment Benefits Account to enter into contracts with SAA
for purposes of approving courses of education under the
Montgomery GI Bill and other related activities. Per section
301 of P.L. 107-330 at the end of fiscal year 2007, the SAA
funding will decrease to $13 million. The Committee believes
that Congress must find a way to restore this proposed cut to
this activity.
SECTION 3--CHART
Department of Veterans Affairs--FY 2008--Discretionary Accounts--March 1, 2007
(in thousands)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2008 FY 2008 Committee
Account FY 2007 President's FY 2008 Request Independent FY 2008 Committee FY 2008 Committee vs. FY 2008
Request vs. FY 2007 Budget Recommendation vs. FY 2007 Request
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medical Services.................................... 25,512,000 27,167,671 1,655,671 28,979,220 28,407,975 2,895,975 1,240,304
Medical Administration.............................. 3,177,000 3,442,000 265,000 3,378,067 3,442,000 265,000 0
Medical Facilities.................................. 3,569,000 3,592,000 23,000 3,991,152 3,661,794 92,794 69,794
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Medical Care............................. 32,258,000 34,201,671 1,943,671 36,348,439 35,511,769 3,253,769 1,310,098
Medical and Prosthetic Research..................... 413,700 411,000 -2,700 480,000 480,000 66,300 69,000
================================================================================================================================================================================================
Total, Veterans Health Administration........... 32,671,700 34,612,671 1,940,971 36,828,439 35,991,769 3,320,069 1,379,098
General Operating Expenses.......................... 1,480,764 1,471,837 -8,927 2,233,841 1,668,925 188,161 197,088
Information Technology Systems...................... 1,213,820 1,859,217 645,397 1,340,098 1,832,517 618,697 -26,700
National Cemetery Administration.................... 160,733 166,809 6,076 218,335 166,809 6,076 0
Office of Inspector General......................... 69,500 72,599 3,099 73,233 84,445 14,945 11,846
Construction, Major Projects........................ 399,000 727,400 328,400 1,602,000 727,400 328,400 0
Construction, Minor Projects........................ 198,937 233,396 34,459 541,000 248,396 49,459 15,000
Grants for Construction of State Extended Care 85,000 85,000 0 150,000 120,000 35,000 35,000
Facilities.........................................
Grants for Construction of State Veterans Cemeteries 32,000 32,000 0 37,000 32,000 0 0
================================================================================================================================================================================================
Total Departmental Administration............... 3,639,754 4,648,258 1,008,504 6,195,507 4,880,492 1,240,738 232,234
================================================================================================================================================================================================
Other Discretionary................................. 154,548 155,572 1,024 158,629 155,572 1,024 0
Total Discretionary............................. 36,466,002 39,416,501 2,950,499 43,182,575 41,027,833 4,561,831 1,611,332
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REPUBLICAN LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
------
House of Representatives,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Washington, DC, March 1, 2007.
Hon. John Spratt,
Chairman, Committee on the Budget
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: Pursuant to the Congressional Budget Act
of 1974 and House Rule X, clause 4(f), I herewith submit to the
Committee on the Budget the Views and Estimates of the
Republican Members of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
regarding the Administration's FY 2008 budget request for
veterans' programs.
In recommending record discretionary funding for veterans'
health care and benefits, the Republican Budget Views and
Estimates reflects our enduring priorities: to care for
veterans who have service-connected disabilities, those with
special needs, and the indigent; to ensure a seamless
transition from military service to the care of the Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA); and to provide veterans every
opportunity to live full, healthy lives.
Reflecting the cost of war, Republican Members recommend
funding that honors our returning servicemembers with truly
seamless transition from the military to quality VA health care
and benefits. Our recommendations further increase access to VA
health care and preserve the high quality of care for which VA
has justly become the envy of the medical community. Funding
recommended by Republican Members will resource VA to slash the
backlog in disability claims with a progressive blend of
personnel increases, leveraged technology, and an energized
network of intergovernmental collaboration.
The Republican views and estimates take into consideration
information provided to the Committee in February 2007 during
hearings on the budget at which written and oral testimony was
provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the national
leadership of some veterans' service organizations (VSOs), and
other authorities.
These views and estimates consider insights gathered in the
109th Congress, during which the Committee enhanced input from
VSOs and military service organizations (MSOs) by holding
hearings during development of the views and estimates and
boosting the number of these groups which testified. In
February 2006, 19 of these organizations testified on the
budget, and in September 2006, 20 testified in a fiscal-year
review. Many of these views retain their validity. Contending
with the Majority's decision to restrict the hearing process
and curtail the opportunity for veterans' groups to testify
early in the budget cycle, the Republican views and estimates
continue to implement insights of last year.
In developing these views and estimates, we commend the
President and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for sending to
the Congress a strong request. The Administration's FY 2008
budget submission reflects the priorities of a nation at war
and the commitment of Americans to care for their veterans. The
President has proposed substantial increases in the budgets of
agencies focused on fighting the war on terror, the Department
of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security. Consistent
with his focus, the Department of Veterans Affairs, with its
mission of caring for those who have borne the battle, again
this year received a substantial increase. Much of the rest of
government received very modest, if any, augmentation.
Medical services funding recommended within this Budget
Views and Estimates strengthens our ability to respond directly
to the needs of servicemembers returning from the global war on
terror. Many of these warriors have suffered traumatic brain
injury and other grievous and complex injuries requiring the
most advanced treatments and rehabilitation. Veterans and the
families at their side will see dramatic increases in medical
care accounts, mental health care, and funding for polytrauma
care. Republicans recommend increases in research, prosthetics,
sensory aids, and blind rehabilitation. As we expand current
access to quality health care and long-term care, our
recommendations will dramatically improve VA's future ability
to care for veterans with aggressive construction spending on
the kind of medical facilities that veterans need, where they
need them.
Sports at all levels of skill provide the opportunity for
service-disabled veterans to accelerate their rehabilitation
and improve their overall lives. In 2005, VA joined with the
U.S. Olympic Committee to provide increased opportunities for
service-disabled veterans to participate in sports and we
recommend funding to defray the program's modest expenses.
The backlog of disability compensation and pension claims
continues to climb. It is now well past 600,000, with another
137,000 appeals awaiting decision. Just since the beginning of
February 2007, nearly 10,000 claims have been added to the
backlog. Each claim is a veteran waiting for the government to
act, and possibly dying before that happens. We recommend
funding 1,000 additional full-time employee equivalents over
the Administration's request, 600 for compensation and pension
adjudication, and 400 for education and veterans'
rehabilitation and employment programs. We would also increase
hiring for the Board of Veterans' Appeals above the
Administration's request.
Additional hiring is only part of the solution to improving
quality, accuracy, and timeliness in claims processing.
Republican Members recommend funds for mobile claims offices,
training and performance support systems, and skills
certification and improved processes. Innovations such as
rules-based technology could help speed accurate decision
making, as will closer partnerships with municipal, county and
state veterans offices and veterans groups; our recommendations
include funding for pilot projects in these areas.
Our young men and women returning from military service are
a national treasure. During the 109th Congress, the Committee
determined the need to modernize the Montgomery GI Bill for
both active duty and reserve component servicemembers.
Consequently, we propose additional mandatory spending to
improve these education and training benefits, which have
proven since 1944 to be one of our nation's greatest
investments.
The nation lost some 688,000 veterans in 2006, with similar
numbers projected for the near future, most from our ``Greatest
Generation.'' More than 1,600 veterans pass from us each day,
most of whom served during World War II and the Korean War. To
assure our veterans a final resting place in a national shrine,
the Republican Membership recommends additional funds for
operations, maintenance and minor construction of National
Cemeteries, and for an accelerated expansion of some existing
cemeteries which are near or at capacity.
The cause of America's veterans has long been a bipartisan
cause calling forth the best efforts within the community of
legislators. The Republican Membership looks forward to working
with the Committee's Majority Members and the Budget Committee
on this salutary basis as we develop a FY 2008 veterans' budget
that continues to honor this nation's commitment to those who
have borne the battle and to their families.
Sincerely,
Steve Buyer, Ranking Republican Member; Cliff
Stearns, Committee Member; Dan Burton,
Committee Member; Jerry Moran, Committee
Member; Richard H. Baker, Committee Member;
Henry E. Brown, Jr., Committee Member; Jeff
Miller, Ranking Republican Member,
Subcommittee on Health; John Boozman,
Ranking Republican Member, Subcommittee on
Economic Opportunity; Ginny Brown-Waite,
Ranking Republician Member, Subcommittee on
Oversight & Investigations; Michael R.
Turner, Committee Member; Brian P. Bilbray,
Committee Member; Doug Lamborn,
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and
Memorial Affairs; Gus M. Bilirakis,
Committee Member.
REPUBLICAN VIEWS AND ESTIMATES FOR FY 2008
March 1, 2007
OVERVIEW
For veterans healthcare and program costs in FY 2008, the
Republican Members of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
recommend $1.411 billion above the Administration's request for
discretionary spending in FY 2008. In addition, we recommend
$1.5 billion for a legislative initiative to modernize GI Bill
education and training benefits for servicemembers of the
Reserves and National Guard.
Veterans Benefits Administration
MANDATORY FUNDING
The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) administers a
broad range of non-medical benefits to veterans, their
dependents, and survivors through 57 regional offices. These
programs include disability compensation, non service-connected
pension, education, vocational rehabilitation, burial,
insurance, and home loan guaranty.
The Republican Members support the Administration's FY 2008
budget request of $45 billion in mandatory funding for
veterans' programs, a 6.6 percent increase over the enacted
level for FY 2007.
DISCRETIONARY FUNDING
With the exception of the recommendations noted below, the
Republican Members support the Administration's FY 2008 request
of $1.2 billion in discretionary funding for the management of
the benefits programs--disability compensation, pension,
education, vocational rehabilitation and employment, housing,
burial, and life insurance.
Disability Compensation--The Administration requests $941
million in budget authority to fund the discretionary portion
of the Disability Compensation, Pension, and Burial programs,
including administrative expenses of 9,559 Full Time Equivalent
Employees (FTEE), an overall increase of 114 FTEE over FY 2007.
This accounts for a transfer of 334 FTEE to VA Office of
Information and Technology (OI&T), a loss of 9 FTEE in
Management Direction and Support, and a gain of 457 FTEE for
Compensation and Pension (claims adjudicators).
For FY 2008, VBA projects the same number of claims it
received in FY 2007: 800,000. The backlog of compensation and
disability claims has grown since February 2006 by more than
52,000 to a total of 626,429 on February 17, 2007. This backlog
has grown by some 9,742 claims just since the beginning of
February 2007.
The Administration estimates the backlog of pending rating
related compensation and pension claims will decrease to
330,000 from the current 401,700 and the average days to
complete such a claim from 177 to 145 by the end of FY 2008.
The evidence from early 2007, however, does not support that
estimate. We recommend 1,000 additional FTEE over the
Administration's request, for a cost of $109,375,000. Of this
1,000 FTEE, we recommend 600 FTEE for direct compensation for
Compensation and Pension over the Administration's request of
457 FTEE, at a cost of approximately $65,400,000. The remainder
of this additional 1,000 FTEE would serve in Education and
Vocational Rehabilitation.
The Republican Members recognize that additional direct
compensation FTEE will not improve quality, accuracy, and
timeliness in claims processing without corresponding increases
in training resources. Therefore, we recommend an additional
$400,000 for Training and Performance Support Systems and an
additional $400,000 for Skills Certification
The Department has spent more than $600 million over the
past decade in an attempt to automate the compensation and
pension claims processing system. This complicated paper-driven
process is more than 25 years old. With the growing demands on
the system, VBA needs to reexamine its Business Process
Reengineering (BPR) focus to implement changes necessary in the
field. The Republican Members recommend $25 million for BPR to
reengineer and streamline the claims process and implement
major business process changes.
Pilot Program for Rules Based Adjudication System--The
Republican Members recommend $5 million for a pilot program to
develop a rules-based adjudication system for compensation and
pension programs. This could reduce the backlog by allowing a
computer to accurately adjudicate simple claims, allowing human
adjudicators to work on more complex cases at a faster rate.
Intergovernmental Partnerships--The Republican Members also
recommend $6 million for a pilot program to explore the
feasibility of intergovernmental partnerships in the
development of compensation and pension claims between VA and
municipal, county and state veterans departments and service
officers, as well as veterans' and military service
organizations. We recommend the pilot occur in three states:
New York, Missouri, and Wyoming, or other states with varied
veteran demographics. This expanded pilot would build on
findings from the 2002 intergovernmental pilot conducted
between VA's Buffalo, NY, regional office and the New York
State Division of Veterans Affairs.
Education Service--VBA estimates a workload increase of
over 16,000 education claims, but the Administration requests
only 14 additional direct support FTEE. As of February 17,
2007, the backlog of education claims was 76,000, and average
processing times for original and supplemental claims were 40
and 17 days respectively, with targets of 35 and 15 days. While
this is an improvement over the previous year, it is
insufficient to meet the needs of veterans.
The loss of experienced staff from retirements, increased
workloads, and the pending backlog of claims convince us that
an additional 100 FTE are needed for the Education Service with
a projected discretionary cost of $7.8 million.
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment--The
Administration requests an additional 39 direct service FTEE
for the Vocational Rehabilitation & Education program. We
applaud the Department's efforts to realign functions and
duties to allow counseling and employment staff to concentrate
on increasing rehabilitation rates. However, we believe current
average caseload, which now exceeds 130 per counselor
nationally, should be about 100 per counselor to provide
appropriate levels of service. Therefore, we recommend $28.5
million to fund an additional 300 professional level FTEE.
VA-USOC Military Paralympic Program--Competition at elite
levels of athletic events requires significant dedication to
training, especially for service-disabled athletes. Therefore,
we believe it is appropriate for VA to defray expenses for
service-disabled athletes participating at elite levels in the
program. We estimate the cost at $1 million per year.
The Department recently announced an expanded agreement
with the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) to promote participation
in athletics by service-connected disabled veterans. This
includes competition at elite levels culminating in the USOC
Paralympic Program. The Republican Members recommend an
additional $2 million to offset administrative and other costs
for this program.
Mobile Claims Offices--The Republican Members are aware
that access to Regional Offices can be difficult for many
veterans. We recommend $2 million for a pilot program on Mobile
Claims Offices. VBA staff members in mobile offices helping
veterans with their claims could speed up the claims process by
improving communication and access for veterans.
BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS
The Administration requests $58.5 million to support 468
FTEE for the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA), an increase of
$2.5 million and 31 FTEE over FY 2007. The Republican Members
recommend an additional $4,055,000 to this request to support
an additional 32 FTEE for a total BVA staffing of 500 FTEE. The
BVA provides independent reviews of VA regional office
decisions and makes the final administrative decision on behalf
of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. While BVA has made
improvements, it continues to experience difficulties meeting
the production levels needed to reduce the backlog of over
137,000 appeals. The average time to decide an appeal is now
over 400 days. We believe that additional staff is necessary if
BVA is to provide timely and accurate decisions to veterans and
their families.
NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION
National Shrine Commitment--The Administration requests
$362.3 million in discretionary funding for the National
Cemetery Administration (NCA). This includes $166.8 million for
operations and maintenance of VA's national cemeteries and
1,582 FTEE, an increase of $7 million and decrease of 7 FTEE
over the FY 2007 Administration request. Additionally, the
Administration requests $24.4 million in minor construction to
address cemetery infrastructure improvements.
Cemetery Operations and Maintenance--The Republican Members
recommend an additional $9 million to the Administration's
request of $166.8 million NCA operations and maintenance, and
an additional $5 million for minor construction.
Gravesite Expansion--Additionally, the Republican Members
recommend an additional $60 million to accelerate VA's five-
year strategic plan to fund National Cemetery gravesite
expansion. The nation lost some 688,000 veterans in 2006, with
similar projections for the near future, most from our
``Greatest Generation.'' The Republican Membership believes
accelerated expansions are an appropriate response to assure
veterans a final resting place in a national shrine. Expansions
funded in FY 2008 would include National Cemeteries in
Calverton, NY, Houston, TX, Dayton, OH, and Phoenix, AZ.
Alternative for Headstones--The Republican Members
recommend $100,000 for VA to offer a bronze V as an alternative
to a headstone to mark the graves of veterans whose graves are
marked by a non-VA marker.
Veterans Health Administration
For FY 2008, the Administration requests $34.2 billion in
appropriations for discretionary spending on veterans' medical
care, an increase of $1.943 billion or 6 percent over the FY
2007 appropriated level.
Medical Services--The Administration requests $27.2 billion
for medical services. We recommend an $850.2 million increase
above the Administration's request as follows:
Medical Patient Workload--We recommend a $100 million
increase to provide timely and accessible high-quality
health care to core constituency veterans--the service-
connected disabled, injured and indigent;
Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom (OIF/OEF)--We recommend a $100 million increase
to provide medical care to military personnel who
served in OIF/OEF;
Prosthetic and Sensory Aids--We recommend a $65
million increase to cover the increased costs of
providing, repairing and replacing prosthetics and
sensory aids;
Polytrauma System of Care--We recommend a $50 million
increase to enhance specialized treatment in VA's
polytrauma rehabilitation centers for servicemembers
and veterans with traumatic brain injuries;
Mental Health--We recommend a $200 million increase
to continue implementation of mental health initiatives
begun in 2005 to address deficiencies and gaps in
services. While this amount is substantial, last
September, the Government Accountability Office (GAO)
reported that VA had not used all of the mental health
funds Congress allocated. We expect better performance
in VA's use of these resources to meet the emerging
demand for mental health services, especially post
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). VA must plan for and
fund those programs that have been identified as
particularly relevant to the needs and requirements of
our servicemembers;
Case Management--We recommend $10 million to hire 100
new social workers to provide case management at
military treatment facilities.
Blind Rehabilitation Services--We recommend a $25
million increase to increase the number of Blind
Rehabilitation Outpatient Specialists at VA facilities
as required by Public Law 109-461 and enhance access
and quality of services for blinded veterans.
Dental Care--We recommend a $100 million increase to
provide dental care for the increasing number of
returning veterans from OIF/OEF. Many OIF/OEF active
duty, Guard, and Reserve servicemembers are returning
with serious dental problems, and are not receiving
corrective dental care prior to separation from active
duty. VA is then obligated to treat these separated
servicemembers, often through costly contract care.
Medical Care Collections Fund (MCCF)--We recommend a
$60 million increase in medical services as we remain
concerned that VA cannot meet its estimated collections
goal.
Emergency Preparedness--We recommend a $60 million
increase to fulfill VA's fourth mission
responsibilities. We remain committed to achieve the
readiness necessary by supporting emergency
preparedness activities.
Long-term care--We recommend an $80.2 million
increase to support increased demand for long-term care
services.
Medical Administration--The Administration requests $3.4
billion for medical administration, and we concur with this
request.
Medical Facilities--We recommend an $80 million increase
above the Administration's request for necessary costs
associated with operating and maintaining VA's health care
system infrastructure.
Medical and Prosthetic Research--The Administration
requests $411 million in appropriations for medical and
prosthetic research, a decrease of $2.7 million below the FY
2007 appropriated level. We place a high premium on conducting
research into injuries and illnesses related to military
service that benefit the clinical treatment needs of veterans.
While the Department intends to place additional reliance on
outside federal grants to realize a net gain in research
funding, we recommend a $51 million increase above the
Administration's request. This increase includes an additional
$20 million for research to promote the successful
rehabilitation, psychological adjustment and reintegration of
veterans who suffer with traumatic brain injuries.
Legislative Proposals--The Administration includes
proposals for three legislative initiatives. These proposals
would: (1) allow VA to establish a tiered annual enrollment fee
for priority groups 7 and 8 veterans based on family income;
(2) increase pharmacy co-payments for priority groups 7 and 8
veteran from $8 to $15 dollars; and (3) eliminate the practice
of offsetting or reducing VA first-party co-payment debts with
collection recoveries from third-party health plans. These
legislative requests differ from those proposed in the past, in
that they do not reduce the Administration's request for
discretionary medical care appropriations. The additional
revenue would be classified as mandatory receipts to the
Treasury and would not be retained in VA for veterans' health
care programs. The Republican Members reject these legislative
proposals.
VHA Major Construction Projects--The Administration
requests $560 million for VHA major construction projects. We
recommend a $231.12 million increase above the Administration's
request. Of this amount, we recommend $164 million to continue
projects that were partially funded and VA did not request
additional funding for in FY 2008; $30.32 million for the
advanced planning fund for advancing several of the FY 2008
prioritized major construction projects; and $36.8 million to
carry out section 804 of Public Law 109-461 for the design of a
co-located joint-use medical facility in Charleston, South
Carolina.
Grants for Construction of State Extended Care Facilities--
The Administration requests $85 million in appropriations for
grants for the construction of state extended care facilities,
the same amount as the FY 2007 appropriated level. The
partnership between the federal government and States is a
long-standing and honored tradition of cost sharing. We
recommend a $35 million increase above the Administration's
request.
OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY
The Republican Members concur with the administration's
request for $1.86 billion for the Office of Information and
Technology (OI&T). However, we recommend reallocation of
funding amounts to individual accounts or programs within the
budget for OI&T due to poor performance or failures, as
follows:
Reduced funding: We recommend reducing funding in the
amount of $20 million to the Financial and Logistics
Integrated Technology Enterprise (FLITE), due to poor
performance.
Reduced funding: In the amount of $20 million to the
Compensation & Pension Maintenance and Operations fund
that was to be allocated to VETSNET.
Additional funding: In the amount of $20 million to
the Office of the Inspector General for Information
Security Risk Assessment for Forensic Analysis.
Additional funding: In the amount of $10 million for
Cyber Security.
Additional funding: In the amount of $10 million for
the Office of Information and Technology Oversight and
Compliance Office.
Additional funding: In the amount of $1 million to
accelerated development of The Expert Education System.
We note that as part of the VA centralization of its IT
accounts and personnel under the auspices of the Chief
Information Officer, an additional $555 million for FY 2007 has
been reallocated in pay transfers from other accounts to
support 5,529 FTE for operations and maintenance activities
that were previously included in other accounts throughout the
Department.
OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL
The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) is responsible for
the audit, investigation, and inspection of all VA programs and
operations. For FY 2008, the Administration requests $72.6
million and 445 Full Time Equivalent Employees (FTEE) to
support the activities of the OIG. This compares with the FY
2007 request of $69.5 million for administrative expenses and
458 FTEE. However, this FY 2008 funding level would result in a
reduction of 40 FTEE from current staffing levels. Major
audits, reviews and investigations would have to be cancelled
should this reduction in staffing occur. During FY 2006, OIG
identified over $900 million in monetary benefits, for a return
of $12 for every dollar expended on OIG oversight. The
Republican Members of the Committee recommend adding $4.153
million to the FY 2008 funding request, in order to provide for
a total of 558 FTEE.
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR--VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE
The Administration has increased the request for all
programs administered by the Veterans Employment and Training
Service with the exception of the Veterans Workforce
Integration Program. We support the increased funding levels
and recommend three additional increases, as follows:
National Veterans Training Institute--In Public Law 109-
461, Congress mandated several changes in the state grant
program that will require greater training capacity at the
National Veterans Training Institute in Denver, CO. We
recommend an additional $1 million to fund NVTI operations.
USERRA Training and Enforcement--The Veterans Employment
and Training Service has primary responsibility for enforcing
veterans' employment and reemployment rights under USERRA. VETS
federal staff located in each of the six regions are
responsible for administration and training VETS staff located
in each state. With the high operational tempo of members of
the Selected Reserve, case loads are climbing and additional
resources are required to ensure timely resolution of USERRA-
related cases. Therefore, we recommend an additional $1 million
to fund six additional professional investigators.
Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program--This program has
been cited by GAO and others as an effective model employment
program for homeless veterans. The Administration has requested
an additional $2 million for the program. Because we are
concerned about the apparent increase in homeless veterans from
the first Gulf War and current conflicts in the global War on
Terror, we recommend an additional $3 million above the
President's request to enable VETS to expand the number of
grantees serving homeless veterans while maintaining quality
standards for grantee performance.
PROPOSED LEGISLATION
GI Bill--During the 109th Congress, the Economic
Opportunity Subcommittee conducted a series of hearing and site
visits to determine the need to modernize the Montgomery GI
Bill for both active duty and members of the Selected Reserve.
MGIB benefit levels for active duty members have not nearly
kept pace with the increasing cost of higher education, and
extensive utilization of the Reserve Components in the Global
War on Terror justifies increases in the basic levels of their
benefits. Therefore, we propose an additional $1.5 billion in
mandatory spending to improve education benefits. This includes
indexing the basic payment at 100% of the Department of
Education average four year public school cost.
ADDITIONAL VIEWS AND ESTIMATES
HONORABLE STEVE BUYER
The Administration's requested FY 2008 budget for veterans'
programs includes legislative proposals to change the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) fee structure for health
care. The proposals for certain fees and co-payments are more
fully described in the Republican Views and Estimates for FY
2008. According to the legislative proposals, the revenue
generated by these fees and co-payments would be mandatory
receipts to be deposited in the U.S. Treasury, rather than
retained by the VA for the benefit of veterans. I strongly
believe that any revenue generated from enrollment fees and co-
payments should be retained by the VA for its veterans
programs.
The Administration's proposal includes fees, copayments
related to enrollment of category 7 and 8 veterans in medical
care. The Administration proposed a tiered enrollment fee based
on income. The fees would range from $250 per year for a
veteran with an income of $50,000 to $750 per year for a
veteran with an income of $100,000 or greater. Copayments for
pharmaceuticals would rise from the current $8 to a new level
of $15 per 30-day supply. VA would also be authorized to
discontinue the current practice of offsetting or reducing a
patient's first party co-payment debt from funds received from
third-party insurance for non service-connected treatment. I
support these initiatives that would generate $355.2 million in
the first year and $4.866 billion over 10 years, if the
revenues generated were retained by the VA.
The first priority should be to improve the GI Bill
education and training benefits for members of the National
Guard and Reserves. These dedicated men and women are bulwarks
in the Global War on Terror who are serving shoulder to
shoulder with their active duty counterparts in Iraq,
Afghanistan and wherever they are needed. However, their GI
Bill education and training benefits are significantly less.
They should have greater parity with the active duty forces in
these benefits. The application of the revenues from the
Administration's proposed fees and copayments to GI Bill
increases for the Reserve Components would be a fitting way to
recognize their service to our Nation.
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