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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: JDN who wrote (687852)	6/28/2005 9:44:28 AM
From: Kenneth E. Phillipps	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

Why does the VA complain it is underfunded by $1 Billion?

To: JDN who wrote (687852)	6/28/2005 4:36:41 PM
From: Kenneth E. Phillipps	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 769670

Senate GOP plans to increase veterans spending by $1.5 Billion. WASHINGTON (AP) — Eager to prevent political damage, Senate Republicans intend to raise spending on veterans programs by $1.5 billion to make up for a shortage caused partly by the return of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, congressional aides said Tuesday. The decision marked a swift response to last week's disclosure that the Department of Veterans Affairs needs $1 billion more for veterans health care this year. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity, noting that no formal announcement had been made. The House simultaneously fought back a Democratic effort to immediately spend an extra $1 billion on veterans health care. The 217-189 vote along party lines killed Democratic attempts to open a foreign aid bill and add the money. "Veterans need to know that no veteran will be without his health care in 2005, nor will they be without their health care in 2006," said Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas. "There are solutions to this problem and those solutions are being addressed." Congressional Democrats, who had earlier sought more money for veterans programs than Republicans allocated, immediately demanded that Republicans make up the difference. In the Senate, their alternatives ranged from a call for an additional $600 million by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., to a request for $1.4 billion by Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W. Va. VA officials testified last week that the shortage in funds resulted from poor budget forecasting as well as additional costs to provide services to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. VA officials have said the agency could juggle its budget to meet the health care needs by taking $600 million from funds earmarked for maintenance and another $400 million in money built in as a cushion. Senate Republicans moved to cut their political losses while House Republicans chose a difference course — working to head off an attempt by Democrats to force an early vote on the issue. Rep. Jim Walsh, R-N.Y., said lawmakers were still trying to learn the amount of the money needed to make sure all veterans get their health care services. "We want to make sure that this projected deficit...is responded to, that there is no diminution of care," Walsh said. But Democrats pressed for same-day action. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Texas, accused the GOP of hiding behind procedural excuses — that the House was debating legislation unrelated to veterans. Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., said that either Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson misled Congress with his earlier statements or he himself was kept in the dark by other administration officials. It was not clear how the additional funds would fit under an overall spending cap that Congress and President Bush have imposed on themselves for the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30. Presumably, lawmakers could cut funds from another program to stay under the limit, or they could finesse the issue by declaring an emergency and spend the money without having it count as part of the total. Senate Republicans made their decision as Nicholson told lawmakers in the House and Senate that demand for veterans health programs rose by 5.2% this year, more than the 2.3% increase that had been forecast. About one-quarter of this year's $1 billion shortfall results from the services needed by veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, he said, adding that the estimate of roughly 23,000 returning veterans proved far below the actual total of 103,000. Nicholson said the agency now estimates its earlier forecast for the next fiscal year will leave it about $1.5 billion short of the funds it needs. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., told Nicholson the delayed notice about budget shortfalls "borders on stupidity." Across the Capitol, Senate Democrats took turns criticizing the agency and the administration. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said the disclosures were "another indication this administration has not taken veterans needs seriously." She added, "any plan to get us through this year based on borrowing funds from future years is fundamentally flawed."