FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, September 23, 2019
Contact: Amanda Maddox (Isakson), 202-224-7777
Olya Voytovich (Tester), 202-224-2868
Isakson, Tester Applaud Senate Passage of Legislation to Continue Essential Veterans Services, Benefits
Bipartisan bill reauthorizing four VA programs, including support for homeless veterans, heads to president’s desk
ATLANTA – U.S.
Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., chairman and
ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, today
applauded the unanimous Senate passage of bipartisan legislation to
ensure veterans continue to have access to essential programs at the
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The legislation, which was
passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Sept. 18, now heads to
the president’s desk to be signed into law.
The Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2019 reauthorizes
four programs and services at the VA, including veterans homelessness
prevention, for fiscal year 2020, which begins on Oct. 1, 2019. The
authorizations included in the bill were set to expire at the end of the
fiscal year on Sept. 30.
The Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2019 represents
a bipartisan, bicameral agreement reached with U.S. Representatives
Mark Takano, D-Calif., and Dr. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., Isakson and Tester’s
counterparts in the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
“I’m
pleased the Senate unanimously supported passage of this bipartisan
bill to help ensure that vital VA services continue into the new fiscal
year,” said Isakson. “I
thank Ranking Member Tester, Chairman Takano, Ranking Member Roe and
members of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee for their efforts in
reaching this bipartisan agreement. By working together, we are ensuring
veterans continue to receive the benefits they rightfully deserve.”
“I’ve
seen firsthand how critical initiatives like these help rural veterans –
particularly those that are homeless and disabled – in my home state of
Montana,” said Tester. “By
giving veterans the resources they need to recover and thrive, we’re
making good on the promises we’ve made to them and their families when
they signed up to serve this country. This bipartisan agreement is a
testament to what Congress can get done when we rise above the political
fray and work together.”
A full section-by-section summary of the Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2019 is available here.
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The Senate
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs is chaired by U.S. Senator Johnny
Isakson, R-Ga., in the 116th Congress. Isakson is a veteran himself –
having served in the Georgia Air National Guard from 1966-1972 – and has
been a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs since he
joined the Senate in 2005. Isakson’s home state of Georgia is home to
more than a dozen military installations representing each branch of the
armed services as well as nearly 700,000 veterans.