MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027

On 2026-05-14, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL-25) delivered a floor speech titled "MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027" in the House.

MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 82 (Thursday, May 14, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 82 (Thursday, May 14, 2026)] [House] [Pages H3486-H3505] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] {time} 1430 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027 General Leave Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on H.R. 8469 and that it may include tabular material on the same. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Texas? There was no objection. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1275 and rule XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 8469). The Chair appoints the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Fine) to preside over the Committee of the Whole. {time} 1432 In the Committee of the Whole Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 8469) making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2027, and for other purposes, with Mr. Fine in the chair. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the first time. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations or their respective designees. The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) each will control 30 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas. Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to present the fiscal year 2027 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies bill to the House today. This bill supports our troops, their families, and our Nation's veterans. I thank the Committee on Appropriations chairman (Mr. Cole) for his leadership in advancing this bill through the committee, and I recognize and [[Page H3487]] thank the ranking member for the full committee (Ms. DeLauro) and the ranking member for the subcommittee (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) for their partnership in bringing us to this point. I especially value my working relationship with Ms. Wasserman Schultz. We have worked together on this bill for some time. While we may not agree on everything, we certainly agree on the importance of caring for those who sacrifice so much for our country. This bill is not perfect, and compromises were made on both sides. Even so, the legislation before us today received unanimous support in the committee. I greatly appreciate the bipartisan effort of everyone involved. Those efforts demonstrate that bipartisanship is not only possible, it can lead to meaningful legislative success. No matter our ideological differences, we can all agree that the importance of supporting our troops, their families, and the Nation's veterans is very important. For fiscal year 2027, the Military Construction, Veteran Affairs, and Related Agencies bill provides a discretionary allocation of $157 billion. I will briefly highlight several key priorities included in the legislation. It fully funds veterans' healthcare. It provides an advanced appropriation for the Toxic Exposures Fund. It includes $900 million for medical and prosthetic research. It prioritizes mental health, suicide prevention, and homelessness programs. It includes more than $19 billion for military construction. It invests in barracks improvements, strengthens investment in the Department of Defense laboratories, supports the demolition of obsolete infrastructure, and provides nearly $2 billion for military housing. In closing, this bill honors those who sacrifice for our country and reaffirms our commitment to the well-being of both servicemembers and veterans. It supports our troops and cares for veterans and their families and upholds the promises we made to those of our Nation. I hope this bill will receive the same strong bipartisan support on the House floor that it received in committee because it is what our veterans deserve. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 8469, and I reserve the balance of my time. Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I rise in tentative support of H.R. 8469, the fiscal year 2027 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies bill. The past few years, the MILCON-VA bill strayed from our tradition of being one of the few appropriations bills that traditionally had bipartisan support. Our committee has a shared goal of supporting our servicemembers, veterans, and their families no matter who holds the majority. We are proud to report that as the bill stands, this is a bipartisan bill--one that we reported out of full committee 58-0. However, it saddens me to see that the majority has made in order amendments that stray from the bipartisan commitment that both Chair Carter and I have maintained. To be clear, if any of the controversial amendments made in order are adopted, we will not be able to support this bill, and all the bipartisan work that we did to get this bill to this stage will all have been for naught. What a message we could send about our ability to work together if the House rejects these controversial amendments and votes to support the MILCON-VA bill--controversial amendments that really have nothing to do with protecting and preserving the quality of life of our servicemembers on Active Duty or our veterans--for a critical bill that supports our servicemembers and those who served our country honorably. To be clear, we have already made compromises on this bill. This is not the bill that I would have written. The bill includes a policy rider that prohibits the VA from reporting a beneficiary--for example, that has been deemed mentally incompetent based on medical evidence and, therefore, is assigned a fiduciary to handle their finances--to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Not only is this a violation of current law, but it will only put more veterans in harm's way. Additionally, I opposed the funding level for the NATO Security Investment Program, which is $122 million below the request level. Now, more than ever, we should be reinforcing deterrence with the help of our European allies who disproportionately fund this program, especially as the war in Ukraine continues. I was able to put these concerns aside, as were my Democratic colleagues on the subcommittee and the full committee, and support this bill because that is what bipartisanship requires. As I told the Committee on Rules, Mr. Chairman, sometimes we have to compromise on what our preferences might be. You never compromise on principle; but to achieve a greater good, which this bill absolutely represents, sometimes you swallow hard and you look past some things not being exactly the way you would have preferred. {time} 1440 So today we will consider an amendment that bans funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion at the VA as well because there are problematic amendments that have been made in order beyond just the language in the current underlying bill. We are worried that we will tip the scales from bipartisanship into partisanship. The Supreme Court's decision to overturn the Voting Rights Act and swift action taken in southern States to disenfranchise Black voters proves that we have always needed to lean in on ensuring there is diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will not allow this attack on communities of color to continue, and we will strongly oppose this amendment if it is offered. The amendment does nothing to help veterans and is divisive, partisan, and unnecessary. Along these same lines, there is an amendment that attacks Filipino World War II veterans, veterans that fought for us and with us, resulting in one of the greatest victories in our history. I want to be clear here. The Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund exists to correct what was a racist decision made in 1946 that banned Filipino veterans from receiving compensation for their service in World War II. That is why the word ``equity'' exists in the title of this account. There is also a messaging amendment on gender-affirming care for veterans. I hope that is not offered, but regardless of how you feel about the LGBT community, it is ridiculous to block a veteran from receiving the healthcare that they have earned. It is disappointing that we are at this point, and I hope that throughout the rest of this process we can come together to defeat these amendments. I do want to underscore that Judge Carter and I could not possibly have a better working relationship, and we have worked hand in glove to reach this point, and I think I can safely speak for both of us that we hope we can achieve the same outcome we were able to achieve in the full Appropriations Committee. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Womack). Mr. WOMACK. Mr. Chair, I thank my friend, Judge Carter, and the ranking member, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, for giving us an example of what true bipartisanship looks like. I mean, to get a bill out of committee on a unanimous vote, as a fellow cardinal, I am a bit envious. I am not near naive enough to believe that my T-HUD bill is going to enjoy the same fate, but congratulations to them. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this MILCON-VA bill. It is a good day for the House, Mr. Chairman, and an even better day for the American people because we are conside

Referenced legislation: HRES1224, HRES1275, HR8365, HR8469