Massive veterans budget gap rips hole in appropriations process

The Department of Veterans Affairs is facing a nearly $15 billion combined budget shortfall this fiscal year and next, and congressional Republicans are crying foul at the last-minute notification about a funding crisis lawmakers have little time to try to fix.

VA officials told lawmakers on July 15 that the agency needs $2.9 billion in mandatory spending for veterans pensions and other benefits to cover a gap for the remaining months of the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. And they need another $12 billion in discretionary medical care funds for next year on top of what was provided in a March appropriations package or in the fiscal 2025 House and Senate Military Construction-VA bills.

The notification came after the House passed its fiscal 2025 Military Construction-VA bill on June 5, and after the Senate Appropriations Committee marked up its version on July 11.