In Appropriations Markup, Rep. Lee Votes to Support Veterans and Active Duty Servicemembers

WASHINGTON – During Appropriations Markups for fiscal year 2023, Rep. Susie Lee, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, voted to pass the fiscal year 2023 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies funding bill out of the full Appropriations Committee. The bill includes multiple provisions that Rep. Lee has pushed for, including increased funding to support veterans' mental health. The bill includes language in line with Rep. Lee's VA Zero Suicide Demonstration Project Act, directing the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to take steps toward implementing the Zero Suicide program in its health system. This initiative would provide innovative, system-wide training and support to VA employees, based on the idea that even one veteran suicide it too many.

"The men and women who have served our country have put their lives on the line to defend our freedom," said Rep. Susie Lee. "As a proud member of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, I work to secure our veterans the support and resources they need. Since coming to Congress, one of my top priorities has been helping to get veterans the health care – especially the mental health care – they deserve. The funding bill passed today does so much to help our veterans, but I'm particularly proud of everything this bill will do to support the mental health of veterans. We all know that veterans often face substantial mental health challenges when returning home after serving our country, and we absolutely must do more to support our veterans who struggle with mental health, and to stop the epidemic of veteran suicide. On average, 17 veterans take their own lives every day in this country. That's unacceptable."

The Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies funding bill:

• Makes significant investments in veterans' mental health. This includes language in line with Rep. Lee's VA Zero Suicide Demonstration Project Act, directing the Department of Veterans Affairs to take steps toward implementing the Zero Suicide initiative—a program that provides innovative, system-wide training and support to VA employees, based on the idea that even one veteran suicide it too many.
• Invests in military family housing to address affordability and quality of housing for servicemembers and their families.
• Supports our veterans with investments in health care, including targeted investments that advance women's health, mental health, and homelessness assistance
• Increases access to child care by increasing funding for Child Development Centers for active duty servicemembers members. Rep. Lee advocated for this after hearing of the challenges faced by military families in Nevada, particularly at Creech, where servicemembers with children face long waitlists, lengthy commutes, irregular hours, budget constraints, insufficient open houses, and prohibitive expenses.
• Protects our national security with investments to respond to the challenges posed by Russian and Chinese aggression
• Combats veteran homelessness by funding a program that provide housing opportunities for veterans experiencing homelessness. This program has reduced the rate of homeless veterans by nearly 50 percent since 2010.
• Confronts the climate crisis with increased climate change and resiliency funding to help military installations adapt to rising sea levels and worsening natural disasters

The following amendment to the bill was adopted by the full Committee:

• Rep. Wasserman Schultz – The manager's amendment makes noncontroversial changes to the report. The amendment was adopted by voice vote.

A summary of the bill is here. The text of the bill, before the adoption of amendments in full Committee, is here. The bill report, before the adoption of amendments in full Committee, is here. In keeping with the Appropriations Committee's commitment to transparency, information on Community Project Funding in the bill is here.

###