House passes veterans bill after split over funding method
Lawmakers voted 392 to 18 to fund disability retirement pay, rejecting a rival package that would cut sleep apnea benefits.
By Naomi Tesfaye ·
The House floor on Thursday saw the passage of a bill that fully funds a key retirement benefit for combat-injured veterans, but the victory came only after a tense battle over how to pay for it. The measure clears a major hurdle in the House, yet its path to the Senate remains clouded by disagreement among committee leaders on both sides of the aisle.
The narrower bill that passed received a vote of 392 to 18. All Democrats and 181 Republicans supported the measure. It stands in contrast to a competing package, the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act, which Republican leaders moved to pass on Wednesday. That rival bill included the same retirement pay changes but financed them by reducing future benefits for sleep apnea and tinnitus.
The core of the dispute is the Maj. Richard Star Act. This provision allows veterans who retired due to combat-related disabilities to keep their full retirement pay. Currently, the law requires that this pay be reduced dollar-for-dollar by the amount of their disability benefits. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the cost of the Richard Star Act at $12.8 billion over ten years.
Republican leaders initially tried to push the larger package through quickly on Wednesday. They called a voice vote and declared it passed after waiting six seconds, a period during which no Democrat requested a recorded vote. Democrats had not noticed the vote was called. This move allowed the competing measure to pass before opponents could organize a formal count.
The backlash from veterans groups and retired service members against the benefit cuts forced a change in tactics. Republican leaders had previously pulled the package from the floor over the summer when it became clear they lacked the necessary votes. The pressure from these groups helped Democrats force the narrower bill to the floor on Thursday, ensuring the retirement pay fix would pass without the offsetting cuts to sleep apnea and tinnitus benefits.
Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, the chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs committee, supports the Republican-led package that includes the offsets. Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the committee, has stated he cannot back the proposed benefit cuts. Both senators represent the opposing views that will shape the final form of the legislation as it moves to the upper chamber.
