Collins Addresses Veterans Appropriations Bill

July 25, 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Representative Mike Collins (R-Ga.) delivered a speech on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives addressing the Fiscal Year 2024 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, H.R. 4366.

Key Excerpts

"The fact that we have borders that are just porous, with record numbers of people crossing, and here we are setting them up in rooms with food. Yet, we’ve got Veterans all across this country living under bridges."

"We owe our Veterans a debt of gratitude that we can’t ever repay. We, also, owe our current members of the military all the tools that they can get in their toolbox."

"We’re going to cut DEI and CRT out of our military, which is hurting recruitment and killing morale."

"I encourage my colleagues as we go throughout this week and we have this debate, to focus on the power of the purse for these appropriation bills."

Background

The Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2024, introduced by Rep. John Carter, provides FY24 appropriations for military construction, the VA, and related agencies that honor our commitment to Veterans, support a strong national security, and keep the executive branch in check. Specifically, H.R. 4366:

Honors our commitment to Veterans by:

Fully funding Veterans’ health care programs; and
Fully funding Veterans’ benefits and VA programs, including the electronic health record modernization initiative.

Supports a strong national security by:

Providing nearly $800 million above the President’s Budget Request for military construction, focusing investments in the Pacific theater, barracks, and other quality-of-life projects; and
Maintaining two provisions prohibiting the closure or realignment of Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Cuts Wasteful Spending by:

Prohibits the use of funds to promote or advance critical race theory.
Prohibits the implementation, administration, or enforcement of the Biden Administration’s executive orders on DEI.
Eliminates funding for the VA’s Office of Public Affairs in response to the VA’s inaccurate and politically motivated press releases making false claims about budget cuts.

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