Cole Remarks at FY25 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Bill Full Committee Markup

I would once again like to welcome everyone to our first full committee bill markup for Fiscal Year 2025.

It is deeply fitting that the first bill we will be considering is the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill.

As members know from our earlier markup, the subcommittee allocations reflect both a prudent stewardship of scarce taxpayer dollars and a recommendation as to where our priorities must be. Today’s bill covers one of our major priorities: to provide full funding for health care and benefits for our nation’s veterans. This ensures that our veterans can get the services that they earned through service to a grateful nation.

In addition, the bill also provides robust but responsible funding for military construction projects, with a particular focus on the Pacific region and on military family housing. It ensures that we can meet our national defense needs both at home and abroad.

Notably, it fulfills these priorities while also remaining true to the budgetary levels outlined in the Fiscal Responsibility Act, which is the law of the land. But, in a reflection of the deep importance of this topic to the members of this Committee, today’s bill actually appropriates over four hundred million dollars more than the President’s Budget request. This will ensure that we can meet military construction and overall defense needs both now and into the future. 

I want to thank Chairman Carter and all of the members and staff on both sides of the aisle for their hard work on this bill, and I urge all members of the Committee to support it today.