VA Cried Wolf! Congress, Veterans and Veterans Advocates Appalled. Compensation Shortfall Lie!

VA 'cried wolf' over budget shortfall that didn't happen

“It just shreds their credibility,” said Darrell Owens, the director of government relations at veterans’ advocacy group America's Warrior Partnership.

Owens said VA officials spent the summer ringing alarm bells over anticipated budget shortfalls.

Congress passed about $3 billion in emergency supplemental funding for VA in September after the department warned it might not be able to meet all of its obligations for veterans to close out the 2024 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30.

Then, VA disclosed in a congressional report two weeks ago that it didn’t need to spend the emergency funding and that it had actually carried over about $5 billion in unspent funds from fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2025.

Rep. Mike Bost, the chair of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, sent a letter to VA Secretary Denis McDonough demanding accountability.

Bost, a Republican, accused VA of mismanaging its budget, scaring veterans and lying to Congress.

“This latest stunt is not just an accounting error – Congress passed, and the president signed into law nearly three billion additional taxpayer dollars because this administration’s handpicked VA leaders repeatedly told us that benefits funding was on the verge of running out and veterans could be harmed. But it turns out that was never true,” Bost said in a news release.

VA Under Secretary for Benefits Joshua Jacobs told Bost and other lawmakers during a Sept. 10 hearing that they needed the roughly $3 billion for the monthly veteran benefits to be paid on time on Oct. 1.

Dr. Shereef Elnahal, the VA’s under secretary for health, also spoke about an expected $12 billion hole in health care funding next year.

House Republicans said no VA benefits shortfall ever existed and the “utter inability to forecast and determine costs accurately erodes Congress’ faith in VA.”

Even without the nearly $3 billion in emergency funding, VA would have carried over more than $2 billion in unspent funds.

VA said the supplemental funding was prudent and critical to prevent damaging delays for veterans. The department said falling short just $1 in its funding as of Sept. 20 would've prevented it from certifying its payment files, jeopardizing disability compensation, pension and education benefits for more than 7 million veterans and survivors beginning Oct. 1.

VA said it is delivering record amounts of care and benefits, including more than 127 million health care appointments in the recently ended fiscal year and $187 billion in benefits to 6.7 million veterans and survivors.

Owens said he and other veterans’ advocates heard for months that VA faced a funding shortfall that imperiled veteran benefits.

But Owens said VA basically “cried wolf.”

“It really hurts, especially at a time when we're really trying to build that trust and confidence in the VA,” Owens said.

He said it raises some serious questions over how to hold VA officials accountable for mismanaging or misspending money. And he said it calls into question the officials’ ability to run a massive government agency.

“Overall, the VA is still great for veterans,” Owens said. “And it's important that veterans come back into the system so we can get the help they need. The VA can't fail. And it's our job ... to do right by our veterans. Period.”

Owens said VA must operate with transparency.

“The VA needs to be very open with both veterans and Congress about their books, about their leadership, about their decision-making, about their process, so that we could understand what went wrong and make sure it doesn't happen again in the future,” Owens said.