Committee markup approving 24 veterans benefits bills en bloc
The Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a business meeting to consider and vote on 24 pending pieces of legislation covering veterans' education, survivor, burial, health care, and disability benefits, along with a committee resolution on lease authorizations. Chairman Moran and Ranking Member Blumenthal opened with remarks emphasizing the bipartisan nature of the agenda before the committee approved the bills en bloc. Begins at▶ 0:23:15
• Chair Jerry Moran (R-KS)▶ 0:23:15: Opened the markup, noting the committee awaited additional members for a quorum▶ 0:23:15, and highlighted his sponsorship of S.410, the Love Lives On Act, which lets surviving spouses retain certain benefits if married before age 55▶ 0:23:45. He noted several members were absent attending a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base▶ 0:24:13, thanked Ranking Member Blumenthal for bipartisan cooperation▶ 0:24:46, and pledged to work on CBO offsets before sending bills to the floor▶ 0:25:06. He later read the full list of 24 bills into the record▶ 0:27:50 and moved to report them favorably en bloc, which passed on a voice vote▶ 0:29:25.
• Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ranking Member▶ 0:25:41: Emphasized the bipartisan character of the package and thanked Sen. Murray for work on a bill requiring research on health effects on descendants of toxic-exposed veterans▶ 0:25:41. He noted the package expands access to prosthetics, automobile adaptations, and opioid rescue medication, and adds education benefits for Purple Heart veterans and Guardsmen/Reservists▶ 0:26:36; he separately urged passage of the Major Richard Star Act, which is not on today's agenda, saying he has sought unanimous consent for it twice on the floor▶ 0:27:09. He recorded a "no" vote on S.1868 on behalf of Sen. Hirono▶ 0:29:47.
• Chairman Moran identified 24 pending bills on the agenda "sponsored by senators from both parties," describing them as bipartisan priorities▶ 0:23:45.
• Moran's S.410, the Love Lives On Act, would let surviving spouses keep certain benefits if married before age 55▶ 0:23:45.
• Moran linked the timing to several members' absence at a dignified transfer of fallen servicemembers at Dover Air Force Base▶ 0:24:13.
• Moran committed to working with members on identifying budget offsets before moving reported bills to the Senate floor, citing the committee's practice of not advancing bills to the floor without resolving offsets▶ 0:25:06.
• Blumenthal highlighted a bill with Sen. Murray requiring research on the health effects of toxic exposure on veterans' descendants▶ 0:25:41.
• Blumenthal pressed for the Major Richard Star Act (addressing concurrent receipt of retirement and disability benefits), saying he has twice sought unanimous consent on the floor and believes nearly the whole committee supports it, though it is not part of today's markup▶ 0:27:09.
• The committee reached a quorum and the chair read all 24 bill numbers, including S.342, S.649, S.1116, S.1657, S.1726, S.1868, S.2061, S.2220, S.2264, S.2309, S.2328, S.2333, S.2397, S.2683, S.2981, S.3033, S.3119, S.3138, S.3303, and S.3758▶ 0:27:50▶ 0:28:20▶ 0:28:52.
• The committee passed all bills en bloc by voice vote with no debate▶ 0:29:25.
• Blumenthal recorded a formal "no" vote on S.1868 on behalf of Sen. Hirono, the only dissent noted▶ 0:29:47.
| Official title | Business meeting to consider S.342, to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize an individual who is awarded the Purple Heart for service in the Armed Forces to transfer unused Post-9/11 Educational Assistance to a family member, S.410, to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve benefits and services for surviving spouses, S.649, to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand eligibility for Post-9/11 Educational Assistance to members of the National Guard who perform certain full-time duty, S.1116, to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the provision of certain additional burial benefits for individuals for whom an urn or plaque is furnished, S.1657, to amend title 38, United States Code, to limit the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to deny the claim of a veteran for benefits under the laws administered by such Secretary on the sole basis that such veteran failed to appear for a medical examination associated with such claim, S.1665, to amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure veterans of secrecy oath programs receive the full benefits they have earned, S.1726, to amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify that the Department of Veterans Affairs definition of "medical services" includes medically necessary automobile adaptations, S.1868, to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand access by veterans to critical access hospitals and affiliated clinics under the Veterans Community Care Program, S.2061, to require the Interagency Working Group on Toxic Exposure to conduct research on the diagnosis and treatment of health conditions of descendants of individuals exposed to toxic substances while serving as members of the Armed Forces, S.2220, to expand presumptions of exposure by members of the Armed Forces to toxic substances, S.2264, to improve the emergency management capabilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs, S.2309, to direct a physician or nurse practitioner employed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to certify the death of a veteran not later than 48 hours after such physician or nurse practitioner learns of such death, S.2328, to authorize the use of veterans educational assistance for examinations and assessments to receive credit toward degrees awarded by institutions of higher learning, S.2333, to require the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to permit supplementation of health records of deceased veterans, S.2397, to require implementation by the Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs of certain recommendations relating to the provision of health care through community care providers, S.2683, to amend title 38, United States Code, to establish in the Department of Veterans Affairs a Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Officer, S.2807, to amend title 38, United States Code, to modify the applicability of the authority to reconsider decisions of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or the Secretary of the Army to inter remains or honor the memory of a person in a national cemetery, S.2981, to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the provision of prosthetic and rehabilitative items and services by the Department of Veterans Affairs, S.3033, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish partnerships between medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs and medical facilities in rural areas, S.3119, to amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make temporary lodging facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs available for members of the Armed Forces, other individuals on active duty, and family members of such individuals on a space-available basis, S.3138, to amend title 38, United States Code, to include adaptive prostheses and terminal devices for sports and other recreational activities in the medical services furnished to eligible veterans by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, S.3303, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program to establish or enhance a community integration platform for services for veterans, to require the collection from veterans of information related to social determinants of health, S.3758, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make opioid overdose rescue medications available to veterans and their caregivers, and a committee resolution. |
| Committee | Senate Veterans' Affairs |
| Chamber / Congress | Senate · 119th Congress |
| Date | 2026-03-18 |
| Type | Meeting |
| Witnesses | (none listed in event metadata) |
| Video | senate-isvp |
| Transcript | 17 caption blocks · 925 words · 0:30:35 runtime |
| Event | Congress.gov 338071 |