{"id":26892,"date":"2019-05-09T20:50:22","date_gmt":"2019-05-09T20:50:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:51:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:51:28","slug":"big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/","title":{"rendered":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/2018\/09\/21\/trump-oks-the-largest-va-budget-ever\/\" target=\"_blank\">fund the Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a> and various military construction projects next fiscal year, adding even more money to veterans programs than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/03\/11\/trump-backs-a-huge-increase-in-va-spending-but-his-budget-plan-still-may-upset-some-veterans\/\" target=\"_blank\">the White House has requested.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If it becomes law, the funding plan would give VA officials an increase of more than 10 percent compared to fiscal 2019 levels, the latest in an almost two-decade trend of sizable increases for the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The bill also includes language blocking military construction funds from being used for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/02\/15\/white-house-promises-using-military-funds-to-build-trumps-border-wall-wont-hurt-force-readiness\/\" target=\"_blank\">President Donald Trump\u2019s controversial southern border wall project,<\/a> expected to be a major point of contention in budget debates throughout the summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/03\/11\/trump-backs-a-huge-increase-in-va-spending-but-his-budget-plan-still-may-upset-some-veterans\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/42668952140_b040aa8248_o.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Trump wants a huge increase in VA spending, but some vet groups are still unhappy. Here\u2019s why.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">If approved, the $216 billion proposed budget would be the largest in VA history.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats on the appropriations committee said they are ready for the fight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFunds for the wall should not be stolen from previously approved vital military construction projects that are a higher priority than any wall,\u201d said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla. and head of the committee\u2019s VA-military construction panel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMilitary construction dollars should be used only for the purpose they are provided, which is to support the Department of Defense\u2019 mission, service members and their families.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Committee Republicans unsuccessfully tried to remove the wall construction restrictions and add in $7.2 billion in additional wall funding for fiscal 2020, calling the border issue a national security threat for the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Earlier this year, Trump announced plans to tap more than $3 billion in previously approved military construction funds for wall construction. The move roiled political opponents and has overshadowed all budget negotiations on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite that disagreement, Thursday\u2019s budget bill received bipartisan support in the final committee vote (31 to 21) and praise from members on both sides for a commitment to funding veterans\u2019 needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fiscal 2020 budget proposal is nearly double the total VA funding level from 10 years ago and more than four times the total in fiscal 2001, when the entire budget was about $45 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The measure includes $94.3 billion in discretionary program funding for VA. That\u2019s about $1 billion more than what the White House requested in March, and represents an increase of more than nine percent from fiscal 2019 levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">House appropriators included an additional $1 billion in VA construction funds for \u201cseismic corrections at VA facilities nationwide,\u201d an issue that veterans groups have lobbied on for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The measure also includes $9.4 billion for mental health programs, $1.9 billion for homeless assistance efforts, and $4.5 billion for community care expansion. Lawmakers added about $35 million in gender-specific veterans programs (now totaling more than $580 million) and mirrored the administration\u2019s request for $840 million for medical and prosthetics research.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/02\/28\/is-va-spending-enough-on-womens-health-programs\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5050053.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Is VA shortchanging women\u2019s health programs?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Lawmakers worry that spending for women-specific programs isn&#039;t keeping up with the rapidly growing number of women veterans.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another $222 million was set aside for suicide prevention outreach activities. VA officials faced criticism last year for not using all of that spending account despite a lack of progress on reducing suicides among veterans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About $1.6 billion is set aside in the measure for VA\u2019s ongoing electronic medical records overhaul, designed to bring their systems into line with military records. Several lawmakers expressed skepticism about the costs \u2014 and past money spent on the issue \u2014 but agreed to the total because of the importance of synching the systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Within the military construction totals (about $10.5 billion), lawmakers included $1.5 billion in family housing funds. That\u2019s up about $141 million from the White House budget request, and was included to address issues \u201csuch as mold, vermin, and lead in military family housing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That issue has been a focus of Congress in recent months. Military leaders have promised reforms to the department\u2019s privatized housing amid reports of lingering maintenance and health issues at dozens of sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The full House is expected to vote on the VA and military construction budget bill in coming weeks. The Republican-lead Senate has not yet weighed in with their initial draft of those spending issues yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both sides will need to pass a final compromise on a spending plan \u2014 or a short-term budget extension \u2014 before Oct. 1 to avoid a partial government shutdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As they have in recent years, lawmakers in 2018 approved advanced appropriations for VA medical needs to ensure that department hospitals and medical centers are not shut down in the event of a budget impasse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":78384,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":65,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[65,106,31,15,33],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3294],"class_list":["post-26892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-budget","category-daily-brief","category-home","category-management","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"QEW4DUUQYJEVRMHPWK7DA7745U","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight - Federal Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Federal Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 686,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/5340717.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Budget\",\n\t                \"Daily Brief\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Inside the Agencies\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight - Federal Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/5340717.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/5340717.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/5340717.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/09\\\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Congress\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"congress\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Budget\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/congress\\\/budget\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"budget\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 4,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Federal Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Federal Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Federal Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/federal-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/federal-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Federal Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/federaltimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight - Federal Times","description":"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight","og_description":"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/","og_site_name":"Federal Times","article_published_time":"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00","author":"Leo Shane III","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Leo Shane III","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight","datePublished":"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/"},"wordCount":686,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5340717.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Budget","Daily Brief","Home","Inside the Agencies","Newsletters"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/","name":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight - Federal Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5340717.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2019-05-09T20:50:22+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T07:51:28+00:00","description":"House appropriators advanced a $228 billion budget plan covering veterans programs for military construction in fiscal 2020, but immigration issues overshadow its future.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5340717.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5340717.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/2019\/05\/09\/big-boost-in-va-funding-could-be-halted-by-border-wall-funding-fight\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Congress","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/","ad_zone":"congress"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Budget","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/budget\/","ad_zone":"budget"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Big boost in VA funding could be halted by border wall funding fight"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/","name":"Federal Times","description":"Federal Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#organization","name":"Federal Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/federal-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/federal-logo-white.png","caption":"Federal Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Federal Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5340717.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26892"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38106,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26892\/revisions\/38106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26892"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=26892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}