VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
Latest action · Jan 20, 2026 Became Public Law No: 119-71.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMar 4, 2025
- Passed HouseMay 19, 2025
- Passed SenateDec 18, 2025
- To the PresidentJan 12, 2026
- Became lawJan 20, 2026Public Law 119-71
Summary
VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
This act requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review and report on the circumstances and causes of the shortfall in funding of the Veterans Benefits Administration for FY2024 and the expected shortfall in funding of the Veterans Health Administration in FY2025. The Department of Veterans Affairs must submit such GAO report to Congress. For each of the five fiscal years following the date of enactment of this act, GAO must conduct subsequent reviews and reports regarding the funding of the VA.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Mar 4, 2025.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-IL | Mike Bost | Original | Mar 4, 2025 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Veterans' Affairs Committee | Referred Mar 4, 2025Markup May 6, 2025Reported May 17, 2025 |
| Health Subcommittee | Referred Mar 10, 2025Markup Mar 25, 2025Reported Mar 25, 2025 | |
| Senate | Veterans' Affairs Committee | Referred May 20, 2025Discharged Dec 19, 2025 |
Actions 20
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jan 20, 2026Signed by President.
- Jan 20, 2026Became Public Law No: 119-71.
- Jan 12, 2026Presented to President.
- Dec 19, 2025Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Dec 18, 2025Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Dec 18, 2025Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S8895)
- May 20, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
- May 19, 2025Mr. Bost moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- May 19, 2025Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H2129-2130)
- May 19, 2025DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 1823.
- May 19, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H2129)
- May 19, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- May 17, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. H. Rept. 119-101.
- May 17, 2025Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 74.
- May 6, 2025Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Mar 25, 2025Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Mar 25, 2025Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote.
- Mar 10, 2025Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
- Mar 4, 2025Introduced in House
- Mar 4, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S8895 | John Thune R-SD | Dec 18, 2025 |
| House | Debate and remarks H2129, H2130Text printed H2129 | Jack Bergman R-MI, Mark Takano D-CA, Mike Bost R-IL | May 19, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- May 9, 2025H.R. 1823, VA Budget Shortfall Accountability ActAs ordered reported by the House Committee on Veterans Affairs on May 6, 2025
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 41, March 4, 2025, page H976.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 119-10 | LEGISLATIVE HEARING163 pages | Veterans' Affairs Committee | Mar 11, 2025 |
Titles 6
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Comptroller General of the United States to report on certain funding shortfalls in the Department of Veterans Affairs.
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
- Short Title(s) as Passed House
- VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
- Short Titles from ENR (Enrolled) bill text
- VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
- Short Titles from RFS (Referred to Senate) bill text
- VA Budget Shortfall Accountability Act
- Official Title from EH (Engrossed in House) bill text
- To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Comptroller General of the United States to report on certain funding shortfalls in the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security.
Text 5
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- —Enrolled Bill
- May 20, 2025Referred in Senate
- May 19, 2025Engrossed in House
- May 17, 2025Reported in House
- Mar 4, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
