Chris Smith: “I certainly appreciate and empathize with the motion to recommit; but the committee has, in my opinion, tried to…”

“I certainly appreciate and empathize with the motion to recommit; but the committee has, in my opinion, tried to carefully and painstakingly craft a budget that fully funds a number of very important veterans' programs. I believe Chairman Walsh and Ranking Democrat Mollohan have produced a generous allocation of Federal funds for veterans' programs. VA construction gets more--and much needed monies--under the bill. As a matter of fact it fully funds the first year of my bill, passed by the House--H.R. 811--Emergency Hospital Repair Act of 2001. The Walsh bill provides approximately $1.6 billion over and above last year in the area of discretionary spending, and a significant $1 billion more in VA medical care funding. Sure, I would like to increase VA appropriations beyond what is in this bill. We would all like to spend more. But we have to live within at least some budget restraints. No budget or appropriations bill is ever perfect, Mr. Speaker, but is the result of careful compromise and a weighing of competing priorities. Tomorrow I will bring to the floor the Veterans Benefits Act of 2001, which provides a $2.7 billion increase over 5 years, to boost COLAs for more than 2.3 million disabled vets.”