AUTO for Veterans Act

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3304) to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide or assist in providing an additional vehicle adapted for operation by disabled individuals to certain eligible persons, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3304, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3304, as amended, the AUTO for Veterans Act.

I was proud to join Representative Lizzie Fletcher in introducing H.R. 3304, and I thank her for her tireless work with the veteran community, which has led to this bill being considered on the floor today.

Currently, disabled veterans are only allowed a single grant to modify a vehicle to provide them mobility. This means there are cars that are 25, 30, or even 40 years old on the road because the veteran has no other option.

When you consider that the average life of an automobile is less than 12 years, we are asking veterans to incur additional costs and risks by driving excessively old cars for decades.

The AUTO for Veterans Act finally expands eligibility for disabled veterans to obtain vehicles modified for their disabilities more than once in their lifetime.

Upon passage into law, H.R. 3304 would immediately allow veterans who have waited decades to acquire a new vehicle and, after giving those veterans priority, would eventually expand the benefit to cover those veterans who updated their vehicle 10 years ago.

This legislation also expands the definition of ``medical services'' to include certain vehicle modifications so that veterans can attend medical appointments.

This legislation has long been a priority for veterans and is supported by DAV, VFW, PVA, and countless other veterans organizations.

This legislation is fully paid for and delivers for disabled veterans who gave us so much.

I thank the ranking member for his support of this legislation. I know we have both wanted to fix this longstanding problem.

Madam Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 3304, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Bost for his leadership on this important bill.

I rise in support of the AUTO for Veterans Act. This legislation would expand, as stated, access to the Department of Veterans Affairs' automobile grant, which assists severely disabled veterans.

Veterans, especially those in rural communities, Madam Speaker, face transportation challenges, as we all know, that affect their quality of life and independence. Expanding the VA auto grant program is a commonsense step toward improving this program for men and women who made tremendous sacrifices serving our country.

Improving access to safe and reliable transportation for disabled veterans will ensure they can maintain their independence and lead fulfilling, healthy lives.

I introduced the AUTO for Veterans Act, a bill nearly identical to this legislation, in the last Congress, and it did receive support from numerous veterans service organizations and garnered over 70 cosponsors, including Democrats and Republicans. I am glad that my Democrat colleagues were able to see the merit of this legislation, and I do look forward to the Senate taking action on this legislation and providing much-needed support and independence for our wounded veterans.

Madam Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the AUTO for Veterans Act, as amended.

This bill would help severely disabled service-connected veterans purchase and adapt a vehicle 10 years after they purchased their first one. Current law only provides veterans with the funds for one vehicle during their lifetime. We all know that the life of a car is not infinite. Maybe my father didn't, but most people do.

For too long, disabled veterans have had to drive vehicles that have logged hundreds of thousands of miles. This bill would help a deserving population with the safe and reliable transportation they need. I am also pleased that this bill is fully offset.

The underlying bill is very similar to H.R. 1361, the AUTO for Veterans Act, which was introduced this Congress and last by our colleague, Congressman Meuser. While I would have preferred that we consider his version today, this bill will help many disabled veterans, and it has my full support.

I thank the PVA and the DAV for their continued advocacy for this proposal.

Madam Speaker, I encourage all Members to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser).

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.