House Republicans pass first funding bill despite White House veto threat

House Republicans on Wednesday passed their first funding bill for fiscal 2025, laying out a proposed blueprint for the Veterans Affairs (VA) Department and military construction that also includes a list of partisan riders in areas such as abortion that are non-starters for Democrats.

The House passed the legislation 209-197 on Wednesday morning, despite a veto threat from the White House, as the GOP conference plows ahead with an aggressive plan to pass 12 annual spending bills before the August recess. Four Democrats voted in favor of the measure, while two Republicans opposed it.

The bills, however, are unlikely to go anywhere, and many lawmakers expect Congress to pass a stopgap funding bill that extends funding past the November elections.

The spending plan calls for about $379 billion in overall funding for fiscal 2025 for the VA and military construction and housing programs, which Republicans say fully funds health care and benefits for veterans.

That includes more than $337 billion in VA funding, about a third of which goes toward veterans’ medical care, and north of $17 billion for Defense Department military construction and family housing.

“The bill makes good on the Republican commitment to bring bills to the floor that comply with the Fiscal Responsibility Act, while honoring our commitment to our nation’s veterans and our troops,” Rep. John Carter (R-Texas), who heads the subcommittee that crafted the bill, said of the bill this week. 

“To honor that commitment, the bill provides full funding for health care and benefits for veterans. They have earned these benefits, and we are making good on our promise to them.”

However, Democrats have come out strongly against the bill, which includes a rider they say would restrict the VA from carrying out a Biden administration rule that allows veterans to have greater access to abortion counseling and abortions in certain circumstances.

Under the rule, the VA is allowed to provide access to abortions for veterans if their life or health is endangered, or if they became pregnant because of rape or incest.

Democrats have also targeted other riders they say would block the VA from implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and block access to gender-affirming care, among other measures. 

The Biden administration cited similar measures in its opposition to the funding plan earlier this week, knocking Republicans for “again wasting time with partisan bills” containing “numerous, partisan policy provisions with devastating consequences.”

The bill’s passage marks a victory for House GOP leadership as the party works to clear all of its partisan funding bills in the coming weeks with a narrow majority.

However, leadership still faces tough challenges ahead, particularly as negotiators craft annual funding for agencies such as the FBI and promise big cuts on the way for other nondefense programs that could be tough votes for moderates ahead of the November elections.