Veterans

Congressman Gerry Connolly, Chairman of the Government Operations subcommittee, released the following statement in advance of today’s House Oversight hearing on “H.R. 51: Making D.C. the 51st State.” Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding today’s hearing on H.R. 51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act. As a longtime supporter of D.C. statehood, I commend Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton for introducing this bill and for her tireless efforts to fight for the rights of District residents. Today’s ... Read more

Reps. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Peter King (R-NY), and Mike Turner (R-OH) introduced H.R. 4264, the Safe Homefront Act, to ensure that no U.S. servicemember with a felony-level domestic violence conviction is able to legally purchase firearms. This bipartisan legislation would codify and strengthen the Department of Defense’s (DOD) policies regarding the reporting of domestic violence convictions and Military Protective Orders (MPOs) to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). ... Read more

Last night, the House of Representatives adopted a bipartisan amendment offered by Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and Congressman Peter King (R-NY) that would ensure the FBI has the information it needs to keep firearms out of the hands of domestic abusers. Specifically, the amendment would codify and strengthen the Department of Defense’s (DOD) policies regarding the reporting of domestic violence to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). According to the Department of... Read more

On Thursday, June 20, 2019, Rep. Gerry Connolly, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, will hold a hearing to examine longstanding critical deficiencies at the Washington, D.C. Veterans Affairs Medical Center (DC VAMC). WHERE: 2154 Rayburn House Office Building WHEN: Thursday, June 20, 2019 TIME: 2:00 p.m. EST The hearing will be broadcast here. PURPOSE • The Subcommittee will probe the VA’s efforts to address longstanding problems that cause extreme risks to veterans’ healt... Read more

Joe Davidson Key members of Congress want the Trump administration to address charges of a “secret” Veterans Affairs wait list that has a higher number of patients seeking medical care than information publicly available. Allegations about significantly different data regarding veterans awaiting treatment on internal and public records were made by Jereme P. Whiteman, VA’s national director of clinic practice management, in a Washington Post Federal Insider column published online Monday . The ... Read more

Today, Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter to House and Senate Appropriators urging them to protect Coast Guard death gratuities in the event of another government shutdown. “The longstanding purpose of the death gratuity payment is to assist families of deceased servicemembers in meeting their financial needs during the period immediately following a loved one’s dea... Read more

Today, Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, reintroduced the National Security Diversity and Workforce Inclusion Act, legislation that would promote diversity in federal national security offices. Companion legislation has been introduced in the Senate by Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD). Connolly was joined by Representatives Meeks (D-NY), Hastings (D-FL) and Bass (D-CA). “Diversity is a unique source of strength for American society, our economy, ... Read more

U.S. Representatives Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) introduced H. Con. Res. 42, a resolution to ensure that countries that enter into trade agreements with the United States provide transparent and efficient support in the research and recovery efforts of our nation’s missing service members. Reps. Thompson and Connolly introduced the resolution in advance of Memorial Day Weekend, when the nation pays tribute to our fallen veterans who never returned home. “We have a sacred... Read more

Earlier this week, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Congressman Paul Mitchell (R-MI), Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) introduced H.R. 2847, the No Passport Fees for Heroes’ Families Act, which waives passport fees for family members obtaining a passport to visit an injured servicemember overseas. It mirrors a provision in existing law that waives passport fees for family members attending an overseas funeral or memorial service for a fallen servicemember. “No family should have... Read more

Andrea Worker Thousands of furloughed government employees suffered during the shutdown. Many were forced to seek public and and/or private assistance to meet basic needs and financial obligations. But during their ordeals, those government employees knew that when they returned to work they would eventually receive back pay. The same is not true for the businesses and employees who contract their services to the federal government. There is no provision for lost personal compensation or compan... Read more