Fetterman backs bill to expand, protect union rights for VA health workers

May 10—WILKES-BARRE — U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, this week co-sponsored the VA Employee Fairness Act — a bill that expands collective‑bargaining power to Veterans Affairs nurses, physicians and other front-line health care professionals — while he says President Trump attacks collective bargaining rights of VA employees and Elon Musk’s DOGE purge hollows out the agency’s workforce.

Pennsylvania is home to nearly 800,000 veterans who depend on VA hospitals in Pittsburgh, Philly, Wilkes-Barre, Erie and Lebanon. Fetterman said since the DOGE cuts and layoffs began, VA job vacancies have climbed, leaving fewer staff to serve our veterans.

“If you care about veterans, you must take care of the people who treat and keep them healthy,” Fetterman said. “Trump and Musk are thoughtlessly axing thousands of VA staff, threatening to fire thousands more, and fighting to take away the bargaining rights of all VA staff on top of it. This bill is an alternative approach. We should expand collective bargaining rights at the VA to include registered nurses, doctors, and other healthcare providers. This bill gives VA health workers a seat at the negotiating table, to advocate for safe staffing levels, fair schedules and the resources they need to keep our veterans alive and well.”

The VA Employee Fairness Act — introduced by U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, and co-led by U.S. Rep. and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Mark Takano, D-CA-39, would expand collective bargaining rights to VA health care professionals, including registered nurses, physicians, optometrists, chiropractors and others.

Fetterman said Section 7422 of Title 38 USC restricts the ability of these workers to speak freely about poor working conditions and resolve disputes with management. As a result, the quality of patient care has often deteriorated as problems in VA facilities go unaddressed.

McCormick and Gallego introduce bipartisan housing bill

U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pittsburgh, and U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, this week introduced the HUD-USDA-VA Interagency Coordination Act — which would encourage greater inter-governmental coordination to address the rising cost and limited supply of housing in communities in Pennsylvania and across the country.

“Home ownership is out of reach for far too many families in Pennsylvania, including our nation’s veterans,” McCormick said. “We need federal agencies to work together more effectively to increase the limited supply of housing and reduce housing costs.”

This legislation continues McCormick’s ongoing work to increase the supply of affordable housing in Pennsylvania as a member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee and the subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development. McCormick recently co-led Senator Gallego’s Housing Affordability Act, which would increase the supply of affordable housing by increasing the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) outdated multifamily loan limits.

Pennsylvania has a significant housing affordability problem. Since 2010, housing prices in Pennsylvania have increased by 77%. Between 2019 and 2024, rent in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh was up more than 20%. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have offered housing support programs for decades. Closer coordination can help agencies learn from shared housing-related data and deliver services more effectively.

The bill directs HUD, USDA and the VA to establish a memorandum of understanding to share relevant housing-related research and market data that facilitates evidence-based policy making around housing. The three agencies are also required to submit a report to Congress on opportunities for increased collaboration to improve efficiencies in housing programs. The report will be made open for public comment from stakeholders.

Bresnahan’s bill to simplify veterans forms passes out of committee

U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan Jr., R-Dallas Township, this week released the following statement after his legislation, H.R. 1286 — the Simplifying Forms for Veterans Claims Act — passed out of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.

The bill, which passed unanimously out of committee, would simplify forms required by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for veterans and survivors.

“I am incredibly pleased to see my bill pass out of committee and take the next step in the legislative process,” Bresnahan said. “Our military members dedicate their lives to serving our nation — the last thing they need when they come home are mountains of daunting paperwork. I want to thank my colleagues on the committee for their vote of support. Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District is home to nearly 40,000 veterans. I am proud to spearhead this legislation for each and every one of them and their families.”

The Veterans Benefits Administration within VA requires veterans and survivors to complete standard forms to initiate and pursue claims for VA benefits, including disability compensation, pension and survivors’ benefits. These forms can often be arduous and difficult to understand for veterans or their survivors, and failure to do correctly fill them out can result in delays in processing their claim, delays in receiving a decision on their claim or even a denial of their claim.

Bresnahan said he introduced the Simplifying Forms for Veterans Claims Act to simplify the forms process to make VA standard forms more user-friendly. The legislation would require VA to contract with a nonpartisan, federally funded research entity to conduct a study on, and provide recommendations for, revising VA forms to be more understandable for veterans and their survivors.

Following this study, the VA Secretary would be required to report findings to Congress and implement recommendations.

Bill to invest in American military depots introduced

Fetterman and U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arizona, this week introduced the Depot Investment Reform Act to help military depots across the United States respond to rapidly changing national security needs around the world by making federal investments more responsive.

U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pittsburgh, and U.S. Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, introduced the companion legislation in the House.

“Military depots like Tobyhanna and Letterkenny are the backbone of our military readiness,” Fetterman said. “They ensure our soldiers have access to the weapons systems and platforms they need to keep our nation safe. The Depot Investment Reform Act takes action to make sure our depots can respond to rapidly evolving global threats.”

“America’s military needs to be ready and prepared for whatever comes our way,” Deluzio said.

The Depot Investment Reform Act would improve military depot responsiveness by updating the formula used to determine federal investments in these depots. Currently, funding levels are determined based on the average workload of the previous three fiscal years.

The Depot Investment Reform Act would change this formula to consider the workload average of the previous fiscal year, current fiscal year, and estimate for the next fiscal year to determine investments.

Military depots are essential to maintaining military readiness by ensuring critical weapons systems are being repaired and returned for use in training and operations, the congressmen said. Tobyhanna Army Depot and Letterkenny Army Depot, both located in Pennsylvania, have played essential roles in arming U.S. service members with reliable weapons, technology, and platforms throughout U.S. military history, the congressmen said.

Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.