House leaders seek to add military 'quality of life' panel

As details of a proposed House Appropriations Committee shakeup begin to emerge, it is becoming clear Republican leaders aim to elevate "quality of life" issues for military personnel and veterans to the forefront of the domestic spending agenda, ahead of spending on education, health research and other social programs.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., has yet to publicly unveil his plans, as negotiations with Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran, R-Miss., are ongoing. But sources familiar with Lewis' proposal say it would make a new military "quality of life" panel -- with jurisdiction over housing, health care, base construction and veterans programs -- the second largest of all the appropriations bills, after a slimmed-down Defense measure. The new bill would draw a larger allocation than the Labor-HHS-Education bill, which has traditionally been the largest of the domestic discretionary measures.

Similar proposals to redistribute jurisdiction from Defense to the much-smaller Military Construction bill have fallen flat before in the Senate, where Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has been a prickly defender of his turf. But he does not appear to be immediately drawing a line in the sand. "It's a subject Chairman Cochran will decide," Stevens said through a spokeswoman.

By carving out military personnel and health funds from the massive Defense bill, Lewis would add at least $120 billion to the new "quality of life" panel while reducing the Defense bill's allocation, which in fiscal 2005 was about $391 billion, not counting supplemental funds for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Military personnel accounts for active and reserve forces cover pay, clothing, temporary duty travel and other expenses. Those funds totaled almost $104 billion in FY05. The Defense health program, which covers the TRICARE program and other medical costs, was funded at about $18 billion in 2005.

When added to the current Military Construction bill, which provides about $10 billion for military bases and housing costs, in addition to the Veterans Affairs Department, at about $33 billion in 2005 discretionary spending, the new subcommittee would control at least $160 billion. That total is likely to grow in 2006 despite a tight budget proposal from President Bush expected Monday.

By contrast, discretionary spending in 2005 for programs covered under the Labor-HHS-Education bill totaled about $143.3 billion. That panel would remain in place under Lewis' proposal, although the former VA-HUD subcommittee would not. HUD funding would move to another subcommittee with jurisdiction over Transportation and Treasury department programs, among others, with VA accounts shifting to the quality of life panel.

The size and prestige of the quality of life panel could make it an attractive target for prospective "cardinals," or subcommittee chairmen. But its accounts do not easily lend themselves to earmarking, as would funds under the purview of the new Transportation-Treasury-HUD panel, which is attracting interest from the VA-HUD Subcommittee chairmen in both chambers.

Rep. James Walsh, R-N.Y., is term-limited in his old post. As the most senior GOP panel member without a gavel, he might be offered the chairmanship of the expanded military quality of life panel, sources said. It might be difficult for Walsh to turn down.

While Sen. Christopher (Kit) Bond, R-Mo., has concerns about eliminating the VA-HUD panel, he is senior enough to take over the Senate Transportation-Treasury-HUD panel should it be offered. That would put him in prime position to negotiate a new surface transportation bill as chairman of both transportation appropriations and authorizing subcommittees in that chamber. Bond is also chairman of the Environment and Public Works Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee.