(Washington, D.C.) — “Vietnam Veterans of America strongly supports the National Veterans Strategy Act of 2026, legislation recently introduced by U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, because VVA firmly believes that veteran success is a vital, national interest and should be recognized as such,” said Tom Burke, VVA National President.
Introducing what Sen. Blumenthal has called “a whole-of-government approach,” the National Veterans Strategy Act of 2026, a first-of-its-kind legislation, directs the President to develop a national strategy every four years on how to best coordinate efforts among various stakeholders to support veteran well-being as a national interest. It would also direct the federal government to develop standardized metrics to assess veteran outcomes to help identify gaps, strengthen outcomes, and align veteran-related policies around shared, universal goals.
“We need measurable outcomes and a coordinated plan, so veterans and their families can thrive after service,” Burke said. “This legislation reflects the promise of VVA’s longtime, unwavering commitment to the well-being of all veterans. It is our duty to ensure that no veteran is left behind, and the passage of this act is a crucial step toward fulfilling that promise.”
The federal government spends more than $300 billion each year on veterans programs, including grants to states and to nonprofit organizations. This is in addition to billions of dollars from state budgets spent each year and billions of dollars in private and philanthropic funding of veteran-serving programs. VA is required to formulate a strategic plan once every four years, but that plan is mainly focused on VA’s internal goals and operations. This legislation would provide for better coordination of these resources to effect better outcomes for veterans and their families.
“With its focus on a uniform and cohesive strategy across the board, this legislation would help to create a shared understanding of the purpose of veterans programs and clarify the outcomes they are intended to achieve,” said Burke. “VVA believes this approach can only benefit the next generation of servicemembers and contribute to their receiving their hard-earned benefits and rights on their return to civilian life. We exhort the members of Congress to prioritize this legislation.”
