Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 2023

Floor Speech

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Mr. SELF. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act.

This bill will streamline the veterans claims process through several actions, including adding language from my bill, H.R. 1329, to add two additional judges to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

For decades, the Board of Veterans' Appeals has been maligned because they cannot provide timely decisions to veterans who appeal their cases. To make matters worse, the court anticipates the caseload in FY 2023 increasing even more due to the amount of cases generated from the PACT Act.

Quite simply, more cases before the board will lead to more denials, and more denials will lead to more appeals. The rapid growth of appeals will create an even larger backlog and leave veterans waiting longer periods of time--potentially years--for their cases to be resolved.

Since the court's expansion from five to seven permanent judges in 2011, appeals that have been filed with the court have more than doubled from just under 4,000 to just under 9,000 in 2020. Increasing the number of judges will provide the court with an opportunity to prevent a backlog and provide veterans with decisions in a timely manner.

The addition of this language to the bill is endorsed by the court itself.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 1530.

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