Amata-Backed Veterans Bills Advance

Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Uifa'atali Amata, who is Vice Chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee (HVAC), is welcoming Committee passage this past week of another slate of 16 Veterans' bills, including several she cosponsors.

Vice Chairman Amata is original cosponsor of the bipartisan U.S. Vets of the FAS Act, H.R. 6652; cosponsor of the RECOVER Act, H.R. 2283, led by HVAC Chairman Mike Bost (R-IL); and cosponsor of the Blast Overpressure Research and Mitigation Task Force Act, H.R. 6444. The next step for these bills is full House consideration.

The U.S. Vets of the FAS Act fulfills U.S. commitments to U.S. Veterans in the Freely Associated States (FAS) with telehealth and mail order pharmacy services. Congresswoman Amata led passage of the COFA legislation in 2024, the last Congress, serving as Chairman of the Natural Resources Committee's Indo-Pacific Task Force on that effort. The bipartisan bill is the cooperative effort of the three Pacific territories and the Hawaii House delegation.

The RECOVER Act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement a three-year pilot program providing grants to established non-profit mental health-care providers for culturally competent, evidence-based mental health care for veterans.

The Blast Overpressure Research and Mitigation Task Force Act creates a task force of experts to focus on research regarding sleep therapy, blast-related gut health, mobile diagnostics, vestibular dysfunction and balance impairment, autonomic nervous system dysregulation, cumulative mild traumatic brain injury, neuroinflammation and glial activation, and other findings, as well as monitor Veterans' declines in vision, hearing or other function, and provide recommendations and reports to Congress and the VA to improve services and care.

"These bills are important ways to keep our commitment to our Veterans and honor their sacrifice," said Vice Chairman Amata. "The bills I cosponsor focus on providing VA services in the Pacific, mental health research and improvements, and blast-related care and findings. I'm broadly supportive of this group of Veterans' legislation, and many of these bills have bipartisan backing."

This past week's HVAC-passed Veterans' bills:

H.R.2283 - The RECOVER Act

H.R.6652 - The U.S. Vets of the FAS Act

H.R.6444 - The Blast Overpressure Research and Mitigation Task Force Act

H.R.6993 - The BEACON Act of 2026

H.R.7083 - The CRUISE Act

H.R.7103 - The Improving Emerging Tech Opportunities for Veterans Act

H.R.5634 - The Veterans Flight Training Responsibility Act of 2026

H.R. 7950 - The VA Congressional Accountability Act

H.R. 7683 - The VA Fiscal Management and Modernization Act

H.R. 8052 - The VIP Act (Veterans Infection Prevention)

H.R. 6698 - The Board of Veterans Appeals Annual Report Transparency Act

H.R. 7260 - The National Cemetery Administration Annual Report Act of 2026

H.R.3159 - The Improving SCRA Benefit Utilization Act

H.R. 5436 - The End Transcript Withholding for Veterans Act

H.R.5999 - The Veteran Opioid Emergency Treatment Act

H.R. 5723 - The Fraud Reduction and Uncovering Deception (FRAUD) in VA Disability Exams Act.

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