Congressman Bob Filner

Chairman of House Veterans Affairs Committee!

I am both proud and humbled by the decision of my colleagues to appoint me as the next Chairman of the Committee, and I very much appreciate their support. I look forward to working with Republican and Democratic Members, the administration, and the veterans’ community to address the challenges facing our veterans and their families.

I have served on the House Veterans Affairs Committee since my election to Congress in 1992, and served as the Acting-Ranking Democratic Member of the Committee for much of 2006.

This Committee’s work is critically important to our servicemembers, veterans and military families, and it is my goal to help make certain that Congress is responsive to their needs. I want to develop a strong and bi-partisan working relationship with all of my colleagues on the Committee to carry out this important responsibility

I am a strong advocate for increased funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system, including greater resources for mental health care and chronic diseases research.

Among the issues I plan to address on the Committee in the 110th Congress are ensuring timely and adequate funding for the VA, effectively addressing the mental health and transition concerns of our troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, improving Department of Defense and VA collaboration, and updating the Montgomery GI Bill.

Calling For Expedited Approval of Disabled Veterans for Public Housing

Last month, I joined with 27 of my Congressional colleagues in calling upon Secretary Alphonso Jackson, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to exempt disabled veterans from the 96 hours of community service that they must currently complete in order to qualify for public housing.

Requiring disabled veterans to perform community service mandates before they can live in public housing ignores the fact that they have already served our community through military service. Furthermore, many are physically unable to perform community service.

Because there is no housing program specifically for low-income veterans, they must go through HUD to receive help--and veterans who have been declared ‘permanently and totally disabled’ by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are not exempt from the community service requirement. However, individuals who receive Social Security disability benefits are exempt.

I believe that VA’s statutory definition of ‘permanently and totally disabled’ is consistent with HUD’s definition of ‘persons with disabilities.’ Low-income, disabled veterans should not have to face another totally unnecessary burden in their quest for housing. I urge Secretary Jackson to act today on our request, which has been endorsed by former VA Secretary Anthony Principi and the VA General Counsel.

View The Letter to Secretary Jackson

Announcing Long-Awaited Upgrade for Educational Radio, KSDS-FM

I am pleased to announce that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted a power upgrade to KSDS-FM, ending more than 12 years of red tape. I joined with other members of the San Diego County delegation in strongly requesting that an FCC decision be made, given that the request for an upgrade was made by KSDS-FM in 1994!

The upgrade from 3kW to 22kW will allow the non-commercial, non-profit educational radio station, located on the campus of San Diego City College, to reach listeners throughout the greater San Diego area.

This is a good decision, ending a process which showed no sign of resolution before my colleagues and I became involved. While we did not endorse a specific course of action, we conveyed our collective belief that the FCC had a responsibility to act--we were helpful in bringing closure to this long-standing application.

KSDS-FM is known for its local programming, educational broadcasts and popularity among jazz listeners. KSDS-FM has been nominated numerous times for Jazz Station of the year by the National Association of Broadcasters.