Creates a VA accessibility advisory committee for a 10-year period
Officially: Veterans Accessibility Advisory Committee Act of 2025
S.1383 would set up a Veterans Advisory Committee on Equal Access at the VA. The committee would review physical, digital, and service-related accessibility issues, then report its findings and recommendations to the VA Secretary and Congress. It would last 10 years unless a later law extends it.
Where it stands
floor
Your representatives are deciding where they stand. A few messages can tip the balance.
- Creates a "Veterans Advisory Committee on Equal Access" inside the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the VA must set it up within 180 days after the bill becomes law.
- The committee has 15 voting members: disabled veterans, accessibility experts, VA accessibility officials, and representatives of national veterans service organizations focused on disability issues.
- It also adds four ex officio members: the VA Under Secretaries for Health, Benefits, and Memorial Affairs, plus the chair of the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, also called the Access Board.
↓ Why your message matters here
This bill is moving through Congress right now — your representative needs to hear from you.
The debate
What people are saying about this bill
- Creates a standing, long-term structure focused only on accessibility, which could help the VA find and fix barriers that might otherwise be missed.
- Gives disabled veterans, accessibility experts, and veterans organizations a direct role in advising VA leadership, bringing both lived experience and technical knowledge into the process.
- Covers both physical access and digital access, including websites, technology, and communication, which matter more and more for getting VA care and benefits.
- Adds another advisory committee inside the VA, which some people may see as more bureaucracy instead of directly fixing known accessibility problems.
- The bill requires advice and reporting, but it does not require the VA to adopt the committee's recommendations, so real accessibility changes could vary.
- Members are unpaid except for travel costs, which could limit who can afford to serve and how much time they can give, possibly weakening the committee's effectiveness.
Where this bill is in the process
Legislative timeline
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
Senate Committee
Under Senate committee consideration
Senate Floor Vote
Voted on by Senate
Latest: Considered by Senate (Message from the House considered). (consideration: CR S1647) (3/26/2026)
Passed Senate
Approved by Senate
House Review
Sent to House for consideration
Passed Both Chambers
Approved by both House and Senate
Signed into Law
Signed by the President
For more detail